The Northwestern Salamander is unlike its cousins and other amphibious relatives. Around these parts, most amphibian life will leave their ponds and head for the forest come October. But the Northwestern Salamander is tough. So tough in fact, that when the Mt. Hayes crew needed to use water from our pre-constructed pond (designed to capture spring runoff and rain water) for tank testing, the salamanders seemed here to stay.
In the interest of protecting the salamanders during the drawing of water from the pond, we developed a capture and release program, which was guided by a registered professional biologist. The salamanders were captured and housed in Rubbermaid™ style bins with pond water, rocks and tree branches to mimic natural conditions. This process was a safer alternative in terms of their survival than relocating them to a foreign environment. They were then fed insects captured from the nearby wetlands or purchased from a pet store.
The 136 salamanders were held in the bins for approximately ten days, and released back to the pond after a comprehensive water analysis. The salamanders quickly swam to the bottom of the pond to reestablish their homes, and happily, all survived.
Over the course of the project, we also discovered and relocated Red-legged Frogs, Rough-skinned Newts, Pacific Tree Frogs and Western Toads.
What will become of the Northwestern Salamanders now? Well, some will continue to remain aquatic and some will become terrestrial. At least now they will have a chance to grow up.