02514nas a2200265   4500008004100000245019200041210006900233300001300302490000700315520163700322653002001959653001701979653001401996653001802010653001402028653001402042653002602056653002302082653002002105653001002125100001502135700001702150700001502167856006602182       2011                        eng d00aPopulation genetic structure and landscape connectivity of the Eastern Yellowbelly Racer (Coluber constrictor flaviventris) in the contiguous tallgrass prairie of northeastern Kansas, USA0 aPopulation genetic structure and landscape connectivity of the E  a281 -2940 v263 a<p>The tallgrass prairie of North America has undergone widespread habitat loss and fragmentation (&lt;4% remains). The Flint Hills region of Kansas and Oklahoma is the largest tallgrass prairie remaining and therefore provides an opportunity to study the population genetic structure of grassland species in a relatively contiguous landscape and set a baseline for evaluating changes when the habitat is fragmented. We adopted a landscape genetics approach to identify how landscape structure affected dispersal, population genetic structure, and landscape connectivity of the Eastern Yellowbelly Racer (Coluber constrictor flaviventris) across a 13,500-km2 landscape in northeastern Kansas, USA. The racer population had high allelic diversity, high heterozygosity, and was maintaining migration-drift equilibrium. Autocorrelation between genetic and geographic distance revealed that racers exhibited restricted dispersal within 3 km, and isolation-by-distance. Significant isolation-by-distance occurred at broad regional scales (&gt;100 km), but because of sufficient gene flow between locations, we were unable to define discrete subpopulations using Bayesian clustering analyses. Resistance distance, which considers the permeability of habitats, did not explain significant variation in genetic distance beyond Euclidean distance alone, suggesting that racers are not currently influenced by landscape composition. In northeastern Kansas, racers appear to be an abundant and continuously distributed snake that perceives the landscape as well connected with no cover type currently impeding snake dispersal or gene flow.</p>10aAutocorrelation10aconservation10adispersal10aFragmentation10aGene flow10agrassland10aIsolation-by-distance10aLandscape genetics10aMicrosatellites10aSnake1 aKlug, P.E.1 aWisely, S.M.1 aWith, K.A.  uhttps://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs10980-010-9554-202541nas a2200265   4500008004100000245018000041210006900221300001300290490000700303520168900310653002001999653002102019653002402040653001602064653001502080653001302095653002402108653001902132653001002151653001402161100001702175700001302192700001502205856005502220       2011                        eng d00aSpatial ecology of eastern yellow-bellied Racer (Coluber constrictor flaviventris) and Great Plains rat snake (Pantherophis emoryi) in a contiguous tallgrass-prairie landscape0 aSpatial ecology of eastern yellowbellied Racer Coluber constrict  a428 -4390 v673 a<p>The Flint Hills region of Kansas and Oklahoma encompasses the largest, contiguous tallgrass prairie in North America and is an important conservation area for many tallgrass-prairie species. We conducted a radiotelemetry study with the use of temperature-sensitive transmitters to characterize the spatial ecology of two species of snakes within a portion of this contiguous grassland. We monitored Eastern Yellow-Bellied Racers (Coluber constrictor flaviventris) from 2006 to 2008 and Great Plains Rat Snakes (Pantherophis emoryi) from 2007 to 2008 at the Konza Prairie Biological Station in the northern Flint Hills. Although racers (mean  =  67.3 &plusmn; 10.6 m, n  =  12) and rat snakes (mean  =  41.3 &plusmn; 4.7 m, n  =  12) differed in the distance moved per day, they did not differ significantly in home-range size. The minimum convex polygon (MCP) home range averaged 11.45 ha (SE  =  3.06, n  =  12) for racers and 15.06 ha (SE  =  2.48, n  =  12) for rat snakes. By analyzing the autocorrelation of locations (Mantel correlograms), we found that racers exhibited irregular movements, whereas rat snakes exhibited long periods of inactivity between directed movements. The body temperatures of racers were significantly greater in woody (30.7 &plusmn; 0.4&deg;C) than in grassy habitats (29.8 &plusmn; 0.3&deg;C). The body temperatures of rat snakes were significantly greater aboveground (26.9 &plusmn; 0.3&deg;C) than underground (26.1 &plusmn; 0.2&deg;C). Our study benefits the conservation of native snakes by elucidating space requirements and providing a baseline for comparisons between contiguous and fragmented landscapes.</p>10aAutocorrelation10aBody temperature10aColuber constrictor10aFlint Hills10aHome range10aMovement10aPantherophis emoryi10aRadiotelemetry10aSnake10aSpace use1 aKlug, P., E.1 aFill, J.1 aWith, K.A.  uhttps://doi.org/10.1655/HERPETOLOGICA-D-10-00076.1