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Warm weather snuck up on us much quicker this year than expected, thought that’s something we should probably get used to, but conditions were right last evening, so we held our first of two salamander crossing events for this year. Our report this time comes from Kate Kelly from the Vermont Reptile and Amphibian Atlas:
Last night, with soaking rains occurring during much of the day, we held our first public education and data collection night at Morgan Road in partnership with Otter Creek Audubon Society and Salisbury Conservation Commission. This was the earliest day of the year on which we have held a public education night; the next earliest was on March 22, 2010. On most years movement doesn’t begin in earnest until mid March; a search of our database showed that most survey dates in early March only yielded a few individuals. A survey early in the season on March 1, 2017 was an anomaly as it yielded a total of 113 individuals of 6 species. We hoped to learn more last night about what was moving early in the season after this extraordinarily warm winter.
We had about 40 volunteers help move and count amphibians during the course of our two hours there. Our final count was 196 individuals of seven species (96 Blue-spotted Salamander group, 9 Four-toed Salamanders, 1 Eastern Red-backed Salamander, 13 Spotted Salamanders, 3 Eastern Newts, 73 Wood Frogs, and 1 Spring Peeper). It was interesting to see how few individuals we saw of some species (Red-backed Salamander and Spring Peeper). On the other hand, we saw quite a few Wood Frogs and Blue-spotted Salamanders. Only 7 dates in our database showed more Wood Frogs moving on a single night, and 27 dates reported more Blue-spotteds in one night. Compare that to Spring Peepers, where 73 dates reported more individuals, or Four-toed Salamanders, where 68 dates reported more individuals. This reinforces our knowledge about amphibian migration (e.g. that Wood Frogs and Jefferson/Blue-spotted Salamanders are the first to move). There will be one more public education night this year through Otter Creek Audubon Society; please sign up at this link to be notified about when this night will occur and more details.
Speaking of the Vermont Reptile and Amphibian Atlas, they are very close to their fundraising goal for this year, so if you would like to contribute, there is a link right on the front page of their website.
On warm, wet nights from mid-March to mid-April frogs and salamanders move from their wintering sites on high ground to breeding sites in wetlands to mate and lay eggs. Their route to the nearest vernal pool sometimes takes them across a road.
Otter Creek Audubon and the Salisbury Conservation Commission will patrol an amphibian crossing site in Salisbury again this year. Across Vermont, groups of concerned individuals attempt to alter amphibians’ lethal odds by moving them off the road during nights of significant movement. At the most dangerous crossings amphibians may suffer 50 percent mortality, but the crossing we monitor has little traffic. This site retains not only large numbers of amphibians but also remarkable species diversity: four salamander and three frog species. If we happen to get a “Big Night”, we’ll move more than a thousand amphibians in a two-hour period. The site affords all who participate an opportunity to experience this remarkable natural phenomenon first hand.
You can witness and help perpetuate this migration if you sign up for the 2024 amphibian email alert. The 2024 window is from mid-March to Mid-April. You’ll receive a confirming email at about 6 pm. Movement starts around 8:15 pm and can run for several hours. Volunteers may arrive and leave when they wish and are responsible for their own safety and the safety of others in their group. Upon arrival, Jim Andrews and OCAS will provide species identification tips and a reminder of appropriate behavior. With your help we’ll record the numbers of each species we move for two hours.
Sign up at kinglet@together.net, even if you were on the list in a previous year!
The second and final Amphibian Escorts for 2023 was April 5th. We had a successful evening moving amphibians across Morgan Road in Salisbury.
There was rain, not too much, but ample for getting amphibians to move from wintering sites to breeding sites. Jim Andrews was present and gave everyone a clear idea of what needed to happen. The first movement was close to 8:15. 62 people helped move amphibians. Jim’s figures for the night were:
Blue-spotted Salamander: 57 alive, 6 dead
Four-toed Salamander: 28 alive, 0 dead
Red-backed Salamander: 18 alive, 0 dead
Spotted Salamander: 18 alive, 5 dead
Wood Frog: 8 alive, 0 dead
Spring Peeper: 1 alive, 0 dead
Eastern Newt: 0 alive, 2 dead
Total amphibians: 209 with 196 alive and 13 dead.
