January 20, 2012
Rainy, after dark
I spent the evening helping graduate student Tracy Bain with her California Tiger Salamander field study. We were recording data on salamanders as they approached Stony Point, preparing to cross the road to access the vernal pool where they breed. Stony Point Road (near Meecham) is terrifying, especially in the rain, because the cars so by so fast! As you might imagine, this is often disastrous for the little tiger salamanders trying to cross the road in the dark, in the rain. In order to reduce road mortality in this critically endangered species, a series of three tunnels were installed under the road, along with driftnet fencing, in the hope that the salamanders would use them to cross safely under the road. On this night, I was assisting with data collection to see if the salamanders were, in fact, using the tunnels.
A few months earlier, I’d visited this site in the daylight, to see the tunnel design, and to learn about Tracy’s experimental design. Wildlife corridors like this have been installed in various places, but there isn’t yet a lot of data to demonstrate whether or not wildlife actually use them. So, Tracy’s project was investigating that question.
Tiger salamanders migrate to the mating pools only under certain conditions: at night, in the winter, in the rain. Super fun for us to be out in these conditions haha. We also found an adorable little Arboreal Salamander, in addition to several California Tigers.
The rain was relentless, though . . . by the time I got home, my boots were filled with at least a couple of inches of water. But well worth it to face the cold, wet night (and the speeding cars on Stony Point) to have the opportunity to see this fantastic species out and about.
Species List
California Tiger Salamander (Ambystoma californiense), Arboreal Salamander (Aneides lugubris)
Let me know what you think!