How do amphibians share stream habitat in their aquatic life stages? The answer is: we have a lot to learn! This study investigates two obligate stream-breeding amphibians whose ranges, breeding seasons, and habitat overlap spatially and temporally in first order streams. We 1) collected data on the aquatic life stages of R. boylii and T. rivularis, 2) applied the existing body of knowledge about R. boylii that is currently based in riverine and higher order stream systems to small first order streams, and 3) compared and contrasted it with habitat use between these two species. We collected data at the meso-, sub-, and microhabitat scale, including canopy closure and fish presence, and looked at spatial distribution throughout aquatic life stages. Key findings highlight the value of runs at the mesohabitat level, low gradient riffles and pocket water runs at the subhabitat level, and patterns in substrate type, water flow rate, and canopy cover among species and life stage. We also identify a novel subhabitat designation that is highly influential to larval life stages: protected side channel pools. Based on these results, we offer specific management recommendations that can support egg and larval development for R. boylii and T. rivularis.

Beth Sabo earned her Masters at Sonoma State University alongside fabulous fellow graduates like me (that's you, Victoria!) in the Girman Lab. She works as a biologist for WRA, an environmental consultancy based in the Bay Area. She is learning the intricacies of regulatory permitting while applying her experience in conservation land management to the world of habitat mitigation design and monitoring. She lives in a sweet historic neighborhood of Santa Rosa with her two sons and dog where she enjoys working in the garden, adventuring in nature, creating and taking in as much art as possible.