Dear Naturalist,
Will newts, frogs and salamanders be out in full force in the Bay Area this spring, or will the drought make them harder to find?
— Kristine Magnuson, San Francisco
From Michael Starkey, an ecologist and the advisory committee chair of SAVE THE FROGS! :
The amphibians of the Bay Area are going to have a tough time this spring as we have had such little rain this past winter. Normally the winter rains fill the amphibian’s breeding ponds and this triggers the amphibians to gather together to mate. However, with such little rain breeding activity has been delayed for the amphibians.
If breeding took place, it happened much later than normal, and those eggs and tadpoles will have to metamorphose quickly before the summer heat dries up their habitat. The best time to find amphibians this time of year is during the months of April and May as hopefully we will have some rain and the temperatures will be relatively cool.