Four cars came through during our time on site, accounting for most of the dead amphibians, with a few (likely the newts) having been run over in the previous 24 hours or longer.
There will continue to be amphibian movement, especially over higher terrain. Thanks for turning out in good numbers on April 5th.
Thanks for signing up this year; I hope you got to participate. See you next year.
— Warren King
On Friday, March 31, OCAS and the Salisbury Conservation Commission held the first of what we hope will be two salamander crossing events at Morgan Rd. Here is a report on the night’s activities from Jim Andrews from the The Vermont Reptile and Amphibian Atlas Project:
We had 20 people attending between 8:15 and 10, the temp was around 36 F (on the colder side), and six cars came through while we were there (more than usual).
We found 33 Blue-Spotted Salamanders (31 alive, 2 dead), 10 Spotted Salamanders (6 alive, 4 dead), and 13 Wood Frogs (12 alive and 1 dead). Activity was slower at the beginning and picked up slightly over time with a sprinkling of rain and slightly warming temperatures occurring later. It was interesting that none of the smaller salamanders (Eastern Red-backed Salamanders or Four-toed Salamanders) or Spring Peepers were moving and I suspect it was the result of the colder temperatures.
If you would like to participate in our next event, sign up to receive an email alert by sending a message to Warren King at kinglet@together.net.
On warm, wet nights from mid-March to mid-April frogs and salamanders move from their wintering sites on high ground to breeding sites in wetlands to mate and lay eggs. Their route to the nearest vernal pool sometimes takes them across a road.
Otter Creek Audubon and the Salisbury Conservation Commission will patrol an amphibian crossing site in Salisbury again this year. Across Vermont, groups of concerned individuals attempt to alter amphibians’ lethal odds by moving them off the road during nights of significant movement. At the most dangerous crossings amphibians may suffer 50 percent mortality, but the crossing we monitor has little traffic. This site retains not only large numbers of amphibians but also remarkable species diversity: four salamander and three frog species. If we happen to get a “Big Night”, we’ll move more than a thousand amphibians in a two-hour period. The site affords all who participate an opportunity to experience this remarkable natural phenomenon first hand.
You can witness and help perpetuate this migration if you sign up for the 2023 amphibian email alert. The 2023 window is Monday, March 17 to Sunday, April 9. You’ll receive a confirming email at about 6 pm. Movement starts around 8:15 pm and can run for several hours. Volunteers may arrive and leave when they wish and are responsible for their own safety and the safety of others in their group. We strongly encourage you and all others in your group to wear a mask to reduce the risk of COVID spread. Upon arrival, Jim Andrews and OCAS will provide species identification tips and a reminder of appropriate behavior. With your help we’ll record the numbers of each species we move for two hours.
Sign up at kinglet@together.net, even if you were on the list in a previous year!
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Here is Jim Andrews’ final report on amphibian activity on the evening of April 7th at Morgan Road in Salisbury. There is likely to be more amphibian movement this spring, especially outside of the Champlain Valley, for those of you who who crave more amphibian action or who were unable to make it to either of our two public events at Morgan Road. You will need to sign up again next year for alerts to two movement events at Morgan Road. I start the list over again each year. We hope you enjoyed this year’s action. Many thanks for your help.
—Warren King
Here in Salisbury, we had our second and last public education event for the season at Morgan Road. We had 61 volunteers that reported a total of 477 amphibians (and one passing car) over the 1 & 3/4 hours that we were on site. Keep in mind that many more amphibians moved after we had left the site and on other evenings when we were not watching. Also, we hope that thousands more are moving in areas where there are not roads between their overwintering and breeding areas. Maintaining these undeveloped and connected lowlands and uplands is important for all wildlife.
