Concrete refuges and the influence of temperature on artificial refuge occupation by terrestrial lizards.xls

Artificial refuges are commonly used to sample small reptiles and to provide supplementary shelter. For refuges to be effective, they should be safe and acceptable to reptiles. Current designs used for New Zealand lizards are vulnerable to trampling and degradation, restricting where they can be used without risk to lizards. We tested the usage of a new trampling-resistant concrete refuge, containing an internal crevice and basking ledge, by terrestrial lizards on the Port Hills in Canterbury, South Island. Twice a month we inspected 40 refuges on 20 occasions over one year which resulted in 420 gecko and 39 skink encounters. Geckos consistently used refuges throughout the year while skinks were infrequently found. Internal refuge surface and ambient air temperature data suggests that both overnight and day-time temperatures in the refuges were favourable for year-round occupation by geckos at the study site. Due to the low number of skinks, their occupancy was not analysed. Our refuge design appears to be a robust and effective design, particularly for crevice dwelling geckos in trampling-prone and rocky habitats. Additional research is needed to investigate gecko movements in refuges at more extreme temperatures, test our design on other reptile species and assess potential restoration benefits.