Summer 2015-Teacher Training in Wildlife Survey Techniques

K-12 teachers got a chance to learn some new techniques in wildlife science this summer. This workshop was aimed at providing teachers with experience in several passive wildlife survey techniques including cover boards, game cameras, and various netting procedures to help them generate ideas for labs that they could use to engage their students. Even got some press in the local paper. Reviews were great, turnout was better than expected, and the weather was beautiful!

Evening Sun Article

Leading a group of teachers to cover boards and the first game camera stop.

Congrats Graduates!

Congratulations to the 2015 graduating class of Alderson Broaddus University. Members from my lab include my senior Lab/Tech TA’s Nourhaan Alidinar and Cynthia Rice as well as thesis student Chelsea Morral. All of which successfully defended their theses entitled below. They will be missed!

Chelsea Morral: Distribution of Chytridomycosis in Anuran Species of West Virginia

Cynthia Rice: Effects of substrate temperature and ambient air temperature on the Bonaire Whiptail Lizard, Cnemidophorus murinus, body temperature

Nourhaan Alidinar: A review of the dietary flavonoid biacalin on apoptosis, metastasis, and cell inflammation

Collaboration, Courses, & Research

Topics in Contemporary Biology started the first of many long term monitoring efforts focusing on the biodiversity of a developing mitigated wetland. Special permission was given to my classes at Morrisville State College Norwich Campus to begin biodiversity work on land owned by the Upper Susquehanna Coalition (USC) and The Wetland Trust (TWT). Research will focus on many types of taxa including amphibians & reptiles, mammals, aquatic & terrestrial invertebrates, birds, and botanical studies.

Student sampling a pond for aquatic invertebrates.

New Eastern Worm Snake Article!

The “cover” image.

A big thank you to Thomas K. Pauley for his collaboration and knowledge of this fascinating species. Click the link below to view the article.

Diefenbacher, Eric H. and Thomas K. Pauley. 2014. Notes on the Distribution and Natural History of the Eastern Wormsnake (Carphophis a. amoenus) in West Virginia. IRCF Reptiles & Amphibians. 21(4): 120-124. LINK

Summer of Snakes 2014

Every field season seems to yield a “theme” of organisms, no matter what the target species is for the study. Sometimes, unexpected results occur. This field season found some significant habitat alteration via storm damage at various Eastern Worm Snake (Carphophis a. amoenus) sites. Population numbers of this species were smaller than usual and could be a result of a more open canopy in damaged areas. An open canopy potentially results in an increase in the amount of moisture evaporating from the soil and increased soil temperature. For a fossorial species, hot dry soils don’t always make the best habitat.

A recheck of Smooth Green Snake (Liochlorophis vernalis) sites also saw population differences. One survey, of a once prolific site for this species, yielded zero individuals. However, plenty competitors such as the Redbelly Snake (Storeria occipitomaculata) and predators such Eastern Milk Snake (Lampropeltis triangulum) were abundant.

Long term studies and rechecks of sites help gather valuable information on population trends that are needed to better understand how species interact and thrive as habitat and climate change.

Redbelly Snake, Storeria occipitomaculata

Eastern Rat Snake, Scotophis alleghaniensis

Eastern Worm Snake, Carphophis a. amoenus

Students Doing Summer Research

Spring Peeper (Pseudacris crucifer) being swabbed for Chytrid fungus

This summer we have two students doing real top quality research:

In my lab, Chelsea is working on the distribution of Chytrid fungus in Anuran species of West Virginia. This is the first study to solely look at the prevalence of Chytrids in frogs and focuses on what species are affected and where in the state this disease is most prevalent in regards to frogs in West Virginia. Two previous studies looked at threatened and endangered species of salamanders and only a couple of the frog species of WV. By the end of this study we hope to be able to create a state wide map to help the WV Department of Natural Resources understand where Chytrid fungus is and how to manage frog populations accordingly.

Chelsea in the field swabbing frogs for Chytrid fungus

Chytrid fungus is a global amphibian disease that is decimating frog populations around the world. It is the only fungus group to contain flagellated spores and is transported very easily from place to place. Since many amphibians are also indicator organisms due to their porous skin, they serve as an environmental early warning system in regards to the health of the environment. Global warming, habitat destruction, and introduced species have all been hypothesized to help spread Chytrid fungus.

Jeremiah extracting a Red Eyed Vireo from a mist net

In Dr. Brittain’s Lab, Jeremiah is working on trophic level interactions between riparian invertebrates and Louisiana Waterthrush (Parkesia motacilla), a species of concern in West Virginia. They will be using stable isotope analysis of carbon and nitrogen to help determine what invertebrates and in what relative quantities constitute the diet of the fledgling young. This project involves a great deal of field work, bird banding, invertebrate sampling in streams, and feather sampling.

 

Gray Treefrog Breeding

One of my favorite species, the Gray Treefrog (Hyla versicolor) was breeding recently at the campus amphibian pools. I always enjoy a frog chorus. I think it is such a primordial sound since amphibians were the first terrestrial tetrapods and may have been the first to produce any sort of vocalization on land. Males typically arrive at the breeding pools first and begin to call attracting the females. Once females arrive, males jump on their backs in amplexus and wait until the female deposits her eggs. Although sometimes deafening, the site and sound of dozens to hundreds of frogs is truly a natural wonder.

Male calling

Gray Tree Frogs in amplexus

 

Senior Research Symposium- 2014

Regan Drake 14′ (right) and Prof. Diefenbacher (left)

Congratulations to all 14 of our seniors who defended their thesis at the College of STM Senior Research Symposium. Members from my lab included Regan Drake with a project entitled “The Multi-Sport Complex Impact on the Macro-Invertebrate Biodiversity.” This was an intensive and ambitious yearlong field study with methods mirroring that of an EPA RBP and included NMS statistical analysis. Her data suggested that although the new sports complex was built adjacent to and physically altered the campus stream, there was no significant impact on the benthic macro-invertebrate diversity. Continual monitoring will be needed to access any long term impacts. Her research is current being prepped into a manuscript for The Open Journal of Entomology. She graduates this year and has plans of moving on to graduate school. She will be missed.

Limnology: Aquatic Ecology – Spring 2014

The Liminology: Aquatic Ecology did a fantastic job setting baseline data for the water chemistry and benthic macro-invertebrate diversity of Moats Hollow Stream at the Arden Field Station this semester. A team of 16 students used the EPA Rapid Bioassessment Protocol (RBP) to assess the health of Moats Hollow Stream. This was the first time such an inventory had been taken in Moats Hollow Stream  at the Arden Field Station. This data will be used by future classes and student thesis projects to help study this system in the future. Students also continued bio-monitoring efforts at the campus pond to study how lentic systems differ from that of lotic systems.

A special thanks goes to Regan Drake 14’ whom served as an extra field supervisor and helped her peers with identification and various aspects of working in the field.

Getting ready to dissect a shark

Some of the catch after pond sampling

Students kick netting at Arden Field Station

 

 

 

 

 

Mammalogy- Fall 2013

Mammalogy class was a lot of fun this semester. Students this semester used game cameras, Sherman traps, and track plates to survey the local mammal population at the Arden Field Station as well as North Campus Forest at ABU. Students also learned how to key out several North American mammal skulls and got a chance to see native WV mammals at the West Virginia Wildlife Center in French Creek, WV. The group even managed to get the coyotes to howl.

Fisher at the WV Wildlife Center inspecting a student

Students looking at a White Footed Deer Mouse caught in one of the Sherman Traps

Students inspecting track plates