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Since 2011, holopelagic Sargassum fluitans and natans have been arriving en masse to the wider Caribbean region and West Africa, impacting near-shore habitats and coastal communities. We examined the impacts of the Sargassum influx on tourism-related businesses through face-to-face interviews and focus groups and on near-shore seagrass beds through in-water surveys in the Turks and Caicos Islands (TCI). Substantial accumulations of sargassum were found on the beaches of South Caicos and Middle Creek Cay in 2018 and 2019, including a Sargassum brown tide in 2018. A variety of different approaches to removing sargassum from the beaches were mentioned and a desire from local businesses as well as local authorities to find a sustainable, cost-effective solution to what is viewed by many as a serious problem. The brown tide and sargassum accumulating as a layer on the benthos inside the seagrass beds caused significant loss of Thalassia testudinum. Halodule wrightii, macroalgae and sand plains were found in the areas lost by T. testudinum. This finding suggests that, if a cost-effective end use for sargassum could be identified, harvesting material in inshore waters rather than when it has arrived on the beach would have dual benefits.

Human development and disturbances can be determinants of population viability of some vertebrates in human-impacted ecosystems. The effects on the behavior and population dynamics of reptiles are not well-studied in urban environments. This paper examines the importance of pine forest clearings, openings, and paleodunes for nesting pine snakes (Pituophis melanoleucus melanoleucus) in the New Jersey Pinelands, and the risk to nesting females and offspring from off-road vehicles (ORV). In this ms we 1) develop a rating scale for ORV activity that can be modified for evaluating risk to other vertebrates, 2) compare general habitat features of nesting areas used in the early 1980s with those used in 2020, and 3) examine the fate of nesting areas used in the 1980s and the intensity of ORV use in both time periods. In 2020, nests were located at only 2 of the 10 nesting areas used in 1983 (20%), and only one of the 10 was a paleodune. In comparison, in 2020, 9 of 13 new nesting areas were on paleodunes (69%). In 1983, ORV activity on nesting areas ranged from very low to medium. In the intervening years development and ORV activity increased markedly, and snakes abandoned most areas by 2020. ORV activity in those sites still utilized for nesting increased to high and very high. In 2020, ORV activity ranged from very low (7%) to very high (19%) of the 42 nests. With increasing urban development, nesting pine snakes are using mainly paleodunes deep in the forest, and are exposed to high or very high ORV activity (43%), suggesting concern for viable snake populations in the wake of continued human activity and ORV use.

The wetlands of the New Jersey Pine Barrens (USA) have historically been utilized for large-scale cranberry (Vaccinium macrocarpon) farming. In 2003, 3800 hectares of retired cranberry farm became the focus of restoration efforts by the New Jersey Conservation Foundation with the goal of returning much of its 2000 hectares of wetlands to the previous condition as Atlantic white cedar (Chamaecyparis thoides) swamp. Two different agricultural strategies had previously been employed throughout the farm: traditional- minimal soil and hydrological modification, and modernized- intensive management with soil replacement and major hydrological modification. During restoration, three different strategies were employed: hydrological restoration only, hydrological restoration with microtopographic modification, and hydrological restoration with microtopographic modification and planting of C. thyoides. The purpose of our study was to examine the effects of these strategies on vegetation establishment a decade after restoration was initiated. Replicate nested quadrats were established at each study site, and vegetation was surveyed in both June and August of 2017. All restoration strategies produced robust plant assemblages with similar diversity and quality to each other and to the reference sites. However, the assemblages were set apart by their unique indicator species. Our results also suggest that planting C. thyoides seedlings may give the species selective advantage in a competitive successional setting. According to NMDS ordination, plant assemblages at restored sites were significantly different from reference sites; only continued monitoring will allow us to determine where their successional paths will lead. This study has important implications for future restoration projects in the New Jersey Pine Barrens and similar ecosystems, especially because the results suggest that as long as hydrological restoration occurs, this can promote the establishment of robust, diverse, and relatively high-quality plant assemblages.

Range fragmentation poses challenges for species persistence over time and can be caused by both historical and contemporary processes. We combined genomic data, phylogeographical model testing and palaeoclimatic niche modelling to infer the evolutionary history of the Pine Barrens tree frog (Hyla andersonii), a seepage bog specialist, in eastern North America to gain a better understanding of the historical context of its fragmented distribution. We sampled H. andersonii populations across the three disjunct regions of the species range: Alabama/Florida (AF), the Carolinas (CL) and New Jersey (NJ). Phylogenetic relationships within H. andersonii were consistent between the nuclear species tree and mitochondrial analyses, indicating divergence between AF and CL/NJ (Atlantic clade) ~0.9 Mya and divergence of the NJ clade ~0.15 Mya. Several predictions of north-eastern expansion along the Atlantic coast were supported by phylogeographical analyses. Model testing using genome-wide single nucleotide polymorphism data and species distribution models both provided evidence for multiple disjunct refugia. This comprehensive phylogeographical study of H. andersonii demonstrates a long history of range fragmentation within an endemic coastal plain species and highlights the influence of historical climate change on the current distribution of species and their genetic diversity.

Arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi contribute globally to ecosystem services and play an important role in sustainable crop production. However, it is unclear which factors contribute most to their colonization and community structure at different sites, particularly in understudied ecosystems. This study investigated the AM fungal communities associated with switchgrass (Panicum virgatum L.) in the understudied acidic and oligotrophic pine barrens ecosystem using next-generation sequencing. Switchgrass was also sampled from agroecosystems, as well as, from a native prairie for comparison. The pine barrens switchgrass harbored a distinct AM fungal community − Acaulospora and Ambispora were almost exclusively found in the pine barrens sites, and some of these species may represent undescribed taxa. Glomus was the most ubiquitous AM fungal genus recovered from all sites. This study suggests differences in the AM fungal community structure under different soil properties and land uses. This is the first sequence-based report of the AM fungal communities in the pine barrens ecosystem.

—Kalmia buxifolia(sand-myrtle, Ericaceae) is disjunctly distributed across the high-elevation rock outcrops of the southern Appalachians, upper monadnocks and pine savannas of the Carolina Piedmont and Coastal Plain, and the New Jersey Pine Barrens. Here, we sampled plants from each region and reconstructed the phylogeographic history ofK.buxifoliato test a rock-outcrop Pleistocene refugium hypothesis, estimate the potential direction(s) and timing of migration, and date divergence from its alpine sister species,K. procumbens. We also assess whether isolation in these different environments has led to variation in intrinsic water-use efficiency. Dating analysis challenges the current hypothesis that rock-outcrop species are relics of Pleistocene refugia (< 18,000 ybp), placing the divergence ofK. buxifoliaandK. procumbensmuch earlier, in the late-Miocene (9.40 Ma). Chloroplast haplotype analysis indicates four potential refugial sites, with the most ancient on Mount LeConte in the Great Smoky Mountains, and point to an Appalachian corridor as the likely Pine Barrens colonization route. The sister species divergence time and population level divergences withinK. buxifoliagenerally coincide with major climatic shifts from the late-Miocene to mid-Pleistocene. Results from carbon isotope discrimination indicate that plant water-use varies geographically withinK. buxifolia, as does leaf morphology, although it is unclear whether this variation is due to genetic adaptation or phenotypic plasticity. These patterns of phylogenetic divergence and resulting ecophysiological diversity withinK. buxifoliaare significant for clarifying long-held questions about the biogeographic history and trait differentiation within this species. Further, our results suggest that high-elevation rock outcrop communities may have been inhabitated by northern-affinity species for much longer than previously assumed, and that subsequent population disjunction and isolation may have resulted in ecophysiological differentiation in these communities.

