Graduation Year
2015
Document Type
Thesis
Degree
M.S.
Degree Name
Master of Science (M.S.)
Department
Biology
Degree Granting Department
Integrative Biology
Major Professor
Henry Mushinsky, Ph.D.
Committee Member
Earl McCoy, Ph.D.
Committee Member
Gordon Fox, Ph.D.
Keywords
Plestiodon, reynoldsii, sand, skink, success, translocation
Abstract
The translocation of organisms is becoming a frequently used tool in conservation biology. There are, however, a disproportionate number of unsuccessful attempts translocating populations of herpetofauna. Logistical and temporal limits of monitoring, combined with ambiguous metrics concerning "success," have led to few advances regarding reptile translocations. Successfully established and persistent populations are those in which both the founding population and subsequent generations show consistent or positive levels of survival and reproduction. A small population of the threatened Florida Sand Skink (Plestiodon reynoldsi) was translocated in 2007. Data collected from 2007 to 2009 confirmed survival and reproduction among the founding individuals, but the sampling did not include a long enough period to allow for the evaluation of the survival and reproduction of individuals born on the site. In this study, individuals were collected during two separate sampling events, one during the third spring and one during the sixth spring after the translocation occurred. Survival estimates, reproduction, population size and generation structure were calculated by combining and analyzing data from all years post-translocation. The numbers of both total and new individuals captured in the sixth year exceeded captures from every prior sampling event since monitoring began in 2008. Founding individuals represented only 14% of the total individuals captured, while the number of individuals born on site continued to increase. The proportion of recruits and increased number of hatchlings despite the loss of founders shows that the filial generations are producing offspring. The methods utilized in assessing this translocation effort will further the understanding of the population dynamics of the Florida Sand Skink and allow for more informed decisions in future management studies of this threatened species.
Scholar Commons Citation
Emerick, Adam Ryan, "Status of a Translocated Florida Sand Skink Population After Six Years: Establishing and Evaluating Criteria for Success" (2015). USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations.
https://digitalcommons.usf.edu/etd/5476
