Dyson College of Arts and Sciences

DCISE Annual Report 2015-2016

Dyson College of Arts and Sciences

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| DCISE ANNUAL REPORT 2015 - 2016 11 EXTRAMURAL/INTRAMURAL FUNDING Culvert Management Planning for Amphibian Connectivity NYS DEC ($69,000; Matthew Aiello-Lammen, Principal investigator) The overall goal of this project is to develop an adaptive management plan for prioritizing culvert maintenance actions to enhance connectivity of amphibian habitat, survival of amphibian species, and manage drainage during precipitation events. Presently, there are a number of programs within the Hudson River Estuary focused on increasing aquatic habitat connectivity (e.g., stream and river connectivity), but the connectivity of the wet areas that support amphibian populations is an important, but understudied, corollary. This project will assess small culverts, identifying those that most greatly reduce road-associated Pocantico River Watershed Habitat Assessment NYS DEC ($24,000; Melanie DuPuis, Principal investigator with Teatown Lake Reservation) Pace is working with Teatown Lake Reservation to undertake a habitat assessment study, using trained undergraduate and graduate students to collect data. Pace has designed courses to train students in habitat assessment, water quality assessment, animal connectivity and GIS mapping for hydrological, habitat and other inventory projects. Trained students will undertake various studies of the Pocantico over the next several years. Existing reports on the area will be reviewed to obtain information on known occurrences of habitats, plants, & animals in the region. In addition to gathering existing data, we will reach out to local stakeholders to identify any additional data that may exist in the broader community. Once possible habitat locations are identified, aerial photograph interpretation will be used to further refine their locations. Verification of aerial photograph mapping will be carried out through fieldwork. The ESS Department also received three Provost's summer research grants for Emma Weis and Dillon Addonizio (with Rockefeller State Park Preserve) and Haylei Peart (with the Mount Pleasant Conservation Advisory Council). mortality and are most important for facilitating run-off. These are timely goals. The former because amphibian populations are among the most impacted by a combination of environmental threats, including habitat change, spread of disease, and climate change. Most forecasts of future climate conditions in our region predict increased intensity of precipitation events, which will tax current run-off systems. The project will result in a map of known mortality hotspots within our region, which we will provide both to the Estuary Program staff and the stakeholders within our study region. Likely mortality hotspots, based on proximity to vernal pools, are included on the map of our study region. In addition to the planned work in our main study region, we will also examine mortality of amphibians and reptiles (specifically turtles) in a separate study area north of our main study area, the Foundry Brook wetlands.

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