Mennerotodus Zhelezko, 1994, is an extinct lamniform shark known to occur in Paleogene strata of the Tethyan region of Asia and Europe. Although only a single species has been named, multiple subspecies have been erected and used as biostratigraphic tools in Asia. The genus has not been reported with confidence outside of the Tethyan region, but we have identified two new species of Mennerotodus from Paleogene deposits of the southeastern United States. Mennerotodus mackayi sp. nov. is described by teeth occurring in the lower Paleocene (Danian Stage) Pine Barren Member of the Clayton Formation of southern Alabama. A middle Eocene (Bartonian) species, Mennerotodus parmleyi sp. nov., is based on material occurring in the Clinchfield Formation in central Georgia. The early Paleocene record could indicate a North American origin for Mennerotodus relatively soon after the K–Pg event, with subsequent radiation to other parts of the world. The genus is likely more widely distributed than is currently known, but teeth can easily be overlooked due to their similarity to other taxa.

Female reptiles may be able to increase the fitness of offspring by selecting nest sites that are less vulnerable to human disturbances and predators, while providing an appropriate thermal and hydric environment for incubation of their eggs. Northern Pine Snakes (Pituophis melanoleucus) in the New Jersey Pinelands are the only snake in North America known to spend days digging their nests, exposing themselves to predators and people. Both nest site and the habitat selected are critical to ensuring reproductive success. Our overall objective was to determine the factors involved in nest-site selection by Northern Pine Snakes to determine trade-offs females face, and to determine whether these characteristics appear to have changed over the last 37 yr in response to human activities and habitat degradation. We compared characteristics of nest sites, random points within clearings, and random points in the surrounding forest for 42 Northern Pine Snake nests in 2020, and secondly, compared specific characteristics with those of 22 nests examined in 1983. The data indicate that (1) nest sites in 2020 were usually in soft sand, rather than in hard packed sand or in “sugar sand”; (2) sand penetration (e.g., sand density) of nests exhibited a narrow range, while random points were in sand ranging from sugar sand to hard packed sand; (3) the ground cover of nest sites was more often moss/lichen compared with other vegetation; and (4) nest sites were in more open habitats than random points within clearings or the surrounding forest. Compared to the 1980s, Northern Pine Snake nests examined in 2020 were in similar habitat conditions (intermediate sand type, open habitats, with surrounding forests), but were more often on paleodunes, deeper in forests, with higher rates of off-road-vehicle (ORV) disturbances. Females spend 2–4 d digging their nests, presumably to ensure appropriate conditions for offspring embryogenesis and to protect eggs and hatchlings. Our results indicate that, while digging, they are vulnerable to thermal stress, predation, poaching, and mortality from ORVs. Thus our results highlight the trade-off between the fitness of the nesting female and the fitness of her offspring.

As sea level rises in low-lying coastal islands, salt-tolerant (halophytic) coastal vegetation communities may be able to migrate inland, replacing the freshwater vegetation that is unable to tolerate salt stress. The pace of such shifts may be accelerated by a self-reinforcing feedback between the halophytic vegetation and salinity, as well as by frequent and intensified salinity pulses associated with the increasing impact of storm surges as a consequence of sea-level rise. We used a modification of a previously published spatially explicit individual-based model that simulates impacts on upland freshwater hammock communities from sea-level rise and storm surge to predict the interaction between three coastal communities: mangroves, hammocks, and pinelands. The model simulation predicted two qualitative characteristics regarding the interaction between these three different coastal communities: (1) mangroves and hammock communities tend to have ground water with high salinities, while at the same time pineland ground water salinity is low, and (2) pineland located at lower elevation relative to adjacent hammock will be negatively influenced by higher ground water salinities in hammocks, as it flows toward the lower elevation pineland. We tested these predictions using foliar δ13C of Conocarpus erectus collected from Big Pine Key as a proxy for ground water salinity. Measurements of ground water salinity via this proxy confirmed the two predictions of the model. Our approach provides an approximation of the impacts of sea-level rise on terrestrial vegetation communities, including threatened pineland communities, and can be used as a tool for management decisions.

A new species of Physalinae (Solanaceae) is described and illustrated that is endemic to the West Gulf Coastal Plain of the southeastern United States, a global biodiversity hotspot. Physalis macrosperma sp. nov. is distinguished by its large obpyramidal fruiting calyx (35–70 mm in length), its large seeds [3.2–4.2(4.8) mm in length and 2.5–3.5(3.9) mm in width], and its coarsely pitted seed testa. The ecological and geographical setting of P. macrosperma and its morphological relationships with similar taxa are presented. Physalis macrosperma is an herbaceous perennial psammophyte inhabiting open sand barrens within pyrogenic savanna-woodlands of xeric sandhills. It occurs on droughty undulating Eocene-age quartzipsamments within south-central and east-central Texas and on younger xeric sands embedded within the fire-maintained pinelands of southwestern Arkansas, western Louisiana, and southeastern Texas.

New methods of examining the risk to endangered, threatened and rare species are required to identify vulnerability. A paradigm for examining risk is presented that describes anthropogenic threats, species activities, and vulnerabilities, and uses Northern pine snakes (Pituophis melanoleucus) in the New Jersey Pine Barrens as a case study. The paradigm includes (1) conceptual model of natural, anthropogenic, and interactive stressors, (2) template of the functional attributes of threats from human activities, and (3) template of effects from different human activities. Pine snake behavior throughout the year was used to examine the temporal overlap in high snake vulnerability periods and desired human activities in a shared habitat. New data on autumn behavior of pine snakes are also provided. Passive integrated transponders (PIT tag) tracking technology indicated that the fall basking activity period is both longer in duration, and at a higher intensity than previously presumed. During the autumn, individual snakes moved in and out of dens an average of 6 times over a two-month period. Younger snakes at a small hibernaculum were more active than those at hibernacula with larger and older snakes. The high activity period of pine snakes overlaps with the timing of preferred off-road-vehicle (ORV) use, controlled burns, and other human activities, increasing snake vulnerability, potentially causing behavioral disruptions, injury, and death. The conceptual model illustrating relationships between attributes of human activity and effects may be utilized to determine risks to other listed species, and those of special concern in different habitats. This paradigm also provides managers with template tools to assess risks to species that may also be used to provide information to the public.

