Research
Conservation physiology of two central-Texas plethodontid salamanders
(Collaboration with Dr. Mary F. Poteet, University of Texas at Austin)
 Adult Eurycea nana in a metabolic chamber. |
 Scuba diving for Eurycea nana below the Spring Lake dam. |
 Larval Eurycea sosorum in its egg. It hatched only a few moments after this photo was taken. |
The Barton Springs salamander, Eurycea sosorum, is an aquatic, lungless plethodontid salamander that occurs in only 4 springs within the Barton Springs complex in Zilker Park, Austin, TX. E. sosorum was federally listed as endangered on May 30, 1997.
Currently, the greatest threat to this species is urbanization within the watershed that has caused degradation of water quality-leading to chronically lowered levels of dissolved oxygen (DO) and intrusion of "badwaters" from a saline water zone.
With funding from the Barton Springs/Edwards Aquifer Conservation District, we have been doing an intensive set of experiments to examine behavioral and physiological responses of salamanders to low DO and high salinity. The work has used a few Barton Springs salamanders (E. sosorum) but has focused mostly on the physiology of a surrogate species, the closely related congener, E. nana, which lives in Spring Lake in San Marcos, TX. We are currently writing up two manuscripts describing the results.
This work represents an exciting conservation extension of my pre-existing interests in temperature and oxygen. I'm actively looking for similar salamander projects in Montana.