SPATIOTEMPORAL RESPONSES OF REPTILES AND AMPHIBIANS TO TIMBER HARVEST TREATMENTS

We compared the influence of clearcut and selective timber harvest treatments on spatial and temporal variability of amphibians and reptiles in an east Texas bottomland hardwood forest. The dataset represented a time series of 5 years post-treatment. A total of 18,645 amphibians and reptiles was captured in 144 pitfall arrays. We used 9 plots (3 clearcut, 3 select cut, and 3 untreated). Each plot had 16 arrays and was bisected by 1 of 3 streams. Pitfall captures represented 46 species (16 amphibians, 30 reptiles). When analyzed with a traditional ANOVA approach, these data suggested an increase in reptile species richness in response to clearcut treatments; amphibian species richness did not respond to treatment. When analyzed as a time series, however, the data revealed fluctuations in site use by species and species groups, and these fluctuations were independent of treatment effects. Exploratory analyses of spatio-temporal dynamics showed that species richness and the relative abundance of common species displayed spatial patterns that remained consistent over time. In control and select cut treatments, spatial patterns of richness and abundance shifted over time and were not necessarily confined to areas adjacent to streams. In clearcuts, stationary habitat refugia were located within riparian management zones.