Natural disturbances are an integral part of forested ecosystem function and successional pathways. In many forested ecosystems, wildfires are critical to shaping composition and structure, which, in turn, has major implications for wildlife usage and behavior. In July 2018, a wildfire burned 225 ha of the Altona Flat Rock pine barrens in northern New York. This event presented the opportunity to study how wildlife respond to the immediate effects of disturbance in this unique habitat but also how that response would change through time as regeneration progressed. Game cameras were deployed from September 2018 to September 2020 at two reference (unburned) and two disturbed (burned) sites within the pine barrens. We analyzed total and seasonal occurrences, to determine how usage differed between disturbed and reference conditions, and with time since disturbance. Additionally, for coyote (Canis latrans, Say), white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus, Zimmermann), and snowshoe hare (Lepus americanus, Erxleben), we evaluated daily activity patterns and overlap to determine how predator–prey relationships differed between conditions, and with time since disturbance. Over 730 days, a total of 1048 wildlife occurrences were captured across 23 wildlife species. Fifty-seven percent of all occurrences were at reference sites with over 100 more occurrences than at disturbed sites, however, differences were most pronounced immediately following the fire and overall occurrences have grown more similar between the sites over time. Specifically, deer and hare were found more often at reference sites immediately following the fire, but shifted to using both conditions equally by the first growing season. Habitat overlap among sympatric prey (deer, hare) can be explained by understory regeneration increasing foraging opportunities and concealment cover in the disturbed condition, while predators (coyotes) tracked prey availability regardless of the habitat condition. This study provides wildlife management guidance on habitat use and response to disturbance for these unique sandstone pavement barrens.

Over a period of 4 mo, an entire collection of seven Pine Barrens treefrogs (Hyla andersonii) died or were euthanized after developing pallor, generalized edema, and coelomic effusion. Necropsy revealed large numbers of strongyloidid nematodes within the small intestines associated with a moderate mucosal hyperplasia. Strongyloides sp. parasitic females, representing a novel species, were isolated from the fixed intestinal tract. This case report represents the first full description of strongyloidiasis in a tree frog army and highlights the potential of Strongyloides spp. as a cause of rapid mortality events associated with protein-losing enteropathy in frogs.

Southeastern pineland ecosystems fall into two broad groups: ecosystems with a grassy understory that depend on frequent low-intensity fires to maintain structure and biodiversity [longleaf (Pinus palustris), south Florida slash (P. densa), shortleaf (P. echinata)], and ecosystems with a shrubby understory that burn less frequently with higher intensity [pond pine (Pinus serotina) pocosin, sand pine (Pinus clausa) scrub]. We review the fire ecology and management of these ecosystems, covering weather, climate, fuels, and fire; historical fire regimes; fire associated tree mortality; fire dependency and postfire recovery; wildlife response to fire; and fire and ecological restoration. Finally, we discuss likely impacts of future climate changes and mitigation strategies. Maintaining fire frequency appropriate to each ecosystem and utilizing all burn opportunities will be even more critical in an era of climate change.

The New Jersey Pine Barrens (Pinelands) is the primary resource for the identification of many of the Zygnematophyceae described in the United States by Francis Wolle and published in early volumes of the Bulletin of the Torrey Botanical Club. Based on the current study, more than 1,100 algal species and infraspecific taxa exist in the Pinelands, which is more than all the other algal studies for the Pinelands combined. This report lists 545 Zygnematophyceae taxa plus 15 genus species. From this list, there are 316 taxa newly reported from 90 current sites within 17 New Jersey Pinelands watersheds.

Helonias bullata (Swamp Pink) is a federally threatened plant found in many of the wetlands throughout US Army Garrison, Fort A.P. Hill, VA. Wetlands that support Swamp Pink are exposed to periodic occurrences of wildland fire. However, much is not yet known about the relationship between this species and wildland fire. This study examines plant-level characteristics (i.e., number of leaves, rosette size) in relation to habitat-level characteristics through comparison of Swamp Pink under 2 land-management regimes in different military training zones. We evaluated the forest compositional differences based on the presence/absence of wildland fire and military-training zone in wetlands supporting Swamp Pink and in adjacent uplands using non-metric multidimensional scaling (NMS), multi-response permutation procedures (MRPP), indicator-species analysis (ISA), and measures of density, dominance, herbaceous cover, and species richness. Swamp Pink rosettes in wetlands exposed to fire were significantly larger and averaged nearly 1 more leaf per rosette as compared to those surveyed in wetlands that were not exposed to fire. There was significantly less upland tree density in burned sites compared to unburned sites. We found no relationship between training zones and Swamp Pink size and the number of leaves. Additional differences in forest composition were revealed by comparing training zone and the presence/absence of wildland fire in conjunction with one another. Compared to other areas, the training zones with lower fire-frequency and recent evidence of fire featured significantly larger rosettes with more leaves. In uplands, overall community composition was significantly different among plots exposed to different fire-management strategies (MRPP; P 0.05). This finding suggests that wetlands limit the effects of fire on community composition. ISA showed that in both wetlands and uplands, different species characterized areas with differing fire influence, suggesting some influence by wildland fire even when such effects were not reflected in overall changes to community composition. The results of this study, the life-history of Swamp Pink, and the distribution of the species in ecosystems characterized by fire (e.g., the New Jersey Pine Barrens) suggest that Swamp Pink is not negatively impacted by fire to a significant degree. The conservation of the Swamp Pink habitat at Fort A.P. Hill may in fact benefit from periodic occurrences of wildland fire. Further research is warranted.

Range expansion of native insect pests under climate change has the potential to move many species beyond their usual habitat. As resource managers attempt to respond to these “new” pests, methods are needed that can rapidly assess local impacts, while utilizing familiar metrics so that the wheel need not be re-invented with each new pest. Southern pine beetle (SPB; Dendroctonus frontalis Zimmermann) is a bark beetle native to the southeastern United States whose periodic outbreaks can kill thousands of hectares of trees, resulting in economic losses and degradation of ecosystem services. Over the past decade, a sustained outbreak in the New Jersey Pinelands has moved the northern limit of its range, switching from forests consisting primarily of loblolly, longleaf, and shortleaf pines (Pinus taeda, P. palustris, P. echinata) in the southeastern U.S. to one consisting primarily of pitch pine (P. rigida) along the mid-Atlantic seaboard. We sought to understand the effects of forest type and structure on the variation in susceptibility of stands to SPB infestation. We found that among wetland conifer, wetland mixed pine/oak, upland (dry) conifer, and upland mixed pine/oak stands, those with a high percentage of pine were infested with higher probability than mixed pine/hardwood stands, regardless of whether the stands were upland or wetland habitats. The effects of stand type (wetland or upland) were overridden by the effect of stand composition. Research from the south has found that wet or waterlogged stands tend to be more susceptible to SPB, potentially due to lower tree defenses. Our finding that wetland/upland status is less important than stand composition suggests that defenses were not the primary determinant of stand susceptibility. Also in contrast to southern findings, site index did not predict infestation status. More in line with previous work in the south, we found that stands with high percentage pine and high pine basal area were more susceptible. Stands composed of smaller, closer together, shorter, and younger trees, with lower percent live crown, were also more susceptible. Discriminant analyses found that a simple model including DBH, pine basal area, and percent live crown could be used to successfully separate and prioritize stands more likely to be infested in the future. Our results suggest that thinning is an appropriate management strategy for forest managers seeking to build resilience, and that all else being equal, conifer stands should receive priority for management attention over mixed stands.

