Salamanders, Peepers Emerge Early - Hudson Valley Volunteers Assist

HUDSON VALLEY, NY — Community volunteers had to get an early start in 2024 for the annual amphibian breeding migrations in the Hudson Valley.

The breeding migrations of vernal pool amphibians got an early start this year due to weather conditions.

"Normally we wouldn't expect migration to start until mid-March, but we've been having increasingly mild winters," Laura Heedy with the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation estuary program said Wednesday during a Facebook Livecast from a dark road in Ulster County.

So 167 volunteers throughout the Hudson Valley braved the rain with flashlights and reflective vests to document the emergence.

The timing of migration is weather-dependent with concentrated activity on the first rainy nights of the season, when the ground is thawed and night air temperatures remain above 40 degrees Fahrenheit.

The timing of migration varies throughout the Hudson River estuary watershed, but when weather conditions are just right, there can be explosive "big night" migrations with hundreds of amphibians on the move.

With the mild winter and recent warm days, recent rainfall triggered one of the earliest migrations DEC has observed since theAmphibian Migrations and Road Crossings Project started in 2009. Volunteers already counted more than 2,000 amphibians since Feb. 27, mostly wood frogs and spring peepers. DEC expects more migration this week, including the appearance of salamanders that breed in vernal pools.

Volunteers document the seasonal migration and help salamanders and frogs travel safely as part of DEC's annual AM&RC project.

They mark road locations where they observe migrations, record weather and traffic conditions, and identify and count amphibians on the move.

They also try to keep the amphibians from being run over. On their journeys between forest habitat and breeding pools, these amphibians often need to cross roads, where mortality can be high even when traffic is low.

Since the project started, volunteers have documented 20 species and counted more than 47,000 live amphibians — and, sadly, 20,000 migrating amphibians killed by passing vehicles.

Species reported most frequently during migration nights include spotted salamander, wood frog, and spring peeper (Pseudacris crucifer). To a lesser degree, volunteers have also observed Jefferson-blue spotted salamander complex and four-toed salamander (Hemidactylium scutatum), two species of conservation concern in New York.

In late winter and early spring, amphibian species like wood frog (Lithobates sylvatica), spotted salamander (Ambystoma maculatum), and Jefferson-blue spotted salamander complex (Ambystoma jeffersonianum x laterale) emerge from underground shelters in the forest and head to vernal pools for breeding. Vernal pools are small, temporary wetlands that are critical breeding habitat for these amphibians. The pools hold water until summer, so the adult amphibians must gather, breed, and deposit eggs early enough to ensure their aquatic young can hatch, grow, and leave the pools before they dry up.

The Amphibian Migrations and Road Crossings Project was initiated by DEC's Hudson River Estuary Program and Cornell University to raise awareness about critical amphibian habitat, engage volunteers to help collect data on the annual migration, and reduce amphibian road mortality. More than 1,000 volunteers have participated in the effort since 2009, helping to move more than 40,000 salamanders, frogs, and toads safely across roads.

With such a large geographic area to cover, the AM&RC project benefits greatly from the support of local partners who assist with coordinating volunteers in their communities. This year, partners include Climate Smart Rhinebeck, Hudson Highlands Land Trust, Rensselaer Plateau Alliance, Saw Kill Watershed Community, Teatown Lake Reservation, Town of Bedford Conservation Board, Town of Lloyd Environmental Conservation Council, Town of Pound Ridge Conservation Board, Vassar College, and Wallkill Valley Land Trust.

DEC supports programs like the Amphibian Migration and Road Crossings Project to encourage planning that prevents habitat fragmentation. The program is critical for maintaining the state's diversity of plants and animals — on which air, water and crops depend.

Forests are also carbon storage and sequestration powerhouses, making them an invaluable tool in New York's nation-leading fight against climate change, conservation officials said.

For more information, including a short video about amphibian migrations, visit DEC's website. DEC held in-person and virtual trainings for volunteers in February with 144 participants.

New Yorkers interested in volunteering to participate in this annual event are encouraged to watch a series of training videos on YouTube and read the Volunteer Handbook. In addition, potential volunteers can access a recording of the training and use materials available on the project website to learn more, including where groups in the Hudson Valley help each winter to organize local volunteers. Anyone interested in receiving project updates and news about the migration can subscribe to the project e-newsletter through DEC Delivers.