Abstract

The magnitude of Tropical Storm Helene in western North Carolina raises questions about the impacts of flooding on amphibians located near rivers and streams. This project aimed to quantify the changes in the diversity and abundance of salamanders historically present at Sandy Bottom Preserve following Tropical Storm Helene. The site has been monitored near-continuously since 2016 using a series of coverboards. Changes in diversity and abundance of three species, Ambystoma opacum, Notophthalmus viridescens, and Pseudotriton ruber, were evaluated by comparing capture rate, standardized by sampling effort, across years. The effects of precipitation and temperature on salamander abundance also were evaluated to investigate relationships between breeding cycle and weather. It was expected that significantly fewer salamanders would be found in the fall of 2025 than in previous fall seasons due to the impact of Tropical Storm Helene. No significant relationship was found between weather variables and salamander abundance, but mean abundance in the two years adjacent to extreme flooding were found to be significantly different with contrasting relationships between the three species.

Keywords

Salamander, biodiversity, conservation

How to Cite