The Pine Barrens in New York State are dominated by pitch pine (Pinus ridgida) and scrub oaks (Quercus ilicifolia and Q. prinoides). With fire suppression over the last 90 years or so, P. rigida regeneration has become sparse, even in areas set aside to preserve this type of vegetation. We evaluated the effects of fire and an alternative disturbance (mechanical removal of vegetation) for increasing P. rigida regeneration in the Albany Pine Bush Preserve in eastern New York State. By comparing cover, diameter and height of P. rigida, Q. ilicifolia, Q. prinoides, and Vaccinium spp. (blueberry) growing on the sites with a known fire history, we documented structural and compositional changes in the vegetation since its establishment. We also compared sites on which Quercus sprouts were controlled through mechanical removal. In the years following a disturbance, height and cover of Q. ilicifolia increased continuously and the species became increasingly competitive. Both the density of P. rigida seedlings and Vaccinium cover decreased significantly as the diameter and height of Quercus increased. Our results confirmed that the dominance by P. rigida could be attributed to periodic fires at intervals of 20–25 years. We conclude that removing Q. ilicifolia can favor P. rigida dominance on the barren without fire by releasing pine seedlings from competition.

Systematic field surveys were conducted for Narthecium americanum in the New Jersey Pine Barrens in order to determine its status and distribution. Surveys were carried out for 61 extant populations (98% of total) and 12 historic/extirpated populations (60% of total), and in approximately 180 km of potential habitat in riverside bogs and fens for de novo populations. Potential habitat was identified using infrared aerial photography and was systematically surveyed at each site, with GPS data collected on the perimeters of all Narthecium patches found. Notable findings included the discovery of 33 de novo populations, increasing the number of known occurrences by 57% and the total areal coverage by 86%. Other populations that previous surveys had failed to find were rediscovered, and several extirpations were confirmed. Spatial analyses found the total area of N. americanum to be 32 ha, ranging from less than 1 m2 to more than 4 ha per site. Populations were clustered along portions of 10 rivers, and a reassessment of occurrence delineations based on their spatial distribution resulted in a reduction to 18 extant and 10 historic/extirpated occurrences. Ninety-four percent of N. americanum by area occurred on publically owned lands, 96% within state and federal Pinelands boundaries, and 81% in the Pinelands Preservation Area. Present status and threats to the species, and the usefulness of remote sensing, geographic information systems, and systematic survey methods for rare plant monitoring and research are discussed.

Eastern Hognose Snakes (Heterodon platirhinos) are considered a species of conservation concern in the northeast United States because of their association with rare and declining habitats such as pine barrens and shrublands. These are disturbance-dependent habitats that currently require management to persist. We studied Eastern Hognose Snakes on a pitch pine–scrub oak barren in western Massachusetts from 2008 to 2013 to describe patterns of space use, habitat selection, and survival of this species and to evaluate the effects of habitat restoration and fuels management. We monitored 12 snakes with radio telemetry during the months of May to October 2008–2010. We examined habitat use versus availability using paired logistic regression analyses in which availability was temporally and spatially explicit in relation to radio-tracked snakes' previous use location and likely movements. We found that radio-tracked snakes significantly avoided closed-canopy forests and power line corridors, and inste...

Rahama ORM, Ahmed MOB, Yassin MM. 2017. Seasonal occurrence of the tree locust Anacridium melanorhodon melanorhodon on Acacia senegal in North Kordofan State, Sudan. Trop Drylands 1: 65-68. The tree locust, Anacridium melanorhodon melanorhodon (Walker, 1870) (Acrididae: Orthoptera) causes sporadic damage mainly to trees. In Sudan, it is called night wanderer because of its nocturnal activity. It is commonly found on the Sudanese western sand plains, causing considerable damage to the gum Arabic producing Acacia trees. Field work was made at an Acacia senegal plantation of the Acacia Project (Elrahad) site, during 2007/08 and 2008/09, North Kordofan State. The objectives of the study were to investigate the factors that influence the tree locust population movements and distribution. The results showed that adults of the tree locust appeared in the field in May and high populations were recorded during the period from June to September reaching the peak (25.00±3.08 per tree) in November. Then the population decreased gradually and disappeared at the end of February. Sexual maturation began during May /June with the first rains and lasted for about four weeks. Oviposition period was during June and July and hoppers, which have six stages, appeared between July and October and their development lasted 1-2 months. The hoppers density was at its peak during September (27.00±5.15 per tree). Rainfall and relative humidity coincide with the development of hoppers, while adults were encountered during periods of low rainfall and relative humidity.

Parasites may mediate ecosystem functioning through a number of direct and indirect mechanisms, but the importance of parasitism at the ecosystem scale is poorly understood. Measuring the density of free-living and parasitic consumers in units that are directly comparable provides a first step toward understanding the importance of parasitism to ecosystem processes. I sampled 2 streams in the New Jersey Pine Barrens seasonally for 1 y to measure the biomass density of all major consumer groups, including macroparasites infecting fish and macroinvertebrates. Parasites made up a small percentage of consumer biomass in Pine Barrens streams, representing just 0.00643 to 0.00733% of total consumer biomass annually. These low values contrast with higher estimates from other aquatic ecosystems, where parasite biomass exceeds that of some free-living consumers. The mean biomass densities of all consumer groups differed significantly between the 2 streams, perhaps because of stream characteristics, such as...

Almost all plants in nature harbour fungi in their roots but the knowledge on distribution and the underlying principles of assemblage is still poorly developed for the root-associated fungi. In this study we analysed the root endophytic fungal communities associated with switchgrass, rosette grass, and pitch pine in the acidic, oligotrophic pine barrens ecosystem. A total of 434 fungal isolates were obtained from 600 root segments of 60 plant samples. DNA barcoding and morphological analyses identified 92 fungal species, which belong to 39 genera in six classes. Compared to other ecosystems, the pine barrens has a higher proportion of Leotiomycetes. The fungal community associated with pitch pine was significantly different from those associated with the grasses, while less difference was found between those associated with the two grasses. Our results suggest that edaphic factors and host specificity play a role in shaping root endophytic fungal community. This study also corroborates our previous finding that plant roots in the pine barrens are a rich reservoir of novel fungi.

