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Apalachicola National Forest Hydrologic Study: Identification of Temporary Ponds and Disturbances at a Landscape Scale, with a Focus on Flatwoods Salamander Critical Habitat

Project Chief: Christy Crandall
Cooperator: U.S. Forest Service
Period of Project: January 2011 - March 2012

Problem Statement

Figure 1. Location of critical habitat in the western part of the Apalachicola National Forest.

The Apalachicola National Forest (the Forest), managed by the U.S. Forest Service, is located in Leon, Wakulla, Liberty, and Franklin Counties, Florida, and covers about 570,000 acres. Protection of native species and their habitats is one of the primary missions of the Forest. The Flatwoods Salamander (Ambystoma cingulatum), found in the Forest, was listed as a threatened species under the provisions of the Endangered Species Act in 1999 by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Critical habitat areas for this species are contained within the western part of the Forest (fig. 1).

The critical habitat is characterized primarily as lowlands with only a few feet of elevation change from pine uplands to the creek bottoms. The geology consists mostly of sands at land surface which are underlain by a thick clay layer. This combination of topography and geology results in both permanent and temporary ponds. During rainy periods the temporary ponds are full of water, and during extended periods of below-average rainfall they can dry out completely. The temporary ponds are used as breeding sites by the Flatwoods Salamander and form the basis for critical habitat designation. Pond hydroperiods sufficiently long to allow for successful breeding and maturation of salamander larvae, but not so long as to allow establishment of fish that prey on the larvae and adults, are required for continuation of this species. Many such ponds occur but have not yet been identified throughout large parts of the forest. There is a need to identify all temporary ponds across the Forest to assess their potential to provide critical habitat.

Additionally, roads, fire breaks, and other disturbances have altered land surface topography in the Forest and therefore have changed the natural flow of water and altered the hydroperiods of many temporary ponds. To restore the natural flow of water and improved salamander reproduction success, land surface disturbances must be identified and removed or mitigated. To provide a foundation for effective and efficient restoration, a study was needed to identify each disturbance in critical habitat areas.

Objectives

1) Identify all temporary ponds throughout the Forest;

2) Delineate as many disturbance features as possible in the Forest;

3) Identify high value ponds and features in contributing areas in the Critical Habitat areas of the western part of the Forest;

4) Categorize each pond in Critical Habitat areas;

5) Rank each pond based on the quality of habitat provided and examine all disruption features to the natural flow of water in the contributing area for remediation potential. The ranking system was developed in cooperation with the Forest Service and included impacts categorized as High, Medium, or Low.

Approach

Recent (2007-2009) Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) data were used to identify all ponds and land disturbances features and evaluate their impacts in temporary ponds in critical habitat areas using slope changes.

Statistical information about the quality of critical habitat such as average depth, total area, and average volume and information about disturbance features within the contributing areas were used to prioritize and identify candidate areas for remediation. Remediation recommendations were made based on the ranking of the habitat.

Results and Products

GIS datasets were produced including polygon features of temporary ponds and land disturbance across the Apalachicola National Forest, and rankings of ponds in the critical habitat areas were made to determine priority for restoration.

The USGS is providing an administrative letter to the Forest Service outlining the techniques and methods used to identify ponds and disturbance features, the ranking criteria, and a summary of the results.