Aquatic Herpetofauna Monitoring at Santa Mounica Mountains National Recreation Area (SAMO) by the Mediterranean Coast Inventory and Monitoring Network (MEDN) 2000-2024 : Data Package

The Mediterranean Coast Inventory and Monitoring Network (MEDN) has been monitoring aquatic herpetofauna at Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area (SAMO) as a “vital sign” of ecosystem health since 2000. The goal of the program is to provide timely information on the status and trends in key communities and taxa for resource managers at National Park system units. This data package comprises 5 CSV files and EML metadata that contain information on: (1) contributing personnel, (2) physical and biological stream monitoring surveys, (3) occupancy monitoring for target amphibian and non-native species, (4) the location and characteristics of streams surveyed, and (5) taxa encountered during survey efforts. Specifically, monitoring consists of surveying stream site locations twice each year during the breeding season: one intensive survey in which habitat, characteristics, and counts of species are recorded, and one presence/absence only survey. The two surveys combined provide estimates of occupancy and detectability for four focal native amphibians and non-native species. In addition, one of the annual surveys provides information about relative abundance of larval amphibians. The program is led by a wildlife biologist at SAMO, and completed by SAMO and partner organization staff. These regular, long-term monitoring surveys allow detection of changes in occupancy and relative abundance in relation to changes in urbanization pressures, non-native species, and climate. Monitoring results can be used to inform management decisions in the watersheds of the Santa Monica Mountains. For example, monitoring efforts have shown that the percentage of urbanization in the watershed significantly affects the distribution of native amphibians and invasive species. Thus, the data package contains files and EML metadata that provide comprehensive information on the Aquatic Herpetofauna Monitoring Program at SAMO from 2000-2025. This information is crucial for tracking changes in stream communities and informing management decisions in a highly biodiverse ecoregion.