NORTHEAST INDIANA S REPTILES AND AMPHIBIANS

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1 NORTHEAST INDIANA S REPTILES AND AMPHIBIANS Bruce Kingsbury Indiana Purdue University Fort Wayne BruceAKingsbury.org 1

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5 What are Herps? Herp is short for herpetofauna Amphibians Salamanders Frogs Caecilians Reptiles Turtles Tuataras Snakes Lizards Amphisbaenids Crocodilians Reptile or amphibian? What are Herps? Amphibians Salamanders Frogs Caecilians Reptiles Mammals What is a unique, derived, character? Mammals (not reptiles) Reptiles Turtles Tuataras Snakes Lizards Amphisbaenids Crocodilians Dinosaurs Birds 5

6 What are Herps? Amphibians Salamanders Frogs Caecilians Reptiles Turtles Tuataras Snakes Lizards Amphisbaenids Crocodilians Amphibians Moist skin No scales Larval stage typically external to animal Unshelled eggs 6

7 All Vertebrates Have Tadpole Stage From fish to people, there is a larval stage For many amphibians it is out there to see For us, and many other organisms, it occurs during internal development But it is still there 7

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9 Carnivorous tadpoles 9

10 Global Amphibian Decline 5000 species 1/3 threatened Causes Habitat loss Introduced species Over exploitation Contamination/pollution Disease Cricket Frog (Acris crepitans) Herp Conservation Wetlands are REALLY important Preserve shallow wetlands, even if they often dry up in the summer Don t add fish everywhere Keep pesticides and fertilizers out of wetlands and areas that drain into them Strategize about connectivity Be responsible naturalists Limit collection for purposes of display To catch is to keep Don t mix things from various places Anything brought home needs to go back to where it came from 10

11 Amphibian Reproductive Cycles and Ephemeral Wetlands Wood Frogs, Rana sylvatica 11

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13 Spring Wood Frogs breed early in the spring Females can lay Thousands of eggs Summer 13

14 Summer Tadpoles hatch in late Spring. They develop very quickly into adults Adult frogs move into surrounding upland habitats Fall 14

15 Fall Adult frogs will spend the rest of the year foraging or hiding under debris in the uplands Winter 15

16 Winter Wood Frogs hibernate in the uplands around ephemeral wetlands. They are freeze tolerant and can survive extended periods of being frozen solid The Amniotes Amphibians not included, but amniotes appear before nonamniote radiation Showed up in Carboniferous Features: Dry skin: not such a robust character Generally more water resistant Keratinized layer appearance of reptile scales Amniotic egg: a robust character This gets us mammals, reptiles (and birds) 16

17 Reptiles Dry skin Scales Amniotic, if not shelled, eggs 17

18 Herps are Ectotherms Ectothermy heat from outside Endothermy heat from within Amphibians might be cool, but reptiles are not if they can help it! Ectothermy has its advantages 18

19 Advantages of Ectothermy Low energy requirements Take low metabolic rate, lower average temperatures and winter, and energy consumption may b 1 2% of that for similar sized bird or mammal!! That leaves energy for growth and reproduction Heat conserving body form not critical You can be little, long and skinny Live in nooks and crannies Live for extended periods without food Tour of the Herps Salamanders Frogs and Toads Turtles Lizards and Snakes 19

20 Salamanders (Urodela or Caudata) elongated bodies costal grooves reduced limbs frequent internal fertilization well developed tails Plethodontid Salamanders 20

21 Plethodontidae By far the most speciose salamander family around the world, with most species being in the New World The lungless salamanders are indeed lungless and respire through their skin Another feature is the nasolabial groove under each nostril 21

22 Our most common salamander, and maybe our most common vertebrate! 22

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24 Ambystomatid Salamanders Ambystomatidae Medium to large in size fit in your hand Called mole salamanders because they spend most of their lives underground Breed in late winter and early spring Need shallow fishless ponds to breed Many species are otherwise forest dwellers, though some do well in grasslands 24

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26 But many such salamanders are unisexual hybrids Unisexal Ambystoma Blue spotted Salamander Jefferson Salamander Jefferson complex 26

