Could Tonight be the Night?!
Tonight’s conditions are looking promising for amphibian migrations to begin as overnight temperatures will be above 40°F and rain is on it’s way. While humans don’t like to be out much during rainy nights, salamanders and frogs use these evenings to migrate in mass to their vernal breeding pools. With that said, be on the lookout for these special species whether you are hiking or driving and give them plenty of space as they make their way from their wooded hiding places to their watery breeding grounds.
Read MoreVernal Pools Poking Through
Last weekend as we were out surveying for HWA in Dobbin’s Woods, a beautiful Chautauqua Watershed Conservancy property, we came across several little pools beginning to form in the depressions of the landscape as the snow increasingly melts back. While these pools aren’t too attractive for us to throw our beach chair next to, they are extremely important to a number of amphibian species. In the upcoming weeks these small pools will serve as little nurseries for salamander and frog offspring to safely develop from egg-y masses to free swimming larvae to land conquering tetrapods....
Read MoreEnjoying Our Natural Areas
This past week my husband and I enjoyed a walk through Long Point State Park, a RTPI Natural History Atlas location and a beautiful natural area just a short walk from our home. While we were out, we took a quick look in a stream and seep for some salamanders and found a good sized Northern Dusky (Desmognathus fuscus). Although the salamander was exciting to see, I was most excited to see my husband flipping rocks and enjoying this naturally rich area as much as I was. While fall is soon approaching, there is still plenty of time to get outside and explore the county’s abundant natural...
Read MoreObservations
Being a good observer takes a lot of practice, especially when working in the natural world. These day campers at Chapman State Park were working on just that in an amphibian program I got the opportunity to do with them recently. All together, we found four salamanders and through visual observations, these young explorers were able to determine that we actually had two completely different species!
Read MoreNEPARC Annual Meeting
Last week I got the opportunity to attend my first NEPARC (Northeast Partners in Amphibian and Reptile Conservation) annual meeting held at Allegany State Park in Salamanca, New York. For those that aren’t familiar with the not for profit, NEPARC is a regional subset of PARC or Partners in Amphibian and Reptile Conservation. This organization forms inclusive partnerships with like-minded professionals and citizens that are dedicated to the conservation of amphibians, reptiles and their respective habitats throughout each region of the United States and beyond. PARC interacts with...
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