Meeting Abstract

P1.70  Wednesday, Jan. 4  Parentage Analysis of the Florida Sand Skink, Plestiodon reynoldsi , following relocation on the Lake Wales Ridge in Central Florida FOX, Alicia M*; SCHREY, Aaron W; MCCOY, Earl D; MUSHINSKY, Henry W; University of South Florida; University of South Florida; University of South Florida; University of South Florida amfox@mail.usf.edu

As a consequence of a fossorial lifestyle, there is a lack of information regarding the mating system of the threatened Florida Sand Skink, Plestiodon reynoldsi , which occurs in xeric habitat on the central ridges of Florida. Multiple forms of land development and mining have occurred on Florida’s central ridges and one of our study locations near Davenport, Florida on the Lake Wales Ridge is scheduled to be mined for sand. As a result of the sand mining, all individuals captured at this site were relocated in the spring and summer of 2007 to a site on the northern end of Lake Wales Ridge. Individuals moved to the relocation site were placed in 20m X 20m enclosures that contained multiple pitfall arrays and had various shade and ground cover treatments. Twenty individuals were placed into each enclosure with recapture efforts beginning in 2008. While our relocation site provided opportunity for multiple studies, such as survivorship and habitat preference, the purpose of this study is to examine reproductive success in P. reynoldsi . A total of 63 juveniles, resulting from mating presumed to have occurred between 2008 and 2010, was captured from 13 enclosures. Genotypes were determined at multiple microsatellite loci for all individuals originally captured at our Davenport location and for all juveniles captured at the relocation site. A parentage analysis was done to determine parents of juveniles in each enclosure and reproductive success of both males and females. This study is a first step in understanding the genetic mating system of the Florida Sand Skink that can be used in the conservation and management of this species.