Herps in the News: Spring Amphibians Need Crossing Guards

Each year in the northeast from New Jersey to Maine around late March and early April, forest-dwelling amphibians wake up from their winter states and migrate to pools for breeding. They can sometimes pass through the forest without human interference, but sometimes they must cross through environments split up by dangerous roads.



Reports from the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation say that the amphibians are waking up early due to the warmer weather. Volunteers are helping these amphibians by ushering them across dangerous paths in order to get them to their breeding pools faster and safer. According to the article, the amphibians are facing not only the danger from roads and traffic, but also the threat of dry warmer weather before they can reach their breeding pools. The article also states some information about volunteering to help out.

This article is published in the New York Times. The intended audience is anyone in the northeast interested in the protection and conservation of these amphibians. I do not feel the article had an bias. There was plenty of information about the cause and ways to help.



For more information, visit: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/03/science/frogs-salamanders-spring.html?rref=collection%2Ftimestopic%2FAmphibians&action=click&contentCollection=science&region=stream&module=stream_unit&version=latest&contentPlacement=1&pgtype=collection&_r=0