Page 31 - March/April 2020 - Outdoor Oklahoma

pleted a five-year study of five Wildlife Management
Areas: Packsaddle, Atoka, Cookson, Sandy Sanders and oLAF NeLSoN/NANF
Pushmataha WMAs. The team documented 99 species
of reptiles and amphibians. The survey not only con-
firmed expected species but also documented species
that had not yet been reported on the area and record-
ed substantial range extensions for some species.
“Many of our state’s reptiles and amphibians are secre-
tive or only active during short windows of time, so it
requires a lot of effort at the right time to really under-
stand their distribution or abundance,” Wildlife Biologist
Matt Fullerton said. “Partnering with dedicated survey
teams is the only way we can gather this much data
about so many species across such a large area.”
This project was funded in part by ODWC’s State Wildlife
Grants Program Grant T-35-P-1 and the University of Oklahoma.
Uncovering the Unexpected
A study initially focused on invasive Asian carp in the
Kiamichi River didn’t reveal many bighead or silver carp
but did uncover an unexpectedly large population of
native blue suckers. In 2013, researchers with Oklahoma JeNA doNNeLL/odWC
State University followed-up on the find with a study of
the suckers, a species of greatest conservation need,
which answered a lot of questions about the fish’s popu-
lation and demographics.
“We were all blown away by the number of fish they
documented,” Fisheries Biologist Curtis Tackett said. “In
addition to shedding light on the different age classes
and sex ratio of the fish, researchers also tagged more
than 100 blue suckers and tracked their spawn in three
Red River tributaries.”
What started out as a fact-finding mission for an inva-
sive species turned into a positive breakthrough about a
native fish.
This project was funded in part by ODWC’s State Wildlife Grants
Program Grant F13AF01214 and Oklahoma State University.

Only Scratched the Surface
In 2013, the Oklahoma Biological Survey began compil-
ing existing records for three rare dragonflies and then
launched a search that effectively doubled the number
of records and added dozens of new locations for the
species. And while the project shed light on these fierce
insects, a mystery remains.
“We’ve never documented the larvae of the Ozark
emerald dragonfly in Oklahoma,” Fullerton said. “So, we
are following this project with an in-depth look at the life
history and ecology of this rare species.”
“There are a lot of unknowns in nature, especially in the
insect world. Without experienced surveyors taking time
to extensively study these species, we may only have just
a handful of records to shape our understanding.”
This project was funded in part by ODWC’s State
Wildlife Grants Program Grant F13AF01188 and the
University of Oklahoma.

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