3.2 Amphibians
upland habitat by Mountain Chorus Frogs and their movements when away from breed- ing habitats. Nighttime visual encounter surveys conducted at aquatic breeding sites have been used to collect morphological data. Audio surveys for calling frogs, conducted since 2008, have collected distribution information in western North Carolina, and more than 20 new breeding habitats in south-central Cherokee County and western Clay County have been detected. Telemetry techniques could be used to fnd out more about their move- ments and habitat use in these areas. 3.2.2 Comparison of 2005 and 2015 Priority Species Te 2015 evaluation identifed a total of 78 species as conservation concern, knowledge gap, or management concern priorities. Some species are a priority in more than one of the three evaluation categories. Of the 78 species, 49 were identifed as SGCN and another 17 were designated research priorities. In comparison, the 2005 WAP listed 41 amphibians as priority species, which may have included concerns for knowledge gaps. However, the 2005 Taxa Team evaluations did iden- tify knowledge gaps or management concerns as separate priorities. Tese changes do not necessarily indicate a change in the concern status of these species; they are more likely a result of diferent evaluation methodologies from the 2005 process (see Appendix F) or refect an increase in our knowledge base for the species. Tere have been signifcant scientifc advances in direct DNA sequencing methods that enabled tests of previous hypotheses of phylogenetic relationships (Amphibiaweb 2015) . Tis new information has led to suggestions for taxonomic revisions such as those proposed by Frost et al. (2006) and others. However, newly published taxonomy should not be interpreted
T ABLE 3.5 Amphibians: comparison of changes from 2005 WAP
2005
2015 Changes
Common Name Scientifc Name
Common Name Scientifc Name
Comment
Bufo quercicus
Bufo [Anaxyrus] quercicus
Oak Toad
No Change
Taxonomists have pro- posed genus name changes that the 2015 Taxa Team has not adopted
Eurycea sp. 1
Eurycea sp. 9
Sandhills Salamander Carolina Gopher Frog
No Change
Rana capito
Rana [Lithobates] capito Rana [Lithobates] heckscheri
No Change
Rana heckscheri
River Frog
No Change
42
2015 NC Wildlife Action Plan
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