Top trophic level predators are at risk from bioaccumulation of heavy metals from their prey. Using nondestructively collected tissues as a method of assessing metal concentrations in snakes is useful for populations that are threatened or declining. This paper reports concentrations of arsenic (As), cadmium (Cd), chromium (Cr), lead (Pb), mercury (Hg), and selenium (Se) in tissues of Northern pine snakes (Pituophis melanoleucus) from the New Jersey Pine Barrens, a relatively pristine, undisturbed habitat. We also determined if skin is an appropriate indicator of internal concentrations and identified the factors (tissue, year of collection, length, sex) that might explain variations in metal concentrations. Because they can grow to 2-m long and live for 25 years, we suggest that these snakes might accumulate heavy metals. Multiple regression models were significant, explaining 16% (lead) to 61% (mercury) of variation by tissue type. For mercury and chromium, size also was significant. The highest concentrations were in liver and kidney for all metals, except chromium and lead. Mercury concentrations in tissues were within the range reported for other snakes and were below effects concentrations in reptiles. The concentrations in skin were correlated with all internal tissues for mercury and for all internal tissues except heart for cadmium. These data show that shed skin can be used as an indicator of metals in pine snakes and that, at present, concentrations of heavy metals in this population are within the range of those found in other snake species from uncontaminated sites.

The ecological constraints on red pine ( Pinus resinosa Ait.) regeneration in multi-cohort stands are not fully understood given the species’ long history of even-aged management. In this study a structural equation modelling approach is used to dissect the biotic and abiotic controls on seedling establishment and survival in North America’s largest remaining multi-cohort red pine forest. We characterized the under and overstory vegetation as well the soil and litter layer surrounding Wolf Lake in the Wolf Lake Forest Reserve (approx. 1600 ha), Sudbury, ON. The understory of this pine dominated stand was found to be characterized by a feather moss-ericaceous community. Red pine establishment was primarily determined by favourable seed bed conditions, namely limited depth of the litter layer, and to some degree by light availability. Additionally, overstory species composition determined establishment of red pine and other shrub species, likely through distinct contributions to the litter layer. Our model suggests that red pine seedlings compete both in the shaded understory and in well-lit plots. We suspect that the northward migrating species, red maple ( Acer rubrum ) and white pine ( Pinus strobus ), exert strong competitive effects especially in canopy gaps. Given that uneven-aged management systems are likely to promote establishment of the competing species, red maple, paper birch ( Betula papyrifera ) and bracken fern ( Pteridium aquilinum var. latiusculum ), we suggest successful red pine regeneration is unlikely under these systems.

The quality of habitat for a given species is fundamental to its persistence in that habitat space. Herbivorous insects often require a specific combination of host plants, floral resources, and physical features such as shelter. Identifying these different habitat features is a focus of ecology and conservation, particularly for managing rare or imperiled taxa. We investigated the patterns of microhabitat and host plant use of the rare frosted elfin butterfly, Callophrys irus, a larval host-plant specialist found in frequently disturbed sand plains, barrens, and sandhill pine-oak forests of the eastern United States. Previous studies have been conducted on populations in the Northeastern and Midwestern US, but the southern part of its range remains unstudied. Our efforts focused on a persistent C. irus colony in northeastern Florida, resulting in a geographically referenced census of larval host-plant Lupinus perennis, along with a multiple year survey of microhabitat features relevant to both C. irus adults and immatures. Results of the larval host-plant census revealed that the highest densities of host plants were located distant to the highest densities of C. irus. Hot-spot analysis confirmed the significance of this pattern, suggesting different habitat requirements for larval host-plant L. perennis and C. irus individuals in order to achieve maximum potential densities. Our survey of C. irus immatures showed a similar pattern of microhabitat affinity that was previously recorded in the Northeast and Midwestern US, including large larval host-plants, low amounts of ground cover vegetation, and the presence of some shade. Unique to our study we found that the presence of other herbivores of L. perennis such as larvae of the crambid moth Uresiphita reversalis had a negative effect on encountering C. irus immatures. Our results suggest that management that aims to conserve these species needs to include habitat factors that favor the overlap of these species and to consider where their densities are the highest.

The jack pine budworm Choristoneura pinus pinus is a defoliator distributed throughout the range of jack pine Pinus banksiana in North America. Jack pine budworm feeds primarily on jack pine. More than 2400 hectares of defoliation of red pine Pinus resinosa were noted during an outbreak of C. pinus pinus from 2004–2008 in Minnesota and Wisconsin, U.S.A. Defoliation of red pine across thousands of hectares, detectable during aerial surveys, is a significant deviation from historical records. Fifty-six study plots were established across 15 counties of Minnesota and Wisconsin to quantify densities and impacts of jack pine budworm in locations showing defoliation of both red pine and jack pine. Populations of jack pine budworm on red pine behaved similarly to those on jack pine, consuming pollen cones and vegetative shoots. The mean number of egg masses per branch and per site was greater on red pine than on jack pine at study sites in Minnesota and Wisconsin, respectively. It is not known what led to the outbreak of jack pine budworm on red pine, nor is it clear whether landscape-scale defoliation of this magnitude represents an isolated incident or a shift in relative host use. Hypotheses regarding the mechanisms behind this alternative host use by jack pine budworm are discussed.

Ramadero Germplasm spike lovegrass ( Eragrostis spicata Vasey [Poaceae]) is a selected germplasm released for seed production and use in rangeland restoration and reclamation seeding associated with oil and gas exploration in South Texas. Ramadero Germplasm was developed by South Texas Natives and USDA NRCS E “Kika” de la Garza Plant Materials Center. Spike lovegrass is a warm-season, perennial bunchgrass that grows in moist prairies, swales, creeks (“ramaderos”), seasonal wetlands, and in saline and alkaline soils throughout the Rio Grande Plains, Coastal Sand Plains, and Gulf Coast Prairies and Marshes of Texas. Ramadero Germplasm was collected from a native population in La Salle County, Texas. This seed source is recommended for use in native seed mixes for rangeland restoration on clay, clay loam, and saline clay ecological sites and in reclamation plantings on sites affected by oil and gas exploration in the Eagle Ford Shale oil and gas production region of Texas. Ramadero Germplasm was selected for release because of excellent comparative growth, indications of region-wide adaptation, and high seed quality when compared with other native grass species and available releases of similar plants at 3 sites within the area of intended use. This release was made in large part because of the need for native seed with natural adaptations to soil characteristics of problematic reclamation sites in the Eagle Ford region.

