Brophy, Timothy R.

Pauley, Thomas K.

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Liberty UniversityDigitalCommons@LibertyUniversityFaculty Publications and Presentations Department of Biology and Chemistry2001Eurycea Cirrigera (Southern Two-linedSalamander). Larval HabitatTimothy R. BrophyLiberty University, tbrophy@liberty.eduThomas K. PauleyFollow this and additional works at: http://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/bio_chem_fac_pubsThis Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Department of Biology and Chemistry at DigitalCommons@Liberty University. It hasbeen accepted for inclusion in Faculty Publications and Presentations by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@Liberty University. Formore information, please contact scholarlycommunication@liberty.edu.Recommended CitationBrophy, Timothy R. and Pauley, Thomas K., "Eurycea Cirrigera (Southern Two-lined Salamander). Larval Habitat" (2001). FacultyPublications and Presentations. Paper 48.http://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/bio_chem_fac_pubs/4898 EURYCEA CIRRIGERA (Southern Two-lined Salamander). LARVALHABlTAT. Larval two-lined salamanders typically in-habit lotic environments (Petranka 1998. Salamanders of the United States and Canada. Smithsonian Inst. Press. Washington, D.C. 587 pp.). Larval ElIIycea hislilleata from New York (Bahret 1996. J. Herpetol. 30:399-40 I) and larval E. wi/de me from North Caro-lina (Bruce 1982. Copeia 1982: 117-127), however, havc been rc-ported from lentic environments. We found larval E. cirrigera in-habiting a small [mm pond (surface area 177 m2, max. depth 1.S m) 2.5 km NNW ofl-linton, West Virginia, USA, at812 m eleva-tion. The pond was located in mesic woods and supported popula-tions of several amphibian species. This note represents the first report of larval E. cirrigera inhabiting a len tic environment and the first to provide size at metamorphosis from West Virginia. Snout-vent lengths (SYL) of larvae were measured to the near-est 0.1 mm and arc reported here as means ± 1 SD (range): 11 August 1994 (N = 103) 12.35 ± 1.93 mm (9.8-20.0 mm); 30 Oc-tober 1994 (N = 51) 20.01 ± 1.61 mm (17.0-23.7 mm); 17 Janu-ary 1995 (N = 85) 20.05 ± 1.72 mm (16.4-26.0 mm); 19 March 1995 (N = 51) 20.95 ± 2.16 mm (17.6-27.4 mm). Average growth rate for this 220-day period was 0.039 mm/day, however larvae grew very little during the winter months. Sixty E. cirrigera metamorphs were collected in pitfall traps on the banks of the pond between 20 July and 3 Aogust 1993. These recently transformed juveniles were apparently leaving the aquatic environment to inhabit the surrounding forest. Metamorphs mea-sured (SVL) 22.31 ± 1.94 mm (18.3-27.0 mm). Over 15,000 man-made farm ponds exist in West Virginia (Core 1966. Vegetation of West Virginia. T\1cClain Printing Co. Parsons, West Virginia. 217 pp.), many of which play important roles in the ecology of aquatic and semi-aquatic amphibians (Lively and Bayless 1972. Proc. West Virginia Acad. Sci. 44:89-92). Our ob-servations suggest that farm ponds may playa more important role in the ecology of E. cirrigera than previously recognized. Herpetological Review 32(2), 2001 We thank Michele L. Brophy, Peter A. Kramer, and James W. Barron for their assistance in the field and laboratory, and Joseph C. Mitchell for reviewing the manuscript. Voucher specimens were deposited in the West Virginia Biological Survey collection at Marshall University (WVBS 6902-6906). Specimens were col-lected under WVDNR pencit numbers 33-1993, 19-1994, and 52-1995. Submitted by TIMOTHY R. BROPHY* and THOMAS K. PAULEY, Department of Biological Sciences, Marshall Univer-sity, Huntington, West VIrginia 25755-2510, USA. 'Present ad-dress: Department of Biology, George Mason University, Fairfax, Virginia 22030-4444, USA. Herpetological Review 32(2). 2001 99 

Eurycea Cirrigera (Southern Two-lined Salamander). Larval Habitat

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