Conserving At-Risk Reptiles Near Trail

Project Year: 2016-2017

View Provincial Database Record

J. Dulisse

Project Lead

Jakob Dulisse Consulting

Watershed/Sub-region

Columbia Region

West Kootenay

Project Type

Habitat-Based Actions

FWCP Contribution

$15,082

Action Plan Alignment

Upland and Dryland Action Plan

Project ID

COL-F17-W-1392

Lower Columbia Reptile At-Risk Conservation Project

This is the fourth year of a project that targets the North American Racer, a snake species-at-risk in the Lower Columbia. Through radio telemetry, summer and winter habitat use will be determined, in order to conserve racers and other reptiles at-risk in the area, including Northern Rubber Boas and Western Skinks. In 2016, with a partnership between various partners, an outdoor education event will be held at Beaver Creek Provincial Park. It will highlight the importance of the local ecosystem and unique species that live there.

In addition to benefiting the target reptile species-at-risk, the project will also result in increased:

  1. knowledge and conservation of habitat features critical to local reptiles-at-risk;
  2. habitat protection and potential restoration/creation of additional hibernacula;
  3. conservation of non-target native reptiles that share habitat with target species;
  4. local awareness and stewardship, targeting local species-at-risk and their habitat through collaboration with local conservation groups and schools;
  5. local government, industrial and land-manager awareness and cooperation regarding local conservation; and
  6. local appreciation for the unique ecosystem and species that live there.

Update: Radio-Tagged Snakes Will Reveal More

Catching and tracking fast North American Racer Snakes is tough enough, but getting the conservation message to some landowners about this provincially Blue-listed species can be equally challenging.

Wildlife biologist, Jakob Dulisse, is leading a project to radio tag Racers in the lower Columbia River Valley around Trail, and has been successful in identifying several hibernacula, including one where multiple Racers were sharing a winter home, which was the first time this has been recorded in the region.

The team currently have five radio-tagged Racers that are now underground for winter. One was a recapture first caught in 2014, which shows it likely has a home-range territory and hibernacula fidelity. However, when hibernacula are discovered, it doesn’t mean they are safe from development. All 15 hibernacula recorded to-date have been on private land, and at least one of those was heavily impacted by development in 2016.


 

View more about this project on the provincial database