A selected germplasm release of sand dropseed ( Sporobolus cryptandrus (Torr.) A. Gray [Poaceae]) was cooperatively released in 2015 by the South Texas Natives project and the USDA NRCS E “Kika” de la Garza Plant Materials Center in Kingsville, Texas. This release is intended for use in range and wildlife plantings, right-of-way reseeding, and critical site seedings. Nueces Germplasm comprises 5 populations of sand dropseed collected from native plants in the Rio Grande Plains, Coastal Sand Plains, and Gulf Coast Prairies and Marshes ecoregions of southern Texas. Selections were made from 26 accessions of sand dropseed based on plant performance data collected over 2 y at 3 evaluation sites representative of the intended area of use of the germplasm across South Texas. Following selection, outplants were grown from the original seed stock of each of the 5 accessions, were increased in isolation, and then blended for release in order to preserve genetic integrity of each source population. Nueces Germplasm represents the first selected, ecotypic seed source of sand dropseed for use in South Texas.

We conducted roadside call surveys at 111 historical Hyla andersonii (Pine Barrens Treefrog) sites in 2013–2016. We detected the species at 49 sites (44%), which is consistent with surveys conducted in the early 1980s. We detected the species throughout its historical range except Holmes County, which only has 4 historical sites. We also identified 33 new sites on public lands and 4 new sites on private lands. We used multi-season occupancy models to determine the influence of site and survey covariates on species occupancy and detection rates in Blackwater River State Forest. Species detection was positively associated with air temperature and partial cloud-cover and negatively associated with clear skies. Pine Barrens Treefrog occupancy rates were lower at survey sites surrounded by hardwood-dominated wetlands, suggesting that hardwood encroachment has negatively impacted this species on some areas of Blackwater River State Forest. The best model had an estimated detection probability of 0.43 (95% CI = 0.29–0.47) and an estimated occupancy of 0.63 (95% CI = 0.43–0.79). We recommend that future call surveys include a minimum of 5 visits to each survey site before inferring species absence. Our surveys suggest that the status and distribution of the species remain stable despite some habitat degradation.

Loss of wetlands throughout the southeastern United States threatens the persistence of the region's highly diverse freshwater fauna. Losses are especially concerning for rare species that maintain small or fragmented ranges, zoogeographies that characterize many of the region's numerous freshwater endemics. We assayed nuclear and mitochondrial DNA sequence data from the Pine Barrens Treefrog (Hyla andersonii), a rare species distributed across the Atlantic and Gulf coastal plains. We hypothesized that the species' evolutionary history has been associated with changes in wetlands during Quaternary interglacials and that the contemporaneous extent of wetlands is positively correlated with population genetic diversity. Genetic variation was highest in North Carolina and South Carolina and lowest in New Jersey and Florida. Mean times to common ancestry ranged from 132,486 to 1,290,605 yr before present, and effective sizes ranged from 4,241 individuals in New Jersey to 403,718 individuals in North Carolina. Population migration rates were generally very low (

We monitored consecutive generations of three lupine-feeding specialist butterflies in pine-oak barrens in central Wisconsin, USA: Frosted Elfin (Callophrys irus), Karner Blue (Lycaeides melissa samuelis), and Persius Duskywing (Erynnis persius) during 1991–2014. We also monitored the summer generation of Karner Blues in northwestern Wisconsin. We present results on 24 sites for Frosted Elfin and Persius Duskywing, and 39 sites for Karner Blue. Land uses in sites occupied by the federally endangered Karner Blue are regulated. Economically utilized lands classified as “Shifting Mosaic” (SM) (forestry land) or “Permanency of Habitat” (PH) (rights-of-way) are afforded a lower standard of conservation results than the more favorable management expected of Reserves (R). For all three species, reserve sites had more favorable trends than permanency of habitat and shifting mosaic sites. Frosted Elfin and Persius Duskywing had more strongly negative trends in permanency of habitat than shifting mosaic, but vice versa for Karner Blue. Shifting mosaic sites added more recently to the study had negative trends, but not as strongly as longer-monitored shifting mosaic sites. Another large shifting mosaic complex (Hunter Haven), monitored in 17 years during 1995–2014 for Frosted Elfin and Persius Duskywing, had non-negative trends. Individual reserve sites also had more favorable trends than collectively for all reserve sites, including significant positive trends for Persius Duskywing and Karner Blue, and a stable trend for Frosted Elfin. Thus, land use is implicated not only for declines but also for effective conservation of these species.

Ecological communities are comprised of both species and the biotic relationships among them. Biotic homogenization in species composition (i.e. increased site-to-site similarity) is recognized a common consequence of global change, but less is known about how species relationships change over space and time. Does homogenization of species composition lead to homogenization of species relationships or are the dynamics of species relationships decoupled from changes in species composition? To answer this question, we used long-term resurvey data to analyze changes in plant species association patterns between the 1950s and 2000s at 266 sites distributed among three community types in Wisconsin, USA. We used species associations (quantified via local co-occurrence patterns) as a proxy for species relationships. Species pairs that co-occur more/less than expected by chance have positive/negative associations. Shifts in species associations consistently exceeded the shifts observed in species composition. Less disturbed forests of northern Wisconsin have converged somewhat in species composition but not much in species associations. In contrast, forests in central Wisconsin succeeding from pine barrens to closed-canopy forests have strongly homogenized in both species composition and species associations. More fragmented forests in southern Wisconsin also tended to converge in species composition and in the species negative associations, but their positive associations diverged over the last half century. We conclude that long-term shifts in species relationships may be decoupled from those of species composition despite being affected by similar environmental variables.

Aim Plant species co-occur within communities in response to variation in environmental conditions, limited species dispersal and biotic interactions. We used surveys and resurveys of the same sites of three temperate forest plant communities to study patterns of association between co-occurring species pairs and to infer how these mechanisms contribute to community assembly. Our goal was to compare these forces among communities occupying more and less disturbed landscapes and examine how these have changed over the last 50 years. Location Wisconsin, USA. Methods We resurveyed 266 sites first surveyed in the 1950s to assess the patterns and dynamics of co-occurrence among understorey plant species in three community types. We then used checkerboard scores, null models and a newly developed framework to infer the mechanisms likely to have driven community assembly. Finally, we compared these across the three communities and two time periods. Results Species co-occur less often than expected in all three vegetation types and both periods. We detected high fractions of aggregated and segregated species pairs (up to 14% and 17%, respectively). In the fragmented southern upland forests and central sand plains, both biotic interactions and dispersal limitation may play important roles in community assembly with inferred dispersal limitation becoming more important since the 1950s. In the more continuous and intact northern upland forests, environmental filtering and biotic interactions appear to dominate community dynamics with little change over time. Aggregated and segregated species pairs made a similar contribution to our ability to infer these mechanisms. Main conclusions Environmental filtering, biotic interactions and dispersal limitation all appear to affect plant community structure in both time periods. However, the influence of dispersal limitation seems to be increasing in more fragmented forest landscapes, portending shifts in community composition and dynamics. Because aggregated and segregated species pairs may be shaped by similar processes both can be used to infer processes of community assembly.

