Getting to the Root of the Newt: Larval Occurrence Patterns of a Newly Discovered Eastern Newt Population in Southeast Kansas

The Eastern Newt (Notophthalmus viridescens) is listed as a species in need of conservation in Kansas due to its limited range and infrequent occurrence in the state. While Eastern Newts have been documented in five counties in southeast Kansas, they remain uncommon throughout the region. Our objective was to analyze wetland features that could influence the presence of breeding Eastern Newts in a newly discovered population in Crawford County. We used dip nets to sample 10 locations in each of 12 different wetlands from July 21 to August 8, 2022. We found eight larval Eastern Newt individuals in four of the wetlands. While most characteristics were similar between wetlands with and without Eastern Newts, wetlands with newts had less surrounding grassland cover, lower dissolved oxygen, and no fish. We recommend that future studies assess additional habitat variables, such as plant species richness or invertebrate abundance, which could influence Eastern Newt occurrence. Particularly, more surveys are needed along the Marais des Cygnes and Spring River watersheds to identify a possible source population and the extent of the metapopulation. Understanding the habitat associations and distribution of Eastern Newts at the western edge of their geographic range could be a foundation for future conservation efforts in this region.