In summer 2000, Gian Rocco and Rob Brooks of the Penn State Cooperative Wetland Center began a 3- year, EPA-funded project to study the range and variability of stream salamander responses across commonly encountered gradients of stream impairment in the mountainous portions of Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia, and Maryland; a region also known as the Mid-Atlantic Highlands Area or MAHA.  The study, now in its third year, is providing a better understanding of how variables related to stream, riparian, and watershed quality impact lungless stream salamander populations and will aid researchers in developing and testing a numerical scoring system to evaluate headwaters on the merits of this and other stream biocriteria.

In small headwater reaches where large predaceous fish are mostly absent, lungless salamanders of the Family Plethodontidae can exist in surprisingly high numbers, and serve the dual function of invertebrate predator and vertebrate prey.  In Pennsylvania alone, up to seven species, representing two subfamilies, can compose a streambank salamander community.  Stream salamanders also offer the opportunity of serving as important ecological indicators for the assessment and monitoring of water quality and riparian degradation.

But what does all this have to do with volunteer monitoring programs? At present, there are no groups monitoring stream salamanders, but there appears to be a strong interest in doing so. In fact, a goal of the above study is to evaluate the proficiency of volunteer-based field crews.  If volunteer proficiency can be demonstrated in the pilot phase, the task to monitor lungless stream salamanders may someday depend considerably on volunteer, citizen-based monitoring programs.

Currently, the North American Amphibian Monitoring Program attempts to track amphibian populations primarily through surveys of “vocal amphibians”.  While effective for gauging population and distributional trends of vocal species, these surveys provide little insight on the status of lungless salamanders and other  “non-vocalizing” amphibians. Furthermore, because there is poor overlap in the environments they occupy, vocal species provide a poor linkage to many members of the “silent” group.

There are other advantages to monitoring lungless stream salamanders: they replace fish and become the dominant vertebrate predator in many small, often intermittent small streams.  In these environments, this group becomes the preferred if not the only vertebrate bioindicator.  Furthermore, environmental assessments based on two or more bioindicator groups are more effective than those based on only one. For example, Ohio EPA is currently proposing to include stream salamanders in their primary headwaters classification scheme.

Anyone with an interest in this pilot project can participate. Although helpful, no prior amphibian or stream monitoring experience is necessary.  Individuals that contributed to the Pennsylvania herp atlas project or to the NAAMP are strongly encouraged to apply. If you want the opportunity of becoming one of the 30-40 pilot study volunteers, please complete the SPAR Volunteer Application form. Completed forms can be e-mailed to Gian Rocco or sent by regular mail to: Gian Rocco, SPAR Volunteer Program, 205 Forest Resources Laboratory, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802.

NOTE: If you are reading this from a printed sheet, the article and the application form can be accessed at www.wetlands.cas.psu.edu./Research/survey.htm