Habitat selection of the great basin spadefoot (spea intermontana) in the grasslands of British Columbia

Wetlands and their surrounding upland areas provide crucial habitat for the Great Basin Spadefoot (Spea intermontana), a species at risk in the grasslands of the southern interior of British Columbia (BC), Canada. Understanding habitat selection and how these animals respond to change is crucial in the creation and implementation of conservation plans for this species. I studied the habitat selection of the Great Basin Spadefoot in the grasslands surrounding the New Gold - New Afton Mine, located approximately 10 km from Kamloops, BC. The objectives of my study were to (1) determine what type of breeding ponds spadefoots were using, (2) determine if artificial ponds could be used as a management tool, (3) determine desirable adult daytime retreat site features and decipher movement patterns to predict habitat use, and (4) determine microhabitat preferences of newly-metamorphosed spadefoots. To analyze breeding pond selection, 18 ponds on the mine site were surveyed. There was no significant difference between breeding (n=10) and non-breeding ponds (n=8) for any of the water or pond characteristics measured. Eight artificial ponds were also constructed in November 2013, and spadefoots bred in four of the eight novel ponds the following spring. Throughout the 2013 and 2014 activity seasons, radio-telemetry was used to locate daytime retreat sites and monitor movements of 33 adult animals. The maximum and mean maximum straight-line distance (m) travelled by adult spadefoots from their breeding ponds was 506 m and 240 m  146 SD. The telemetered animals relocated between retreat sites, often returning to burrows used previously. There was no significant difference, in respect to soil moisture, aspect, slope or percent ground cover, between used and available habitat plots. I also conducted a microhabitat study, within artificial enclosures, that revealed that newly-metamorphosed spadefoots preferred terrestrial habitat with moist cover. Aside from this narrow window of vulnerability, my study indicates that this species has the ability to inhabit and persist in drier, altered grassland habitats in this region through a very plastic response to a wide range of conditions.