Project Code:	WEYDV-02-080
Program:	FRIP
Sponsor:	Weyerhaeuser
Project Status:	Completed

Object & Deliverables

The objective of the project was to inventory amphibians and ponds in the Drayton Valley Forest Management Area to provide information on regional species and their distribution and a framework for a larger ecological study on amphibians with implications for timber management. Another objective was to determine if beaver create breeding habitats for amphibians. The visual surveys were completed in the spring and summer of 2000 and consisted of 131 aquatic habitats in the Drayton Valley FMA. Over 600 frogs and toads were caught, measured, weighed and released during visual surveys.

Final Report

Three species were found. The wood frog, boreal toad and chorus frog. The wood frog was the most abundant. In general, amphibians appeared to be in a healthy condition. Preliminary results suggest that beaver create high-quality breeding habitats for amphibians. In particular, wood frog populations recruit high numbers of juveniles to metamorphosis on beaver ponds. Factors such as the low abundance of predatory fish, an abundance of algal floods and water permanency throughout the larval period were associated with these ponds. Final report was submitted by C.E Stevens and C.A Paszkowski from the University of Alberta, entitled “Final Report on Amphibian Research in Drayton Valley Forest Management Area, Weyhaeuser, Canada, Ltd.” on August 27, 2003.