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Dryad

Data from: Landscape distribution of the South Mountains gray-cheeked salamander (Plethodon meridianus)

Data files

Jul 31, 2025 version files 23.53 KB

Abstract

Since being described in the year 2000, little ecological information has accumulated for the South Mountains Gray-cheeked Salamander (Plethodon meridianus), a narrowly-distributed species in southern Appalachia. In this study, we used repeat surveys to model occupancy and abundance of P. meridianus along a transect running from the approximate range center to range edge. We found a strong effect of elevation and distance to streams as predictors of occupancy and abundance. The number of days since rain had a strong impact on detection probability, likely due to its effect on salamander surface activity (i.e., time outside of burrow), as opposed to observer error. Treating elevation as a proxy for distance to the range edge, we found that occupancy and abundance declined toward the range edge, supporting the center-periphery hypothesis. Our findings matched that of similar, previous studies: at low elevations in dry habitat, salamanders are only found along the cooler microhabitat of streams, while at high elevations, salamanders are more widespread across the landscape.