Sallie Update

We participated in the Wisconsin Salamander Survey a few weeks back and I said I'd post about our results. Unfortunately we didn't have any luck at all! We caught no salamanders whatsoever. Didn't even catch a frog-though I know the pond is full of them. Just a couple leeches and a few water beetles. We're not feeling too bad, though, as other families we talked with, and even a DNR rep, had similar results. So, where are all the Sallies? They use only a small window of time to go out to the ponds for mating and that time usually includes rain, a warm up and ice melt from the perimeter of the ponds. April was a cold and dry month for us-rained on the 1st but then not again until the 18th or so. Ice didn't melt from the perimeter of our pond until around the 14th of April. It didn't seem like the conditions ever lined up for a good mating migration. I'm sure that somehow they worked it out amongst themselves though.

Here are some photos of us setting the traps.



Before we set the traps, and each day we checked them, we took the temperature of the pond at a depth of one foot. Here Ben is preparing to measure down a foot and find out how cold it is in there! Will has already filled a boot with water and is performing the obligatory Flamingo stance to empty it. The temperature ranged from 46-52 degress F. Brrr. Hands really got cold holding the aquarium thermometer down there!



The traps were submerged at a point where they were near bottom, but still had about an inch of head space. Salamanders need to come up for air. It was important to anticipate any rise in pond level due to rain or ice melt because without that air space the salamanders could drown before traps could be checked. You can't make it out in the photograph, but each trap had a line attached to it which was secured to something-a low tree branch on shore or a sturdy cattail reed-so that nothing would drift away or be carried away by curious raccoons.



Charlie thought it was fun to tag along-Now I have to re-teach him that we do not wade into the pond...it is for ducks only! Although the cattails are growing so wildly it is doubtful that anyone could manage to wade in this summer.



The pond is so low this spring. Ben is standing several feet into the pond from the perimeter and he is still only boot-top deep (how's that for accurate measuring?) The dead cattail reeds were actually quite supportive and let us really wade out quite far. The trap he is checking here was the trickiest to get to. It is still a couple feet away from him.



Hey look! I was there, too! Will was a little timid about wading into the pond too far so he was the designated photographer and scientific instrument roadie. This photo was the only one he took of me that did not merely showcase my butt in a stooped over position. Figured no one wanted to see those.

Well, that's the show. I'm looking forward to seeing what data from other participants suggests happened with the migration this year. For now we've hosed off the traps and will store them for another try at it next spring.