Life in the Dirt: Factors Influencing the Behavior and Distribution of Spea Intermontana in Eastern Washington State

I divided my thesis into two major studies focusing on the Great Basin Spadefoot Toad, <em>Spea intermontana, </em>at the Beverley Dunes (Beverley, WA)<em>.</em> The first study explored the effects of temperature and water level on the rate of metamorphosis. We gathered data on rates of development, survival, body mass, snout-vent length, and hind leg length of metamorphs under 4 treatments: 20C x High Water, 30C x High Water, 20C x Water Loss, and 30C x Water Loss. These data show that temperature has a stronger effect on the overall rate of metamorphosis of Great Basin Spadefoot Toads. The second study used 5 categories of field data (hydrography, elevation, soil type, land use, and land cover), to produce a predictive model for finding novel populations of Spadefoot Toads in Washington State. Data from local and government agencies were combined with recent ecological and behavioral data from a single location for the model. This model could be an integral tool when researchers are making methodical choices during initial stages of surveying for a target species. We feel our model can serve as an excellent example of an applied GIS-based approach to survey and management techniques.

Name thesis:degree_name

Master of Science (MS)

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Biology

Year dc:date.available

2018

Author dc:creator

• Brumbaugh, Corey

Contributors dc:contributor

• R. Steven Wagner
• Wayne Quirk
• Robert Weaver

• Great Basin Spadefoot Toad
• Spea intermontana
• metamorphosis
• plasticity
• Washington
• Great Basin
• GIS
• distribution
• predictive model
• Desert Ecology
• Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
• Other Animal Sciences
• Zoology

Language dc:language

English

Repository record dc:identifier

https://digitalcommons.cwu.edu/etd/930

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:digitalcommons.cwu.edu:etd-1971