Post-Breeding Movements, Refugia Associations, and Road Use of Migrating Gopher Frogs (Lithobates capito) in South Alabama

Gopher Frogs (Lithobates capito) are pond-breeding amphibians native to longleaf pine forests in the southeastern United States. In Alabama, Gopher Frogs are a protected species currently only known to consistently breed in two ponds in the state. As the life histories of Gopher Frogs involve yearly migrations to and from breeding ponds, assessment of the movement ecology of these populations is key to conservation. Here, we describe the characteristics of post-breeding movements of 24 adult Gopher Frogs on the Conecuh National Forest in 2021 (n = 3) and 2022 (n = 21) using radiotelemetry. Gopher Frogs frequently took straight-line, multi-step, long-distance movements from the breeding pond to their summer refugia. Step length (or the distance traveled in a single night) ranged from 5.6 m to 760.9 m (mean = 280 m), number of steps ranged from 1 to 3 (mean = 1.6), days of emigration from pond to summer refugia ranged from 1 to 58 (mean = 16), net displacement ranged from 104.2 m to 1,386.4 m (mean = 449.1 m), and total displacement ranged from 104.2 m to 1,407.8 m (mean = 455.1 m). During movements from ponds, Gopher Frogs were found to primarily use stump holes as refugia. No directional association of frog movement with refugia availability was found; however, points occupied by frogs were significantly closer to roads than random points in the landscape with a mean difference of over 100 m, indicating a possible use of roads as corridors for migration. This study compares Gopher Frog movements in Alabama with findings from Georgia, Florida, and North Carolina. Our goal is to expand knowledge on Alabama populations to guide conservation, management, and potential reintroduction efforts.