PART III - PRAIRIE MANAGEMENT FOR AMPHIBIANS AND REPTILES
The majority of grassland amphibians and reptiles should prosper if you manage old fields or prairies to stimulate the growth of native grasses and herbaceous plants. You also should add ponds, marshes, or wet areas. As with forest management, it is important to manage the grassland so that the diversity of plant species increases. This can increase the population of rodents which, in turn, will increase the amount of food for snakes, as well as the number of rodent burrows that snakes and other animals use as shelters.
Prairie Management Tips
When old fields are involved, you could plant native grasses. Your conservation field service agent can supply you with information on sources of native grass seeds and planting tips. Once the native grasses have a good start, mowing and spring burning is necessary to increase grass production and to discourage growth of unwanted woody plants. Controlled burning in early spring will help prevent the take-over of grassy areas by red cedar, black cherry, elm and exotic herbaceous weeds.
Other methods that help perpetuate prairie conditions for wildlife are haying and controlled grazing in rotation. These methods should be used in conjunction with periodic, controlled, early spring burning. Contact your field service agent for tips on field burning and a recommended schedule for best results. When preparing a management plant for your grassland, exclude small areas from burning, haying and/or grazing to allow the accumulation of thatch. The additional ground litter provides important hiding places for rodents, as well as snakes, toads and prairie lizards.
Providing shelter or hiding places for the various amphibians and reptiles that make their homes in old fields or prairie habitat is extremely worthwhile. For lizards and snakes a number of rock piles are helpful. Place the rock piles along fence rows, near the edge of wood lots and in several areas on the south-facing slopes of hillsides. Placing logs, boards and other flat objects in the same general areas, or near prairie ponds is helpful, too.
One of the most effective ways to make an old field or grassland more beneficial to amphibians and reptiles is to build ponds or to produce wet, marshy areas. You can convert low areas in rolling hill county into a marsh if the water table is near the surface. A number of small ponds are especially helpful to amphibians living in grasslands such as the crawfish frog, plains leopard frog, great plains toad and smallmouth salamander. Ponds containing fish are beneficial to the western painted turtle and water snakes. Prevent livestock grazing in or near marshy areas, springs or ponds by fencing around them.
Prairie Amphibians and Reptiles
Salamanders
- Smallmouth Salamander
- Eastern Tiger Salamander
Toads and Frogs
- Plains Spadefoot Toad
- Woodhouse's Toad
- Great Plains Toad
- Great Plains Narrowmouth Toad
- Northern Crawfish Frog
- Plains Leopard Frog
Turtles
- Yellow Mud Turtle
- Ornate Box Turtle
Lizards
- Great Plains Skink
- Northern Prairie Skink
Snakes
- Prairie Ringneck Snake
- Great Plains Rat Snake
- Prairie Kingsnake
- Bull Snake
- Plains Garter Snake
- Botched Water Snake
