EFFECTS OF PRESCRIBED FIRE ON COLUBER CONSTRICTOR MORMON IN COASTAL SAN MATEO COUNTY, CALIFORNIA

Although prescribed burns are used in many locations where reptiles are present, the effects of fire on reptiles are poorly understood. our objective was to determine the effects of prescribed fire on the Western yellow-bellied racer, Coluber constrictor mormon, at a study site in coastal San Mateo county, california. We sampled an unburned site and an adjacent prescribed burn site two to five years post fire in the spring and summer of 2007 through 2010. We found no differences in apparent survival or body condition of snakes between burned and unburned sites. the burned site had lower snake abundance than the unburned site in 2008 but we found no difference in abundance between sites in 2009 and 2010. We also found a difference in body condition across years and asymmetry in the probability of transition (movement between burned and unburned sites). Vegetation cover between the burned and unburned sites was similar. this study serves as a baseline for investigation of the effects of fire on Coluber constrictor mormon at our study site and provides further insight on the effects of prescribed fire on reptile species.