Diversity of the herpetofauna in restored and disturbed sites in the Colorado River Delta, Baja California, Mexico

Restoration efforts have begun on a global scale, with the goal of reversing the impacts caused by exotic vegetation invading disturbed sites. The purpose of this study was to determine the response of amphibians and reptiles to habitat restoration in the Colorado River Delta, by comparing the richness and diversity of the herpetofauna in 2 restored and disturbed sites in Mexicali, Baja California, Mexico. From May 2018 to March 2019, we installed 8 pit-fall trap systems at 2 sites, with 2 replicas at each site. We obtained 402 observations from 18 species (3 amphibians, 15 reptiles), including 3 exotic species. The restored sites presented greater species richness and diversity than the disturbed (unrestored) sites, including 6 species registered in the NOM-059-SEMARNAT-2010 protected species list. The results suggest that the reptiles respond positively to restored habitat of the Colorado River Delta. However, only 1 native amphibian was recorded in low abundance. It is recommended that restoration actions continue to increase the diversity of native plants, expand the availability of aquatic habitats, and implement specific actions to control aquatic exotic species that lead to the recovery of native amphibian populations.