Estimating the proportion of Archey’s frogs in the Wharekirauponga mine vibration footprint 7 Table 4. The distribution of Archey’s frogs found during nocturnal survey of a transect among dominant NZ LRI vegetation types: M1 ~ Manuka-kanuka scrub; N2 ~ Kauri forest; N3a ~ lowland podocarp-hardwood forest; and N5 ~ Hardwood forest. NZ LRI Vegetation Type All M 1 N 2 N5 N. of frog 26 23 9 58 Track Length (km) 5.54 5.40 1.55 12.49 Frogs/km 4.70 4.26 5.82 4.65 Figure 6. The locations of Archey’s frogs found during nocturnal survey of one transect during March 2022. Results from nocturnal transects surveyed thus far indicate that the gap between records in northern and southern parts of the Coromandel Peninsula might well reflect an actual gap in Archey’s frog range, rather than a gap in search effort. Additional nocturnal transect surveys will be required to confirm this conclusion as there is still a 15 km wide section of habitat that has not been surveyed (Figure 5). Archey’s frog Habitat Preferences Published information[4-6] indicates that Archey’s frogs preferred habitat in the Coromandel Peninsula is mixed podocarp-hardwood forest at mid to high altitudes (>400 m a.s.l.). Forests with old-growth tree species and complex interior structures including epiphytes, ground cover and tree ferns are especially favoured. Mature forest species, such as tree ferns and rewarewa (Knightia excelsa) are associated with higher frog abundance[5]. Cree (1989)[4] describes optimal Archey’s frog habitat as forest with a canopy dominated by rimu, rewarewa, towai, with some emergent kauri and tree rata. Generally, Archey’s frogs are thought to occur at lower densities in areas of kauri re-growth, tawa forest, and manukakanuka scrub. Archey’s frogs tend to avoid exposed windy sites, solid rocky outcrops and well-drained steep ridges or hillsides. The observations of Archey’s frog’s habitat preferences are reflected in the distribution pattern of historical records among vegetation types and elevation bands in the Coromandel Peninsula described above.
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