. Distribution, habitat, and calling season of the Illinois chorus frog (Pseudacris streckeri illinoensis) along the lower Illinois River. Frogs. September 1988 Brown and Rose: Illinois Chorus P'rog (PseucUum. strechen tlltnoeruis) sumed that because sand mining provided additional breeding sites, it promotes conservation of P. streckeri illinoensis. However, a number of the sandpits were dried up in the spring of 1984 before field work in that year was concluded, and any tadpoles oi P. streck- eri illirioensts present may have died before they had a chance to metamorphose. We first heard call
. Distribution, habitat, and calling season of the Illinois chorus frog (Pseudacris streckeri illinoensis) along the lower Illinois River. Frogs. September 1988 Brown and Rose: Illinois Chorus P'rog (PseucUum. strechen tlltnoeruis) sumed that because sand mining provided additional breeding sites, it promotes conservation of P. streckeri illinoensis. However, a number of the sandpits were dried up in the spring of 1984 before field work in that year was concluded, and any tadpoles oi P. streck- eri illirioensts present may have died before they had a chance to metamorphose. We first heard calling males at this site on 28 March 1984, but a number of the pits had dried up by 19 April 1984. Taubert et al. (not dated) estimated that 35â50 days are required for de- velopment of a tadpole from egg to metamorphosed juvenile, and thus the sandpit breeding pools may not retain water long enough for tadpoles to metamor- phose. Although the ecological characteristics of an adequate breeding site for P. streckeri illinoensis are un- clear, aquatic sites over soil with a high content of clay, silt, and/or organic material may be better because surface water would be retained longer. Another chorus also is of particular interest. The sand ridge associated with it has been mined since at least 1980 (the site is marked by a symbol for a gravel, sand, clay, or borrow pit and the word "sandpit" on the 1980 Bedford quadrangle map), and the recrea- tional use of ATVs has also disturbed the ridge. On 1 May 1983 Loren D. Moehn found a chorus of approx- imately ten males calling on top of the ridge (Moehn 1984; Moehn, personal communication). Later in 1983 the aquatic site on the sand ridge was destroyed by sand mining (Moehn, personal communication). On 28 March 1984 we stopped at the site. Pseudacris streckeri illinoensis were not calling on the sand ridge, but a chorus of approximately 25 males was found in a wide, flooded ditch between the sand ridge and the nearby Hillview
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Keywords: ., bookauthorillinoisnaturalhist, bookcentury1900, booksubjectfrogs
