scholarly journals Long-toed Salamander (Ambystoma macrodactylum) hibernacula in Waterton Lakes National Park revealed using Passive Integrated Transponder telemetry

2019 ◽  
Vol 132 (2) ◽  
pp. 168-175 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew R. Atkinson-Adams ◽  
Christopher J. Price ◽  
Garry J. Scrimgeour ◽  
Cynthia A. Paszkowski
Keyword(s):  
National Park ◽  
Root Systems ◽  
Ambystoma Macrodactylum ◽  
Passive Integrated Transponder ◽  
Waterton Lakes National Park ◽  
Pit Telemetry

Long-toed Salamanders (Ambystoma macrodactylum) spend most of their lives on land; however, their fossorial nature makes studying their use of habitat difficult. Using Passive Integrated Transponder (PIT) telemetry over two years, we found and characterized nine overwintering sites of Long-toed Salamanders in the vicinity of Linnet Lake and Stable Pond in Waterton Lakes National Park, excavating five of them. These sites were typically associated with stumps and decaying root systems that gave the salamanders access to deep subterranean hibernacula. Overwintering sites were located up to 168 m from the shores of breeding ponds. Given the importance of such terrestrial sites to these populations of Long-toed Salamanders, it is vital that conservation efforts include the preservation of these features and ensure that a sufficient area surrounding breeding ponds remains undisturbed.

Holocene tephrostratigraphy and glacial fluctuations in Waterton Lakes and Glacier national parks, Alberta and Montana

1985 ◽  
Vol 22 (7) ◽  
pp. 1093-1101 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gerald Osborn
Keyword(s):  
19Th Century ◽  
National Parks ◽  
Rocky Mountains ◽  
National Park ◽  
Glacier National Park ◽  
Glacial Deposits ◽  
Canadian Rockies ◽  
Continental Divide ◽  
Minimum Age ◽  
Waterton Lakes National Park

Waterton Lakes National Park in Alberta and Glacier National Park in Montana lie along adjacent sections of the continental divide in the Rocky Mountains. In cirques or near divides there is evidence for two ages of glacial deposits. Younger deposits are generally well preserved, poorly vegetated, and bear no tephra and no or very small lichens. Older deposits are more poorly preserved, better vegetated, bear Rhizocarpon sp. lichens at least up to 92 mm in diameter, and bear tephra. The tephra often occurs in two different coloured horizons, but both are compositionally equivalent to Mazama tephra.The older advance has a minimum age of about 6800 14C years BP and a probable maximum age of about 12 000 14C years BP. It is correlated with the pre-Mazama Crowfoot Advance of the Canadian Rockies. Deposits of the younger advance are probably not too much older than mid-19th century, because some glaciers began retreating from the deposits about then. The younger advance is correlated to the Cavell Advance of the Canadian Rockies and the Gannett Peak Advance of the American Rockies.Both advances were minor. The older advance left moraines about 1.5 km or less beyond present glacier margins and depressed ELA's an average of 40 m below modern values.

Movement patterns of the invasive signal crayfish determined by PIT telemetry

2006 ◽  
Vol 84 (8) ◽  
pp. 1202-1209 ◽  
Author(s):  
Damian H. Bubb ◽  
Timothy J. Thom ◽  
Martyn C. Lucas
Keyword(s):  
Space Use ◽  
Field Studies ◽  
Remote Detection ◽  
Signal Crayfish ◽  
Passive Integrated Transponder ◽  
Median Distance ◽  
Release Location ◽  
Density Population ◽  
Portable Detector ◽  
Pit Telemetry

In one of the first field studies to utilize passive integrated transponder (PIT) telemetry to study space use of invertebrates, movement of the introduced signal crayfish ( Pacifastacus leniusculus (Dana, 1852)) was examined intensively in a high-density population in an upland river in northern England from 18 August to 6 September 2004. Crayfish (carapace length 21.0–67.3 mm) were tracked with externally attached PIT tags, enabling remote detection of tagged crayfish by the use of a portable detector. Of the 406 crayfish tagged, 356 (87.7%) were subsequently relocated at least once. The majority of crayfish remained close to the release location (median distance between release and final locations 36.3 m; 25th percentile 10.4 m, 75th percentile 91.6 m). However, movements of up to 345 m were recorded. There was no relationship between sex or size and distance moved. A small waterfall, upstream of the release location, appeared to form a barrier preventing movements of tagged crayfish upstream past it during the study period. PIT telemetry can provide an effective method for detailed recording of space use compared with standard mark–recapture or radiotelemetry methods.

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