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Southeastern ARMI Monitoring Sites
Current Sites:
St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge
Located in Florida's panhandle approximately 25 km south of Tallahassee, St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge (SMNWR) encompasses 27,500 hectares of diverse upland and wetland habitats. Established in 1931 to provide wintering habitat for migratory birds, SMNWR extends along the Gulf coast in Taylor, Jefferson, and Wakulla Counties.
SMNWR has a diversity of upland and wetland habitats and potentially supports 40 species of amphibians (21 frogs and 19 salamanders) and 68 species of reptiles (13 lizards, 34 snakes, 20 turtles, and 1 crocodilian). The Flatwoods Salamander (Ambystoma cingulatum), a federally threatened species, has been documented from many sites on SMNWR. In the late 1970's, data on presence of amphibians and reptiles were collected by the USFWS during a study which quantified the relationships among forestry management practices and diversity and abundance of non-game wildlife (USFWS, 1980). This study included 14 upland drift fence arrays which were monitored for 2 years, although some of the arrays were not as extensively monitored during the second year. SEARMI research at SMNWR began in May 2002.
Lower Suwannee/Cedar Keys National Wildlife Refuge
Located along Florida's Big Bend region on the Gulf of Mexico, approximately 80 km WSW of Gainesville, Lower Suwannee National Wildlife Refuge (LSNWR) encompasses approximately 21,425 hectares of upland and wetland habitats and was established in 1979 to preserve unique coastal, flood plain, and upland ecosystems at the lower reach of the Suwannee River. LSNWR protects a diversity of aquatic and upland habitats including floodplain forest, salt marsh, hardwood swamp, cypress swamp, cabbage palm hammock, sandhill, scrub, and pine flatwoods. This refuge potentially supports 37 species of amphibians (21 frogs and 16 salamanders) and 66 species of reptiles (1 crocodilian, 1 amphisbaenid, 15 lizards, 34 snakes, and 15 turtles - excluding sea turtles). Historical information on the herpetofauna of the refuge is scant. Florida Museum of Natural History records included voucher specimens for only 18 species (3 amphibians and 15 reptiles) from the refuge proper, most of which dated from the 1970's or earlier. SEARMI research began at LSNWR in May 2002.
Harris Neck National Wildlife Refuge
Harris Neck NWR is located ca. 46 km south of Savannah and 31 km north of Darien, in McIntosh County, Georgia. The refuge comprises 1,255 hectares of mostly coastal deciduous and oak woodlands, grasslands, former cropland, and some pine. The refuge is surrounded by salt marshes and tidal creeks, limiting amphibian colonization. Harris Neck has a long history of human occupation (Amerindian, with plantations prior to the Civil War, a series of many small farms in the late 1800's-early 1900's, an airfield, a military base during World War II [Harris Neck Air Base], and under the ownership and management of several county, state, and federal government agencies after the war) which certainly affected herpetofaunal species richness and distribution as a result of extensive habitat modification. Harris Neck became a National Wildlife Refuge in 1962, and is managed primarily for waterfowl. Nearly all the wetlands at Harris Neck are either man-made impoundments, modified former tidal creeks, or ditches and borrow pits.
This refuge supports 13 amphibians (11 species of frogs and 1 species of salamander) and at least 17 species of reptiles (1 crocodilian, 5 lizards, 7 snakes, and 4 turtles - excluding sea turtles). It is likely that additional reptiles, particularly snakes, occur on the refuge. Historical information on the herpetofauna of the refuge is apparently nonexistent, as we have been unable to locate any museum specimens from Harris Neck. SEARMI research began at Harris Neck in April 2004.
Poster on the "Amphibians of Harris Neck National Wildlife Refuge", (7.6 mb PowerPoint file)
Savannah National Wildlife Refuge
Savannah National Wildlife Refuge comprises 11,320 hectares in Georgia and South Carolina immediately upstream along the Savannah River from the city of Savannah. As with Harris Neck, it is part of the Savannah Coastal Refuges Complex. The refuge has an extensive history of human occupation and use, from Amerindian through the plantation era, when the bottomlands and freshwater tidal marshes were extensively diked and modified for rice production (constructed from the mid to late 1700's). Designated in 1927, the refuge is primarily managed for waterfowl, and water levels within the former rice fields (1,364 hectares) are carefully controlled. The refuge occasionally clears vegetation from the impounded areas, resulting in a variety of marsh habitats of different depths, vegetation structure, and species composition.
To date, 21 species of amphibians (15 species of frogs and 6 species of salamanders) and at least 11 species of reptiles (1 crocodilian, 2 lizards, 5 snakes, and 3 turtles) have been reported from SVNWR. Undoubtedly, many more species will be found as sampling continues, especially among the reptiles. We are currently examining historical information on the herpetofauna of the refuge, as well as the field notes from early collectors. SEARMI research began at Savannah National Wildlife Refuge in April 2004.
Previously Monitored Projects:
Great Smoky Mountain National Park
Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge
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U.S. Department of the Interior |
U.S. Geological Survey