2023 Maine Big Night #2

 WOW! What a night we had! It was raining and warmer than last time, so the amphibians were really on the move. And, they (mostly peepers) were very vocal. If you want to hear some of the different calls, click on North Woods Frog Call Phenology. Cool stuff!

DATA ENTRY for April 17, 2023

Our information tally for tonight was: 

Certified Volunteers: 3 (Laurie,Kathy,Paul)

Volunteers: Start time 7:30pm / Volunteers End time 9:45.

Starting Temperature: 46F    Ending Temperature: 46F

Precipitation: Light rain drizzle from 8pm-9:15pm   The road is wet.

Traffic Tally:  18 cars

Species Live: 1 American Bullfrog, 12 Pickerel Frogs, 74 Spring Peepers, 7 Spotted Salamanders, and 1 Northern Two-Lined Salamander   

Species Dead:  1 Pickerel Frog, 2 Spring Peepers

Species Injured: 1 Spotted Salamander

Spring Peeper bonanza tonight! Spring Peepers have a characteristic "X" on their backs. They are the most abundant of the frogs that you hear right now! Did you know that they are the smallest of Maine's frogs? Females get up to 1.5" long!

Pickerel frogs are also numerous in our area and it was so much fun to see so many of them. Did you know that Pickerel frogs have toxic secretions? If you handle one, wash your hands before touching other amphibians so as not to spread the toxin! You don't want to inadvertently kill other frogs or salamanders. By the way, the Pickerel Frog's call is like that of a creaking door or a 2-syllable "ee-yah".

I didn't get a photo of the Bullfrog that was helped across the road tonight, but here is a photo of one that I took several years ago. Notice the ridge of skin that runs from the eyes and down around the tympanum. This is a characteristic of bullfrogs as opposed to Green Frogs that have a ridge (dorso lateral fold) that runs from the back of the eye, straight back almost to the vent (cloacal opening) of the frog.

Spotted Salamanders were so big! They were all crossing the road and moving away from the pond, so I can only assume that they had finished breeding. They are our only yellow-spotted salamander. 

For the remainder of the year, these nocturnal beauties can be found hiding under leaves, logs, stones, and in the burrows of tiny mammals. Here we found one under a rotting log alongside a trail in the forest. Remember that when lifting a log you must put it down gently, exactly in the same position as you found it.

We were also lucky to have a Northern Two-lined Salamander crossing the road! It has such a pretty coppery color with its two dark stripes that run the length of their body. Did you know that salamanders do not have lungs? They breathe through their moist skin, which is why they live in creeks and streams, as well as under rotting logs and in muddy areas as they have to stay moist. They are fast and extremely wriggly when they move.