Post-Mined Wetlands Provide Breeding Habitat for Amphibians

• Published in: Wetlands (Wilmington, N.C.) Vol. 43; no. 7; p. 75
• Main Authors: Buckardt, Emma M., Rega-Brodsky, Christine C., George, Andrew D.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Dordrecht Springer Netherlands 01.10.2023; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Amphibians; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Coastal Sciences; Community composition; Composition; Ecology; Emergent vegetation; Environmental Management; Environmental protection; Environmental quality; Fish; Freshwater & Marine Ecology; Habitats; Hydrogeology; Influence; Landscape Ecology; Life Sciences; Multidimensional scaling; Polls & surveys; Reclamation; Reptiles & amphibians; Species diversity; Species richness; Strip mining; Surface mining; Vegetation; Vegetation cover; Water conductivity; Water quality; Water temperature; Wetland Ecology; Wetlands; Wildlife conservation; United States > US; Kansas; Frogs; Hydroperiod; Emergent vegetation; Richness; Larvae; Diversity
• ISSN: 0277-5212; 1943-6246
• DOI: 10.1007/s13157-023-01720-4

Soil removal from surface mining activities can create depressions that eventually form wetlands that may support amphibian communities. Little is known about the function of these wetlands that have never been deliberately reclaimed yet have experienced vegetative succession. Amphibian persistence in artificial or disturbed wetlands can indicate habitat quality for wetland-dependent species. Here, we describe the wetland characteristics in a post-mined landscape that influenced amphibian species occupancy, species richness, and diversity. We used single species occupancy models to determine the wetland features that influenced larval presence of five common species. We examined the response of the amphibian community (i.e., richness, diversity, composition) to wetland features with linear models and non-metric multidimensional scaling (NMDS). Occupancy for each species varied, but the presence of predatory fish, hydroperiod, and emergent vegetation cover were the most influential predictors of occupancy. Amphibian species richness and diversity were influenced by the water conductivity level, the presence of predatory fish, hydroperiod, and emergent vegetation cover within the wetland. Amphibian community composition was similar among wetlands regardless of their mining history or management. While species’ occupancy patterns varied, the wetlands across our study area provided sufficient habitat to support a diverse amphibian community. Increasing the variation in wetlands through their protection, reclamation, and management could allow amphibians and other wetland-dependent species to persist on post-mined landscapes.