Granite sand plains constitute one of New Zealand's 72 historically rare ecosystems. They occur in the alpine zone of the South Island and are known from only four sites. Invertebrates were sampled by pitfall trapping, netting and hand searching by day in two areas: the sand plains of the Lookout Range, Nelson, on 9–17 January 2008; and Mt Titiroa, Fiordland, on 3–10 February 2009. Sampling was of a preliminary, qualitative nature, due to inconsistencies in weather, year and season between the visits to the two locations, and no rigorous comparison is presented. The results of these surveys are summarised in an annotated species list (38 species), and a selection of these is illustrated. No insect species was found at both sites, and the only shared genera (Anabarhynchus [Diptera: Therevidae], Odontria [Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae], Lyperobius [Coleoptera: Curculionidae]) have diversified throughout the alpine zone of the South Island. Many species could not confidently be identified to species level...

A selected germplasm of red lovegrass (Eragrostis secundiflora J. Presl [Poaceae]) was released in 2015 for use in rangeland restoration, wildlife plantings, and right-of-way plantings in South Texas. Duval Germplasm is a blend of 4 accessions collected from the Rio Grande Plains, Gulf Coast Prairies and Marshes, and Coastal Sand Plains ecoregions. Selections were based on plant characteristics evaluated over 2 y at 3 evaluation sites distributed throughout the intended area of use of the germplasm. Following selection, outplants were started from the original seed collections, and seed stock of the 4 accessions was increased in isolation to preserve genetic integrity of each source population. Seed from isolated increases is then blended to create Duval Germplasm. This release represents the first selected, ecotypic seed source of red lovegrass adapted to South Texas and the first known plant materials release of this widespread native grass species.

I conducted anuran vocalization surveys in cranberry bogs, drainage ditches, and reservoirs of three active and three abandoned cranberry farms in the New Jersey Pinelands to examine the distribution of four anuran species in three consecutive years. I then applied a multinomial model to quantify their calling intensity and assess the influence of cranberry cultivation activities on each anuran species. I discovered that four species naturally inhabiting the Pinelands exhibited varied responses to cranberry cultivation. The responses ranged from positive to negative depending on the life history characteristics, disturbance tolerance, and especially the breeding season of the species in question. Green frogs (Lithobates (=Rana) clamitans) showed a high abundance in the bog habitats of active farms, where they exhibited prolonged courtship calls in late summer. Fowler's Toads (Anaxyrus (=Bufo) fowleri) exhibited high abundance in the ditches of active farms and the reservoirs of abandoned farms. O...

Gray birch (Betula populifolia Marshall) is a pioneer tree species that generally colonizes both poor, dry soils and disturbed sites. Its current range appears to be expanding, and it has been observed to establish gradually and often massively in ombrotrophic peatlands. We examined data from sites within and beyond its continuous range that have been subjected to macrofossil analyses to determine whether this species was more abundant during certain periods since deglaciation. The most abundant macroremains were found in the eastern United States and date from the early Holocene (11 700 – 7000 cal. BP). Gray birch was present in mixed forests in which fires were probably more frequent than today. Only a few sites, located in pine barrens that experienced recurrent fires, show a continuous presence of the species during the middle and late Holocene. Palaeoecological data suggest that the colonization of peatlands by gray birch is a recent phenomenon (20th century), and one unique in peatland history. Anthropic disturbances seem to create conditions that foster this species, which could consequently increase its range in the coming decades.

In 2009 and 2010, a butterfly and skipper survey was conducted at Franklin Parker Preserve (FPP) located within Woodland Township, Burlington County, New Jersey. This survey was part of the joint cooperation between the American Entomological Society and the New Jersey Conservation Foundation and funded by a Research Experience for Undergraduates grant. Franklin Parker Preserve is located in the center of the Pine Barrens, where insect fauna has not been strongly studied and inventoried, specifically with the Lepidoptera fauna. Through this survey, fifty-three butterfly and skipper species have been documented to occur on Franklin Parker Preserve property. Time of year and abundance of these species were recorded. Three Species of Special Concern listed by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection were found at FPP: Callophrys hesseli Rawson & Ziegler (Hessel's Hairstreak) Euphyes bimacula Grote & Robinson (Two-Spotted Skipper) and Hesperia attalus Edwards (Dotted Skipper.) This paper...

A new genus Barrenia is described based on multi-gene phylogenetic analyses and phenotypic and ecological characters. Isolated from roots of switchgrass and pitch pine in the acidic and oligotrophic New Jersey Pine Barrens in this study, Barrenia likely has a wide distribution because its internal transcribed spacer (ITS) sequence has high similarity with a number of GenBank sequences from various ecological studies. The majority of these matching samples were from roots of plants in acidic, nutrient-poor environments, as well as from managed sugarcane plantations. Phylogenetic analyses based on ITS, LSU, and RPB1 sequence data strongly support that Barrenia is a monophyletic clade in Helotiales, distinct from any known taxa. Barrenia is phylogenetically close to Acidomelania, Loramyces, Mollisia, and Phialocephala fortinii - Acephala applanata species complex (PAC), the dark septate endophytes. Barrenia can be distinguished from Loramyces and Mollisia by its association with living plant roots. Taxa in PAC also are root endophytes but they have complex phialid arrangements that appear to be lacking in Barrenia. Plant-fungal interaction experiments showed that Barrenia panicia and Acidomelania panicicola significantly promoted root hair growth in switchgrass. Results from this work will facilitate ecological and evolutionary studies on root-associated fungi.

Timber Rattlesnakes, Crotalus horridus, are an endangered species in New Jersey, where high human population density places extraordinary pressures on natural populations. Disjunct populations are found in both the northern part of the state and a few scattered locations in the southern Pine Barrens. The Pine Barrens populations were previously shown to have reduced levels of genetic diversity compared to other populations in the Mid-Atlantic region. In this study, we used microsatellite DNA to examine the remaining six known C. horridus populations in the Pine Barrens and two in the northern part of the state. Bayesian analysis, genetic distance analysis, and factorial component analysis were performed, and the results indicated that the sampled populations represented four genetic subgroups, the two northern populations comprised one subgroup and the remaining six Pine Barrens populations comprised the other subgroups. Although there was evidence for isolation by distance among the Pine Barre...

We investigated the interactive effects of plant domestication and perennial cultivation on diversity and richness of plant-parasitic nematode (PPN) communities associated with highbush blueberry (Vaccinium corymbosum). Rhizospheric soil of V. corymbosum plants was sampled in coupled wild and cultivated sites within the Pinelands National Reserve. Although PPN diversity was higher in cultivated plant soil samples, richness was higher in wild plant soil samples. The most important soil properties, iron and calcium, were associated with cultivated soil and were the best predictors of genera abundance patterns. Nematodes in the genus Criconemoides were 187× more abundant in wild sites than cultivated and thus, were significant indicators of wild sites. In this study cultivation of V. corymbosum appears to benefit the PPN community but alters the community composition considerably.

