Use of Altered Habitats by the Endemic Sand Skink (Plestiodon reynoldsi Stejneger)

Abstract

Endemic species with limited geographic ranges are particularly sensitive to habitat loss and degradation. In order to conserve such species, we tend to focus on optimal habitats (e.g., for land acquisition), but human-altered habitats may also be of conservation value if species can persist in these environments. We evaluated the occurrence of a lizard endemic to scrub and sandhill habitats in Florida, the threatened Plestiodon reynoldsi (Sand Skink), to determine whether it occurs in human-altered vegetation types. From 2003–2004, we quantitatively sampled 46.5 ha (composed of 7 vegetation and 10 soil types) for the distinctive trails this fossorial lizard leaves in sandy areas. The Sand Skink was present in equal relative densities across all vegetation types, including disturbed areas such as pastures and abandoned citrus groves. Further, we detected Sand Skinks on all well-drained sandy soils we sampled. Thus, Sand Skinks can persist in human-altered habitats, at least when underlying soils are suitable for their presence and have not been modified. In general, more Sand Skinks were found in larger habitat patches, regardless of whether patches were characterized by vegetation or soil. Our results suggest that anthropogenically altered habitats have conservation value for Sand Skinks (and possibly other ecologically similar species) and that future studies should focus on the effects of restoring these habitats on resident populations of this species.