Small streams are a high priority for conservation and an important target for biomonitoring. Stream salamanders are a useful indicator for biotic integrity of headwater streams; however, assessing stream salamanders is a challenging endeavor and existing methods often underestimate the abundance of salamanders present or may miss species that occur in low abundance. Our goal was to develop an artificial habitat that mimics the natural habitat that salamanders prefer, leading to rapid colonization and that also (a) represents a known, standardized area for use in research and (b) is easy to handle for rapid assessment. After developing an artificial habitat, we tested the device in a variety of streams and compared our method with other techniques such as a visual encounter survey (VES) and quadrat sampling.
Results/Conclusions:
After a series of field tests in a variety of streams through multiple seasons, we found that stream salamanders will colonize the apparatus and that this method yielded results similar or superior to other methods. A higher salamander density was estimated by our apparatus than a Visual Encounter Survey or use of a Hess sampler. In fact, in a high salamander abundance site, the use of our device resulted in an estimated 33 ± 20 larval salamanders/m2 compared to 11 larval salamanders/m2 using the VES method and 7 ± 10 larval salamanders/ m2 using the Hess sampler. For efficient and relatively simple assessment, our results indicate that 3 devices, left in streams for a recommended 3 days, should provide an accurate estimate of salamander presence and abundance. The device is relatively inexpensive, simple to build, easily handled for efficient deployment and collection, and does not harm the salamanders. We hope the development of this device provides a useful innovation for biological consultants, land managers and researchers interested in assessing stream biotic integrity.