In search of the Madrean line: biogeography of herpetofauna in the Sky Island region

Abstract

In 1992 Charles H. Lowe proposed a major partition in the distribution of the herpetofauna of southern Arizona and New Mexico between the Madrean Archipelago and the Rocky Mountains along a line that parallels the present-day Interstate 10. We categorized species by elevation and geographic region and used spatial analysis to explore the existence and location of a Madrean Line. We found a difference in area occupied by species north and south of Interstate 10, and located a clear boundary where Lowe’s predicted line occurs. In addition, we found a very strong east (Chihuahuan Desert) and west (Sonoran/Mojave Desert) pattern.

Parent Publication

• Connecting mountain islands and desert seas: Biodiversity and management of the Madrean Archipelago II

Citation

Swann, Don E.; Mau-Crimmins, Theresa M.; Stitt, Eric W. 2005. In search of the Madrean line: biogeography of herpetofauna in the Sky Island region. In: Gottfried, Gerald J.; Gebow, Brooke S.; Eskew, Lane G.; Edminster, Carleton B., comps. Connecting mountain islands and desert seas: biodiversity and management of the Madrean Archipelago II. Proc. RMRS-P-36. Fort Collins, CO: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station: 149-153