Charles Russell Peterson

• PhD
• Professor Emeritus at Idaho State University

The ability to predict amphibian breeding across landscapes is important for informing land management decisions and helping biologists better understand and remediate factors contributing to declines in amphibian populations. We built geospatial models of likely breeding habitats for each of four amphibian species that breed in Yellowstone Nationa...

Have you ever wondered how “cold-blooded” animals like amphibians (frogs, toads, and salamanders) survive the winter without fur or feathers to keep them warm? Yellowstone National Park’s amphibians have found ways to stay alive during the cold winter months. These animals have evolved various coping strategies, from burrowing underground, to livin...

Data on the occurrence and distribution of amphibians and reptiles are needed to identify and address conservation problems for these species. Observations from crowd-sourced/citizen science projects are an important source of data for conservation and management. Crowdsourced data such as iNaturalist observations have several strengths, including...

Field research and surveys from the past century have provided a valuable resource for documenting amphibian population declines and investigating their possible causes. In Yellowstone National Park, research from the 1950s provided us with an extraordinary opportunity to investigate a Columbia Spotted Frog population’s decline over time in an area...

Widespread amphibian declines were well documented at the end of the 20th century, raising concerns about the need to identify individual and interactive contributors to this global trend. At the same time, there was growing interest in the use of amphibians as ecological indicators. In the United States, wetland and amphibian monitoring programs w...

Natural history note on Plains Spadefoot (Spea bombifrons) leucism in Yellowstone National Park.

The academic world is full of people with rich personalities, brilliant minds, and eclectic interests. Thomas (T. H.) Frazzetta certainly was a special one of these. He passed away on New Year's Eve 2015, following several months of ill health. Ironically, New Year's Eve was one of his favorite holidays, only exceeded by Halloween. Sadly, he was un...

Many snake species make lengthy linear migrations between overwintering sites and summer foraging or mating habitats. Although mountainous topography may restrict migratory movements, most previous studies on migratory snake populations have occurred in areas with low to moderate topographic relief. The objectives of this study were to describe the...

Roads fragment our landscape, posing a severe threat to the persistence of wildlife populations through losses of individuals to direct mortality and decreased connectivity. Although they possess a particular suite of life history characteristics that make them especially vulnerable, snakes tend to be underrepresented in research examining vertebra...

Investigation of amphibian occupancy at potential breeding sites can provide information about the distribution and relative abundance of species, as well as insights into habitat relationships across large areas such as national parks. Based on previous research in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem (GYE), we hypothesized that the probability of am...

Fisheries managers are restoring native populations by removing nonnative fishes worldwide. Increasingly, the piscicide rotenone is used to accomplish this. Fish introductions and removals change the aquatic environment, and it is important to consider the impacts of these actions on nontarget species, including amphibians. Laboratory experiments h...

Monitoring of natural resources is crucial to ecosystem conservation, and yet it can pose many challenges. Annual surveys for amphibian breeding occupancy were conducted in Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks over a 4-year period (2006–2009) at two scales: catchments (portions of watersheds) and individual wetland sites. Catchments were sele...

The piscicide rotenone is commonly used to remove nonnative fishes from natural aquatic systems. While the effects of rotenone on fish are well documented, the effects of this chemical on amphibians are less well known. We determined the toxicity of the rotenone formulation CFT Legumine (5% rotenone) to three ages—Gosner age ranges 21–25, 30–35, an...

Wildlife managers increasingly are using remotely sensed imagery to improve habitat delineations and sampling strategies. Advances in remote sensing technology, such as hyperspectral imagery, provide more information than previously was available with multispectral sensors. We evaluated accuracy of high-resolution hyperspectral image classification...

Studies on geographic variation In reproductive characteristics can contribute to an understanding of the effects of environmental factors on animal population structure and dynamics. Using a ten-year mark-recapture data set (19942003), we studied microgeographic variation In reproductive characteristics (body condition, growth, age to maturity, pr...

The pathogen Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd), which causes the skin disease chytridiomycosis, has been linked to amphibian population declines and extinctions worldwide. Bd has been implicated in recent declines of boreal toads, Bufo boreas boreas, in Colorado but populations of boreal toads in western Wyoming have high prevalence of Bd without...

We conduct long-term amphibian monitoring in Yellowstone National Park (YNP) (1) and read McMenamin et al.'s article (2) with interest. This study documents decline in the extent of seasonal wetlands in the Lamar Valley of YNP during extended drought, but the conclusion, widely reported in the media, of “severe declines in 4 once-common amphibian s...

We assessed the diversity and phylogeny of Saprolegniaceae on amphibian eggs from the Pacific Northwest, with particular focus on Saprolegnia ferax, a species implicated in high egg mortality. We identified isolates from eggs of six amphibians with the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) and 5.8S gene regions and BLAST of the GenBank database. We ide...

