SREL Reprint #2023

Timing of reproduction and metamorphosis in the Carolina Gopher frog (Rana capito capito) in South Carolina

Raymond D. Semlitsch1, J. Whitfield Gibbons2, and Tracey D. Tuberville2

1Division of Biological Sciences, University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri 65211, USA
2University of Georgia, Savannah River Ecology Laboratory, P.O. Drawer E, Aiken, South Carolina 29802, USA

Introduction: Because of recent concerns about the status of amphibian populations (Pechmann and Wilbur, 1994), any information on life history traits related to reproduction and juvenile recruitment can become crucial in making conservation decisions. This is especially true for the gopher frog, Rana capito, whose life history and population status is unknown in most parts of its range (Altig and Lohoefener, 1983). State surveys of herpetofauna have listed this species as uncommon, rare, or endangered for at least two decades (e.g., Mount, 1975; Martof et al., 1980; Dundee and Rossman, 1989; Johnson, 1987). At least two states, and perhaps others, have classified the species as threatened (e.g., in Florida by Moler, 1992; and in Alabama by Mount, 1986). During 1993 in South Carolina, verification of the presence of this species to the state's Heritage Trust Program was limited to a single observation (S. H. Bennett, pers. comm.). Its secretive nature, short breeding season, and small, patchy population distribution have all contributed to the lack of basic life history information about this anuran.
In an effort to increase our knowledge of this species, we have compiled data collected on activity patterns over the past 25 yr, including the timing of reproduction and metamorphosis of juveniles from various breeding sites on the Savannah River Site (SRS) in the Upper Atlantic Coastal Plain of South Carolina. A thorough description of the region, climate, and breeding sites mentioned in this report is given by Gibbons and Semlitsch (1991) or cited therein.

SREL Reprint #2023

Semlitsch, R.D., J.W. Gibbons, and T.D. Tuberville. 1995. Timing of reproduction and metamorphosis in the Carolina Gopher frog (Rana capito capito) in South Carolina. Journal of Herpetology 29:612-614.

This information was provided by the University of Georgia's Savannah River Ecology Laboratory (srel.uga.edu).