27 Eastern Newt Salamandridae 27

28 Mudpuppy Proteidae Hellbender Cryptobranchidae 28

29 Tour of the Herps Salamanders Frogs and Toads Turtles Lizards and Snakes Frogs (Anura) short bodies reduced vertebrae (<=9) relatively large heads elongated hind limbs anterior attachment of tongue no ribs 29

30 Adaptations for Hopping Long muscular legs Compact body Ribs are gone Vertebrae are anteroventrally compressed Urostyle modified caudal vertebrae Elongated pelvis Adaptations for Hopping Allows for elongation of muscles for hopping Suprascapula Increases surface area for shock absorber muscles 30

31 Anuran Vocalization Structures 31

32 Ranid Frogs: the big guys Lithobates (was Rana) Includes the largest of our frogs Species like Bullfrog and Green Frog require semipermanent water to breed, while others like Leopard Frog and Wood Frog do not Bullfrogs have become an invasive species in many areas because they move into water made permanent, or because people have moved them around on purpose 32

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36 Hylids: The Treefrogs Hylidae Treefrogs are often, though not always, arboreal Most are quite small, though a few of ours can get 4 5 cm (~2 in) All of our treefrogs require shallow, generally fishless, wetlands in which to breed 36

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39 Bufonids: the True Toads Bufonidae Bumpy skin does not a toad make May be found far from water Skin looks dry, but evaporative water loss across skin is comparable to other frogs, Which is comparable to a wet sponge Breeds in shallow wetlands Does better with most fish because they taste bad Compounds in parotoid glands and other areas of skin ( warts ) provide safety from many predators Bufotoxins are neurotoxins 39

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41 Tour of the Herps Salamanders Frogs and Toads Turtles Lizards and Snakes Turtles Odd Reptile Out 41

42 Turtle Epidermal Scutes Turtle Dermal Bones 42

43 Growth Rings 43

44 Emydidae 44

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46 Testudinidae 46

47 Cheyldridae Chelydridae 47

48 Trionychidae Softshells: Trionichidae 48

49 Kinosternidae 49

50 Tour of the Herps Salamanders Frogs and Toads Turtles Lizards and Snakes Anguidae 50

51 Phyrnosomatidae Scincidae 51

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53 a) Lateral undulation b) Rectilinear c) Concertina d) Sidewinding 53

54 Viperidae Viperidae 54

55 Viperidae Hollow, retractable fangs Typically keeled scales Not a good diagnostic character Most are ovoviviparous Venoms are variable Concoction of hemotoxins and neurotoxins Venom glands derived from salivary glands All of our vipers are pit vipers (Crotalinae) All of our native venomous species are pit vipers 55

56 These are venomous The Northern Copperhead 56

57 Distribution of the Northern Copperhead (a roughly similar distribution in southern Indiana with Timber Rattlesnake) 57

58 Crypsis A Digression Constructive shading & pictorial relief in the copperhead Copperhead as if uniformly colored on a plain background 58

59 4/18/2018 copperhead as if uniformly colored on a natural background copperhead with normal coloration on a plain background 59

60 copperhead with normal coloration on a natural background pattern matches the fallen leaves 60

61 The Midland Watersnake may be confused with the Copperhead Associated with water, not dry forest Cottonmouth (Water Moccasin) 61

62 Cottonmouths are not common! Habitat: bottomland swamp confirmed 62

63 We are not venomous! but we do like water and we will bite you (sorry) Northern Watersnake Midland Watersnake 63

64 Tiny, the Timber Rattler 64

65 Reliable historic records of Timber Rattlesnakes in Indiana Habitat: Forested, rugged hills Reliable recent records 65

66 Eastern Massasauga: the swamp rattler Habitat: wet meadows and grassy/sedgy wetlands (gooey places where most people don t go) 66

67 Milk Snake Confusing Species Hognosed Snake Northern Watersnake Foxsnake 67

68 Colubridae Colubridae 68

69 Colubridae By far the most speciose group of snakes in many areas of the world and in Indiana Not all of the systematic relationships are sorted out Most but not all species are not venomous Most of Indiana s snakes are colubrids 69

70 Northern Watersnake Midland Watersnake 70

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75 CONCLUSIONS Amphibians and reptiles are cool They are quite diverse, even around here They are often in trouble We can help by understanding them better, preserving their habitat, and by making more of it whenever possible 75

76 Questions? Contact me at: Environmental Resources Center Purdue University Fort Wayne, IN