Our species totals at Morgan Road were:
Blue-spotted and related hybrids, 214 alive, 1 dead
Four-toed Salamanders, 133 alive, 1 dead
Eastern Red-backed Salamanders, 98 alive
Spotted Salamanders, 17 alive
Eastern Newt, 2 dead
Wood Frog, 6 alive
Spring Peeper 5 alive
—Jim Andrews
Here is Jim Andrews’s report from last night’s salamander crossing event in Salisbury:
Morgan Road, March 31, 2021
Herpers, it was a big night at Morgan Road in Salisbury last night at our public educational event. This annual event is organized by the Otter Creek Audubon Society and the Salisbury Conservation Commission. Last night we had 57 volunteers on site from 8:15 PM to 10:15 PM. Those volunteers tallied a total of 919 amphibians of seven species and one reptile. We knew the temperatures would be ideal (50 F). The only question was would the rains come through our area and really get the roads and soils wet. When I arrived at 7:45 to get set up, a few Wood Frogs and a couple Four-toed Salamanders were the only amphibians visible. By the time the public arrived though, the Blue-spotted Salamanders, Spotted Salamanders, Eastern Red-backed Salamanders, and Spring Peepers were moving through as well. Over the two hours, we tallied 305 Blue-spotted group (Blue-spotted Salamanders and their associated hybrids), 255 Four-toed Salamanders, 168 Eastern Red-backed Salamanders, 121 Spotted Salamanders, 50 Wood Frogs, 18 Spring Peepers, 1 Eastern Newt, and 1 Common Gartersnake. Only two cars went through during our visit, so total mortality was only four amphibians. Two reporters from VPR were there making recordings and taking photos, so we will showing up on air and on their website at some point in the future. Special thanks go out to Warren King for managing the e-mail list; and Ron Payne, Kathy and Gary Starr, and Preston Turner for helping on site.
On warm, wet nights from mid-March to mid-April frogs and salamanders move from their wintering sites on high ground to breeding sites in wetlands to mate and lay eggs. Their route to the nearest vernal pool sometimes takes them across a road.
Otter Creek Audubon and the Salisbury Conservation Commission will patrol an amphibian crossing site in Salisbury again this year. Across Vermont, groups of concerned individuals attempt to alter amphibians’ lethal odds by moving them off the road during nights of significant movement. At the most dangerous crossings amphibians may suffer 50 percent mortality, but the crossing we monitor has little traffic. This site retains not only large numbers of amphibians but also remarkable species diversity: four salamander and three frog species. If we happen to get a “Big Night”, we’ll move more than a thousand amphibians in a two-hour period. The site affords all who participate an opportunity to experience this remarkable natural phenomenon first hand.
You can witness and help perpetuate this migration if you sign up for the 2022 amphibian email alert. The 2022 window is Monday, March 21 to Sunday, April 10. You’ll receive a confirming email at about 6 pm. Movement starts around 8:15 pm and can run for several hours. Volunteers may arrive and leave when they wish and are responsible for their own safety and the safety of others in their group. We strongly encourage you and all others in your group to wear a mask to reduce the risk of COVID spread. Upon arrival, Jim Andrews and OCAS will provide species identification tips and a reminder of appropriate behavior. With your help we’ll record the numbers of each species we move for two hours.
Sign up at kinglet@together.net, even if you were on the list in a previous year
Spotted Salamander
Four-toed Salamander
American Toad & Spring Peeper
Eastern Red-backed Salamander
Blue-spotted Salamander
Herpers, here in Salisbury we hosted one of our public education nights on Morgan Road last night. We had 43 people on site and monitored and moved amphibians for two hours from 8 AM to 10 AM. Despite the conditions looking very good with rain starting well before dark and temperatures around 40 F, we had surprisingly few amphibians to Read the rest of this entry »
Blue-spotted Salamander
Spring Peeper
Spotted Salamander
On warm, wet nights from mid-March to mid-April frogs and salamanders move from their wintering sites on high ground to wetlands to mate and lay eggs. Their route to the nearest vernal pool sometimes takes them across a road. Read the rest of this entry »
Otter Creek Audubon Society 