Delimiting species is important to every subfield in biology. Templeton's cohesion species concept uses genetic and ecological exchangeability to identify sets of populations that ought to be considered as the same species, and the lack of exchangeability helps determine which populations can be grouped as evolutionarily significant units (ESU) in conservation science. However, previous work assessing genetic and ecological interchangeability among populations has been limited in scope. Here, we provide a method for assessing exchangeability that incorporates multiple, independent lines of multivariate evidence in genetic, behavioural and morphological data. We use this approach to assess exchangeability across three disjunct groups of populations of the Pine Barrens Treefrog (Hyla andersonii) from the eastern United States. This species is considered threatened by each state in which it occurs and conservation management of this taxon requires a clearer understanding of how populations in these three regions may differ from one another. We find a strikingly concordant pattern in which the first axis of variation for each of the three types of data distinguishes populations along a latitudinal gradient and the second axis distinguishes the set of populations occurring in the Carolinas from those occurring in the New Jersey and Florida/Alabama regions. We know of no comparable data set that displays such concordance among different types of data across so large a geographic range. The overlap in trait values (i.e. exchangeability) between neighbouring regions, however, is substantial in all three types of data, which supports continued consideration of this taxon as a single species.

Northern Pine Snakes (Pituophis melanoleucus) are one of the few snakes that spend the winter in underground hibernacula that they excavate. We report the use of hibernacula by Pine Snakes from 1986 to 2012 in the New Jersey Pine Barrens. We determined whether philopatry to a specific hibernaculum varied as a function of age, sex, and location of the hibernaculum. Three hibernacula were occupied nearly continuously for 27 yr by 1 to 27 snakes each year. With known-age snakes (N = 120), captured mainly as hatchlings and 2-yr-olds, we found that 23% were always philopatric. Philopatry was related to age of last capture, sex, and capture location. Philopatry was higher for 1) females compared with males, 2) snakes at two solitary hibernacula compared with a hibernaculum complex, and 3) snakes 6 yr old or younger, compared with older snakes. Of hatchlings found hibernating, 24% used the same hibernation site the next year, and 38% were located at year 4 or later. The number of snakes that always used the same hibernation site declined with the age of last capture. Snakes that entered hibernacula as hatchlings were found more often than those that entered as 2-yr-olds. For the seven snakes that were 14 yr or older, females were found 64- 86 % of the time, whereas males were found 15 to 50% of the time. Understanding the behavior and habitat requirements of snakes during different seasons is central to life-history analysis and for conserving viable populations.

We studied home range size and maximum dispersal distance from hibernacula in Northern Pinesnakes (Pituophis m. melanoleucus) at a 1418-ha preserve in Cumberland County, New Jersey, USA, between 1993 and 2003. We discovered 22 different winter hibernacula that were used by 39 Northern Pinesnakes. Of the 10 snakes monitored in hibernacula for 3–5 yr, shifting was observed by 8 individuals, and 2 females showed hibernacula philopatry for five consecutive years. The average minimum convex polygon home range of 14 radio-tracked Northern Pinesnakes was 105.51 ha (located 30–108 times/snake), whereas the average kernel density estimator home range was 50% isopleth = 38.99 ha and 90% isopleth = 133.15 ha. There were no differences in home range as a function of sex, but the number of years snakes were radio-tracked affected home range size. An adult male had the largest home range of 258 ha. The average distance traveled by radio-tracked Northern Pinesnakes from their winter hibernacula was 1321.0...

The decline in snake populations has been attributed primarily to anthropogenic disturbances, including habitat destruction and fragmentation. We radio-tracked Northern Pinesnakes (Pituophis m. melanoleucus) in a military Target Zone and in the surrounding undisturbed buffer zone at the Warren Grove Gunnery Range in the New Jersey Pine Barrens, USA, to examine differences in spatial movement patterns and behavior. There were no differences in home range size (X¯ = 60.0 ± 32.7 ha), core activity area (X¯ = 10.6 ± 8.2 ha), range length (X¯ = 1294.8 ± 32.7 m), or mean distance traveled per day (X¯ = 65.2 ± 30.1 m) across all snakes, or between sexes (male n = 13, female n = 11), or location within (n = 13) or outside (n = 11) of the Target Zone. However, there were differences between tracking years. Northern Pinesnakes in 2005 and 2006 (n = 13) traveled greater total distance and mean distance per day and had larger home ranges compared to snakes radio-tracked in 2003 and 2004 (...

Thinning forest to restore fire-dependent, open-canopy pine barrens is important for promoting shrubland and young forest biodiversity and wildlife habitat and to mitigate chances for extreme fire behavior. Crown fire potential at the wildland-urban interface is a concern in northeastern (USA) pine barrens which contain extremely volatile fuels adjacent to densely populated areas. We used the Crown Fire Initiation and Spread simulator to model pitch pine (Pinus rigida) crown fire potential under simulated stand density reductions to help develop strategies for long-term management and conservation of pine barrens communities. Empirical data for model inputs were collected from pitch pine stands at the Albany Pine Bush (New York State, USA). Canopy structure, surface fuel moisture, and wind speed were used to predict crown fire occurrence, type (active vs. passive), and rate-of-spread. At winds > 20 km hr−1 and ≤ 9% fine fuel moisture, passive crown fire probabilities exceed 60%, and one stand near sensiti...

The Franklin Parker Preserve within the New Jersey Pine Barrens contains 5000 acres of wetlands habitat, including old-growth Atlantic white cedar (or AWC; Chamaecyparis thyoides) swamps, cranberry bogs, and former cranberry bogs undergoing restoration into AWC forests. This study showed that the C-use efficiency was greater in the old-growth AWC soils than in soils from 8-year-old mid-stage restored AWC stands, which were greater than found in soil from 4-year-old AWC stands—the latter two stands being restored from long-term cranberry bogs. A metagenomic analysis of eDNA extracted from these soils showed that the C-cycle trends were associated with increases in the relative numbers of DNA sequences from several copiotrophic bacterial groups (Bacteroidetes and Proteobacteria), complex C-decomposing fungal groups (Sordiomycetes, Mortierellales, and Thelephorales), and collembolan and formicid invertebrates. All groups are indicators of successionally more advanced soils, and critical for soil C-cycle activities. These data suggest that the restoration activities studied are enhancing critical guilds of soil biota, and increasing C-use efficiency in the soils of restored habitats, and that the use of metagenomic analysis of soil eDNA can be used in the development of assessment models for soil recovery of wetlands following restoration.