TITLE:
Persistence of herpetofauna in the urbanized rouge river ecosystem
AUTHORS:
David A. Mifsud, John C. Thomas
KEYWORDS:
Amphibian; Hydroperiod; Invasive Plants; Reptiles; Wetland; Urban Herpetology
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Ecology,
Vol.3 No.3,
July
18,
2013
ABSTRACT: Over
100 years, urbanization has taken place along the Rouge River watershed of
southeast Michigan, USA. To determine the impact(s) of urbanization on
herpetofauna, species richness and distribution in 122 wetlands along 13.0 km
of the urbanized Rouge River watershed were monitored from early spring to late
fall 2003. Data were mapped using Geographic Information Systems (GIS). Both
amphibian and reptile species richness were associated with wetland size and
hydroperiod. The invasive plants Alliaria
petiolata and Rhamnus cathartica were coincident with lower than average amphibian species richness. In spite of
the number of herpetofauna being relatively low, this study identified
hydroperiod and wetland size as important features that may contribute to
amphibian and reptile species sustainability in this highly disturbed and
fragmented urban landscape.