We assessed the diversity and phylogeny of Saprolegniaceae on amphibian eggs from the Pacific Northwest, with particular focus on Saprolegnia ferax, a species implicated in high egg mortality. We identified isolates from eggs of six amphibians with the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) and 5.8S gene regions and BLAST of the GenBank database. We ide...

Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd), the chytrid fungus which infects keratinized amphibian skin and causes the lethal disease chytridiomycosis, has been linked to population declines and extinctions worldwide (Lips et al. 2006). Amphibians infected with Bd may suffer a variety of outcomes. Individuals of some species have been killed by :S 100 Bd...

Tailed frogs (Ascaphus spp.) oviposit in cryptic locations in streams of the Pacific Northwest and Rocky Mountains. This aspect of their life history has restricted our understand-ing of their reproductive ecology. The recent split of A. montanus in the Rocky Mountains from A. truei was based on molecular differentiation, and comparisons of their e...

Population declines caused by natural and anthropogenic factors can quickly erode genetic diversity in natural populations. In this study, we examined genetic variation within 10 tiger salamander populations across northern Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming and Montana, USA using eight microsatellite loci. We tested for the genetic signature of...

The field of landscape genetics has great potential to identify habitat features that influence population genetic structure. To identify landscape correlates of genetic differentiation in a quantitative fashion, we developed a novel approach using geographical information systems analysis. We present data on blotched tiger salamanders (Ambystoma t...

This chapter describes how to use a Geographical Information System (GIS) for designing amphibian surveys. It indicates what is possible, how to get started, some limitations, and where to go for further information. Examples are taken primarily from the authors' experiences using GIS to design amphibian surveys in the Northern Intermountain West f...

For fifteen years, the authors have been working together to understand and conserve amphibians in the northern Rocky Mountain and Pacific Northwest regions of the United States. Based on their observations, it appears that many herpetologists are unaware of or poorly informed on management needs and opportunities for conserving amphibian species....

The Rocky Mountain Region of the United States Geological Survey's Amphibian Research and Monitoring Initiative is conducting monitoring of the status of amphibians on a transect that extends along the Continental Divide from Canada to Colorado and comprises four National Parks. Monitoring uses visual encounter surveys to determine site occupancy,...

(1)We designed a physical model that simulates the thermal and evaporative properties of live Western toads (Bufo boreas).(2)In controlled tests, the model tracked the body temperature of live toads with an average error of 0.3±0.03 °C (test range=4–30 °C).(3)It estimated the evaporative water loss of live toads with an average error of 0.35–0.65 g...

We used radio-telemetry to study the movements and habitat use of Western toads (Bufo boreas) in the Targhee National Forest in southeastern Idaho. Eighteen toads (10 male and 8 female) that bred in a seasonally flooded pond, were fitted with radio-transmitters, tracked, and their movements mapped and analyzed with global positioning and geographic...

Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Figure 1) is a newly described chytridiomycete fungus that infects amphibian keratin (Berger et al. 1998). It is reported to cause disease and mortality in metamorphosed amphibians around the world (Lips 1998: Young et al. 2001; Bradley et al. 2002; Muths et al. 2003). In several cases, this pathogen is believed to b...

In the past two decades, there has been increasing awareness of a general pattern of decline of amphibian species (Semlitsch 2003a). A variety of factors have been implicated in these declines, including habitat alteration, climate change, chemical contamination, disease, invasive species, and commercial exploitation. It is likely that these differ...

Information on how animals partition their activities and travel among complementary resources, such as breeding or overwintering habitats, is needed for species conservation. In a mountain basin at 2500 m elevation in central Idaho, we studied the habitat use and movement patterns of 736 marked and 87 radio-tagged Columbia spotted frogs (Rana lute...

We present a model to test Osgood's ( 1978 ) proposition that viviparous snakes have optimal reaction norms for temperature-sensitive meristic traits, such as scale counts. Our model predicts that traits that are subject to temperature effects during development will evolve a flat or [Formula: see text]-shaped reaction norm (average scale count as...

Information on how animals partition their activities and travel among complementary resources, such as breeding or overwintering habitats, is needed for species conservation. In a mountain basin at 2500 m elevation in central Idaho, we studied the habitat use and movement patterns of 736 marked and 87 radio-tagged Columbia spotted frogs (Rana lute...

This is a report of the results of amphibian surveys conducted in Yellowstone (YELL) and Grand Teton (GRTE) national parks and the J. D. Rockefeller Memorial Parkway (JODR) in the summer of 2002. Work was financially supported by the USGS Amphibian Research and Monitoring Initiative (USGS-ARMI) and the National Park Service Inventory and Monitoring...

