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STAR-LEDGER (Newark, New Jersey) 04 March 07 Saving amphibians (Fred J. Aun)
On a night that could come sometime in the next few weeks, many New Jersey roads will turn into amphibian slaughter zones.
The awful scene happens each year, as amphibians emerge from upland habitat and head across busy pavement to ponds so they can mate. On roads traveled by 26 or more cars in an hour, half to all of the amphibians are squished, according to the New Jersey Audubon Society.
This year, concerned residents of one municipality will try to limit the bloodshed.
Members of the Mendham Township Environmental Commission will conduct "drive around" surveys in an effort to find amphibian road crossing sites. When they do, the commissioners will act as "amphibian crossing guards" documenting the critters' movements and doing what they can to prevent roadkills.
They'll be the first town officials in the state to act as crossing guards, an offshoot of the "Amphibian Rescue Program" designed by the state Division of Fish and Wildlife's Endangered and Nongame Species Program (ENSP). Biologists hope other town environmental commissions will follow Mendham Township's lead.
Every year, salamanders and frogs die by the thousand on the first warm and rainy night of the year, usually sometime in mid-March. Reacting as if by magic to the perfect combination of temperature and moisture, the creatures emerge from under the leaf cover and scurry toward ponds. When the woods and water are bisected by heavily-traveled roads, an amphibian wipe-out occurs.
"It's pretty awful when you see a site where there's a big crossing like that," said Mendham Environmental Commission Member Tanya Bisignano, who also serves director of Schiff Nature Preserve in Mendham and as a Amphibian Rescue Program volunteer. "It's devastating. There are so many of them that get squashed."
Bisignano and her fellow commissioners have a good idea where they'll go -- in teams of two or three -- when the special night arrives. The ENSP gave the commission a list of 10 places where amphibian road crossings are likely.
The really tricky part is knowing which night the rush to reproduce will happen.
"The migration ... occurs on the first warm, rainy night in spring," says an Audubon Society explanation of the phenomenon. "Warm is relative. The literature suggests that 45- to 50-degree temperature is required before they will migrate. Our experience is that some species migrate at 35 degrees and some tend to go at slightly warmer temperatures nearing 45 degrees."
Bisignano recalled that last year, while she was taking part in an amphibian crossing survey, there were no signs of activity at 8:57 p.m. on what seemed to be an ideal night. A minute later, raindrops arrived and suddenly so did the amphibians.
"We didn't see anything until 8:58," said Bisignano. "Then, the first raindrop hit the road and we saw a frog. It was the most amazing thing."
There has been much discussion about how to prevent the yearly roadkill. Culverts and raised roadways are among the ideas. But these projects are costly and can backfire, especially if they direct all the little animals into one narrow crossing spot where they can more easily be gobbled up by waiting predators.
Bisignano said it would be great if local groups, such as environmental commissions, tried to do what the Mendham commission is doing: "Set up a crossing site, set up barricades, scoop them up and let traffic pass.
"If a local municipality can pinpoint the sites where it is occurring in their community, if their environmental commission takes the lead and finds sites, they can help out with road crossings every year," Bisignano said. "It wouldn't involve raising roads or putting culverts underneath. Public awareness (on the part of motorists) is a big part of this too."
http://www.nj.com/sports/ledger/index.ssf?/base/sports-0/1172987263127910.xml&coll=1
On a night that could come sometime in the next few weeks, many New Jersey roads will turn into amphibian slaughter zones.
The awful scene happens each year, as amphibians emerge from upland habitat and head across busy pavement to ponds so they can mate. On roads traveled by 26 or more cars in an hour, half to all of the amphibians are squished, according to the New Jersey Audubon Society.
This year, concerned residents of one municipality will try to limit the bloodshed.
Members of the Mendham Township Environmental Commission will conduct "drive around" surveys in an effort to find amphibian road crossing sites. When they do, the commissioners will act as "amphibian crossing guards" documenting the critters' movements and doing what they can to prevent roadkills.
They'll be the first town officials in the state to act as crossing guards, an offshoot of the "Amphibian Rescue Program" designed by the state Division of Fish and Wildlife's Endangered and Nongame Species Program (ENSP). Biologists hope other town environmental commissions will follow Mendham Township's lead.
Every year, salamanders and frogs die by the thousand on the first warm and rainy night of the year, usually sometime in mid-March. Reacting as if by magic to the perfect combination of temperature and moisture, the creatures emerge from under the leaf cover and scurry toward ponds. When the woods and water are bisected by heavily-traveled roads, an amphibian wipe-out occurs.
"It's pretty awful when you see a site where there's a big crossing like that," said Mendham Environmental Commission Member Tanya Bisignano, who also serves director of Schiff Nature Preserve in Mendham and as a Amphibian Rescue Program volunteer. "It's devastating. There are so many of them that get squashed."
Bisignano and her fellow commissioners have a good idea where they'll go -- in teams of two or three -- when the special night arrives. The ENSP gave the commission a list of 10 places where amphibian road crossings are likely.
The really tricky part is knowing which night the rush to reproduce will happen.
"The migration ... occurs on the first warm, rainy night in spring," says an Audubon Society explanation of the phenomenon. "Warm is relative. The literature suggests that 45- to 50-degree temperature is required before they will migrate. Our experience is that some species migrate at 35 degrees and some tend to go at slightly warmer temperatures nearing 45 degrees."
Bisignano recalled that last year, while she was taking part in an amphibian crossing survey, there were no signs of activity at 8:57 p.m. on what seemed to be an ideal night. A minute later, raindrops arrived and suddenly so did the amphibians.
"We didn't see anything until 8:58," said Bisignano. "Then, the first raindrop hit the road and we saw a frog. It was the most amazing thing."
There has been much discussion about how to prevent the yearly roadkill. Culverts and raised roadways are among the ideas. But these projects are costly and can backfire, especially if they direct all the little animals into one narrow crossing spot where they can more easily be gobbled up by waiting predators.
Bisignano said it would be great if local groups, such as environmental commissions, tried to do what the Mendham commission is doing: "Set up a crossing site, set up barricades, scoop them up and let traffic pass.
"If a local municipality can pinpoint the sites where it is occurring in their community, if their environmental commission takes the lead and finds sites, they can help out with road crossings every year," Bisignano said. "It wouldn't involve raising roads or putting culverts underneath. Public awareness (on the part of motorists) is a big part of this too."
http://www.nj.com/sports/ledger/index.ssf?/base/sports-0/1172987263127910.xml&coll=1