The narrow-headed gartersnake (Thamnophis rufipunctatus, hereafter THRU) is a federally threatened species endemic to the Mogollon Rim of central Arizona and western New Mexico. This species has undergone marked declines throughout its range due primarily to introduced fish and crayfish and loss or degradation of riparian and within-stream habitat. There is currently no THRU species recovery plan and in 2020 the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service formally began the most recent Species Status Assessment (SSA) for THRU, which is anticipated to form the basis for the species recovery plan. However, there is relatively little empirical data available on the movement ecology and population dynamics of THRU, which span multiple seasons. This lack of critical information on how snakes seasonally shift activity and habitat use is currently an impediment to conservation managers to more accurately assessing range-wide and site-specific population risk and implement management actions. Additionally, a lack of empirical demographic parameter estimates (e.g., survival) inhibits efforts to conduct population viability analyses. This information would allow managers to identify at-risk populations and direct site-specific management actions, thereby aiding in species recovery. The goals of this study are to: (1) conduct two active seasons of intensive field sampling at one or more populations of THRU, including the Tularosa River in New Mexico; (2) use new and existing mark-recapture data to estimate survival and abundance; and (3) successfully implant TH tags into THEL and, conditional upon this success, implant these tags into juvenile and adult THRU in the Tularosa River to monitor space use and habitat selection.
