Amphibians and Marine Reptiles: Fall Migration, Rain, Road Crossings

California, the Northeast and some other areas are receiving much-needed rain. If you drive, try to keep an eye out for turtles and frogs or other amphibians crossing the road. As marine reptiles (turtles) and amphibians (frogs, toads, and others), they need water to dampen their skin and help them thrive, among other things, as the Buffalo Zoo's website notes here.

In fall, along with moving gleefully through rain, frogs and turtles and others are moving from their summer activity areas, where they spent much of the summer feeding, and migrating toward where they will spend the winter, as Maine state biologist Phillip deMaynadier said, according to the Bangor Daily News.

"After a long dry period like we've had this September, when you get a big pulse of rain like today, you'll see a tremendous amount of amphibians making long overdue movements, taking advantage of the moisture," deMaynadier said recently, in the BDN article.

Those crossing the road might include rare salamanders and other threatened moisture-lovers, such as the Spotted Salamander, or Ambystoma maculatum, in New York State.

In order to help decrease animal mortality rates, biologists in your state are very likely looking for information on new spots where amphibians are crossing the road. For instance, New York State asks citizen scientists to fill out this form when they see amphibian crossings that they haven't previously noticed.