Introduction
Amphibians are significant in ecological communities and may also be sensitive indicators of environmental change despite their cryptic and secretive habits (Grant et al. 1992). Northern cricket frogs (Acris crepitans) typically range from 1.6 to 3.5cm in length, having various colors and patterns with a wart-like texture. Although they have long hind legs, they do not climb well, nor are they found high in trees. The northern cricket frog call is described as rapid clicking of marbles together. Three capturing methods have been found and used on the northern cricket frog. The three capturing methods are cover board refugia, funnel traps, and pitfall traps.
The first method is the use of cover board refugia. Tin and wooden cover boards, as described by Grant et al. (1992), are the most commonly used materials. The second method typically used to capture the northern cricket frog is a pitfall trap. Pitfall traps used on the northern cricket frog are typically live traps because they are an endangered species, with variations in size and material depending on the type of study being done. They may also be used with drift fences to increase the chances of capture (Figure 1). Drift fences are commonly made of aluminum flashing that is buried about 10cm in the ground. The final capture method is funnel trap usage. Like pitfall traps, funnel traps may be used in addition to drift fences to increase trap effectiveness. Given that each study is different (i.e. location, climate, etc.), modifications and improvements have been designed to enhance trap effectiveness. There are many designs, types, and sizes of pitfall traps, funnel traps and drift-fences, all of which have been proposed and tested (Bruce...
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I am studying the White-tailed Deer populations that are located at Fort Indiantown GAP Pennsylvania. This area has a diverse biome that consists of populated areas, deciduous forests, fields, waterways, and many other types of habitat. I set up my observation area in a deciduous wooded area near a stream and a small lake. I have observed deer paths in this area as well as numerous amounts of deer scat.
The frog’s back is usually textured with coarse tubercles. Its fingers are thinly webbed while the hind foot is more developed. Large disks exist on the fingers and toes to assist with climbing and sticking to objects (Dickerson, 1969). The male and female Grey Tree Frogs are very similar. They are distinguished by the male having a dark underside of his throat. Also the females ears are smaller then the males (Dickerson, 1969).
15. Magers, Vince. Ichthyology’s Golden Age. Missouri Conversationist, Volume 60, Number 9, Sept 1999. http://www.conservation.state.mo.us/conmag/1999/09/6.html
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The Everglades, classified as a wetland or a "transition zone" can support plant and animal life unlike any other place. Wetlands are an important resource for endangered species and "that more than one third of the United States' threatened and endangered species live only in wetlands." Says Elaine Mao, the author of Wetlands and Habitat Loss. People have started to notice the importance and the role of wetlands like the Everglades and how they are valuable and essential for ecosystems to live. Wetlands provide so many kinds of plants, mammals, reptiles, birds, and
middle of paper ... ... Works Cited Barrett, Todd. The "Oh, Deer!" National Wildlife (World Edition) 29.6 (1991): 16-22. Encore.
There are four main apparatuses used for trapping. Leghold traps are designed to catch the animal by the toes, foot, or leg, with a tightly gripping metal trap. The animal that is captured by this method suffers a great deal of injuries, exposure, hunger, and thirst. Conibear traps are a little bit more humane in the sense that they are designed to be a “quick kill” mechanism which crushes the animal to kill it. This type of trap is mainly used on water animals, but they have been found with pets caught in them and some still alive. Cage traps are a pretty common use in urban areas. The animal is drawn to the cage with some sort of bate and is unharmed (for the time being), most of the animals are killed and not released. Wildlife Services uses this method because of potential liability issues (NRDC, 2011).
The author provides information describing the deer population in parts of New Jersey; yet, he does not include any data regarding the population in the rest of the United States, nor does he include any sources of where this information was obtained. A reader may be more
Thesis: The population of white-tail deer in Alabama has drastically increased over the past century causing significant damage to property and homeowners, caused by hunters being less active.
Frogs are amphibians in the order Anura. The order Anura is broken down into 22 different families of frogs and toads. Although they belong to the same order, frogs and toads are different in a lot of ways. Some of the more distinct differences are their skin and where they live. Frogs usually have smooth moist skin and toads usually have dry watery looking skin. Frogs spend most of their lives in or near water and toads spend more time on land. Amphibian means "double life." Frogs and toads each have two parts to their lives: when they live on water and when they live land. A frog's life starts in the water when it is hatched from an egg as a tadpole. A tadpole looks very different from an adult frog. A tadpole has a tail, no limbs, and breathes through gills. After a while the tadpole goes through metamorphosis. During the change the frog grows limbs, the tail disappears, it uses lungs to breathe, and it doesn't have to live in water anymore. As a tadpole, the frog feeds mostly on vegetation. The tadpoles have a small rasping mouth suited especially for scraping algea from the bottom of ponds. Depending on the species, it can take a few weeks to a year or more for the tadpoles to become fully grown. Not all frogs hatch as tadpoles. Some species of frogs hatch as froglets. Froglets look just like adult frogs but are a lot smaller. Froglets don't go through a metamophosis. Most species that hatch as froglets are found in dry places. Frogs who live in dry places where rains are seasonal have to grow up quickly because a tadpole will die if their temporary pond dries up. Adult frogs can live in water or on land, but it always needs to be near water so its respiratory organs don't dry out.
Frogs live on every continent except Antarctica, but tropical regions have the largest amount. Like all amphibians, frogs spend half their lives near water because they must return to the water to lay their eggs. Frogs live underwater mostly when the are growing up to be an adult frog and when they are laying their eggs. When they hatch under water they are tadpoles and the breath with gills and swim using a tail. As they mature they loose their tail and they develop to be able to breathe air. During an extensive period of heat, a drought, frogs can enter a period of damancy similar to hibernation called starvation. Most of the frogs live in tropical and semitropical regions, most species of frogs breed in the spring or in early summer. Although the different species my vary in size and color, mostly all frogs have basic body structure. They have large hind legs, short front legs and flat head and body with no neck.
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