Its Raining… WooHoo!
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Mar 19, 2009 | by Kevin Loughlin
Wood Frogs mating on a wet, spring evening.
Spring will officially be here tomorrow… March 20th, 2009. But rain today could mean that the Wood Frogs and Spotted Salamanders will be out tonight for their annual spawning rituals. I, for one, am looking forward to taking my camera out into the midnight raindrops to capture this interesting natural event!
Every year some of my friends and I watch the weather reports closely as it could happen at any time–when conditions are just right. We watch for a rainy evening when the after dark temperature has hovered around 40° F for a couple nights. Colder and they hold off a bit longer.
The average date in my area for this even is appropriately March 20. The earliest I have witnessed it here is March 6. That year, however, we had snow and ice storms the following day. But on March 20 they came out again! That was a wonderful surprise. Two years later, we found them about March 8… then the snow and ice came again. We did not find them a second time that year.
Spotted Salamanders can grow to about 8 inches!
I won’t reveal the exact location of our special spot, even though it is in a very public place. However, because it happens late at night few people ever see the event. Why won’t I reveal where we go? Spotted Salamanders are a fragile species that are also very popular for the pet trade. There are a few–albeit a small percentage–of Herp retailers (those who sell snakes, lizards, etc.) who would think nothing of finding “our” salamanders and scooping them up for sale at the next show.
For today I have shared images taken from some of our previous midnight forays. See the raindrops on the water? Soon I will share some photos from this year’s rainy adventures!
photos © Kevin Loughlin
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Tease!
Perhaps the Young birders group could seek out more than just birds?! And how does one go about protecting such a public place to secure the future of such a fragile sally?
We definitely plan to have the young birders see and learn about more than birds! Everything in nature is connected, and amphibians are one of the top indicators of a healthy ecosystem. “Our” little spot is somewhat safe for now, and we will share it with those in the immediate area so they know what is happening in their back yard, but in order to keep it safe, we won’t make it fully public knowledge.