Due to the current trend of amphibian declines (Wake 1998, Alford and Richards 1999, Semlitsch 2000), the monitoring and study of amphibian populations has become increasingly necessary. To properly do such studies, we must consider several issues. Some of these include the detectability of the species at a site, current status of the population, a...

Introduced trout have often been implicated in the decline of high-mountain amphibian populations, but few studies have attempted to understand whether fish stocking also influences the distribution and abundance of amphibians throughout entire mountain basins, including the remaining fishless lakes. We examined this relationship using the relative...

As part of a study on movements of western toads, we used several measures to test the effects of a plastic belt that we used to attach 1.85 g radio transmitters around the waist of toads. Results from laboratory videography of 3 captive toads suggested this method had no significant effect on their behavior (feeding strikes, activity level). In th...

A current generalization regarding body temperature (Th) variation in free-ranging reptiles is that, when possible, they maintain relatively high Tb's to optimize important biological functions. However, because this generalization is based primarily on studies using opportunistic spot measurements of diurnal lizards, it is both phylogenetically an...

Coadaptation predicts a match between the thermal physiology and thermoregulatory behavior of reptiles. We tested this prediction by studying the digestive biology of rubber boas (Charina bottae). We measured the thermal dependence of gastric digestive rate and passage rate in rubber boas from 10 degrees C to 35 degrees C. We examined the effect of...

Although most studies of reptilian thermal biology have measured body temperature from a single location in an animal, the presence of regional temperature differences within the bodies of reptiles should be considered when conducting detailed studies of their thermal biology. As part of an extensive study of rubber boa (Charina bottae) thermal bio...

During the past forty years, biologists have become increasingly concerned about the decline and disappearance of various amphibian species throughout the world (Wyman 1990, Wake 1991). An example of an amphibian decline in western North America is that of the Boreal Toad (Bufo boreas). A previously widespread and abundant species, the Boreal Toad...

This study was aimed to determine whether thermoregulation by juvenile garter snakes is affected by developmental temperature imposed by their mothers during pregnancy. Maternal temperature treatments were created by maintaining six groups of females at six different constant temperatures (24–32°C) during pregnancy. A seventh group of females was a...

A major problem associated with herpetological surveys and monitoring programs is that environmental variation affects animal activity and, thus, our ability to determine the presence and abundance of amphibians and reptiles. This paper discusses how automated data-acquisition techniques can be used to quantify the relationships between environment...

Many amphibian populations appear to be declining throughout much of the world (Corn and Fogleman 1984, Beiswenger 1986, McAllister and Leonard 1990, Wake and Morowitz 1990, Wake 1991). Declines appear to be particularly noticeable in the western United States in the true frogs and toads (families Ranidae and Bufonidae, respectively). For example,...

Studies of behavioral thermoregulation of ectotherms have typically focused only on active animals. However, most temperate-zone ectotherms actually spend more time sequestered in retreats (e.g., under rocks) than active above ground. We documented retreat-site selection during summer by gravid garter snakes (Thamnophis elegans) at Eagle Lake in no...

The effects of maintenance temperature on static allometry and shape trajectories were examined in neonatal garter snakes (Thamnophis sirtalis). Different experimental groups were given access to a heat source for thermoregulation for 4, 12, or 24 h/d. Eye diameter, head width, head length, body size, and mass were measured shortly after birth, at...

Documented retreat-site selection during summer by gravid Thamnophis elegans at Eagle Lake, NE California. Snakes usually retreated under rocks of intermediate thickness (20-30 cm). Rock thickness had the dominant effect on potential Tb available to snakes and in turn on thermal physiology. Snakes selecting thin rocks (<20 cm thick) or very shallow...

On cool days or at night, when operative temperatures (Tc) were <15oC, Thamnophis elegans vagrans in E Washington remained underground and body temperatures changed gradually. On moderate days (15o < Te < 30oC), snakes usually emerged but were unable to maintain preferred body temperatures, and body temperatures (Tb) variation was marked. On warm d...

The body temperature ( $T_{b}$ ) of garter snakes (Thamnophis elegans) can vary considerably in the course of a day (e.g., 4-33 C), and information on how $T_{b}$ affects physiological and behavioral processes is required to evaluate the significance of that variation. We measured crawling speed, swimming speed, tongue-flicking rate, digestive rate...

We evaluated three scales (spatial and spectral) of remotely sensed data to model wetland habitat distributions in two ecologically distinct wilderness landscapes. Two multispectral datasets, Landsat ETM+ (30 m, 6 bands) and ADAR 5500 (2 m, 4 bands), and one hyperspectral dataset, Hymap (3.5-4 m, 126 bands), were processed using numerous classifica...