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Lexington Reservoir, Santa Clara County, CA - Pacific Newt Project
• Pacific Newt Roadkill - Lexington Reservoir (iNaturalist Project)
• Bioblitz Club website (Merav Vonshak, Ph.D.)
• Newt Patrol Tutorial (Stacie Wolny, 2019)
• Reasons why Pacific Newt roadkill may be significantly under-reported
• Alma Bridge Road-Related Newt Mortality Study (H. T. Harvey & Associates, Nov. 2021)
• Mass Mortality of Pacific Newts at Lexington Reservoir: Bearing Witness to the Decimation of Two Populations: Summary of Four Migration Seasons (Nov. 2017 – May 2021)
• Alma Bridge Road Newt Passage Project: Wildlife Connectivity Improvements: Technical Review (Phase I) (Prepared by: AECOM, October 7, 2022)
Chileno Valley Newt Brigade Project
• https://www.chilenovalleynewtbrigade.org
• https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/chileno-valley-newt-brigade-winter-2019-2020
• https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/chileno-valley-newt-brigade-winter-2020-2021
• Chileno Valley Newt Brigade: Year One Data Analysis December 2019-February 2020
• A ‘Big Night’ for Newts, and for a California Newt Brigade (by By Annie Roth, Photographs by Ian C. Bates, New York Time, Jan 24, 2023)
Tilden Regional Park, Orinda, CA - Pacific Newt Project
• Migration Patterns of Taricha torosa in Tilden Regional Park (Peter Claggett, 1989)
• Newt crossing leads to temporary closure of Tilden Park road (October 2017)
• South Park Drive in Tilden Park closed for 5 months to protect newts (November 2018)
Stanford University, CA - Tiger Salamander Project
• Stanford Campus made changes to their road system to protect the California tiger salamander (Kate Chesley, December 2012)
• Catch and Release: Monitoring a Threatened Salamander Population (December 2017)
• Lessons Learned written by Stanford Project Team
Santa Cruz, CA - Long-toed Salamander Project
• Fall 2013 Amphibian Mortality on Roads: A Case Study in Santa Cruz Long-toed Salamander Habitat (Michael Thomas Hobbs, San Jose State University, 2013)
• Abstract: https://scholarworks.sjsu.edu/etd_theses/4389/
• Thesis: https://scholarworks.sjsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=7936&context=etd_theses
Other SF Bay Area Locations
• Other SF Bay Area Locations (iNaturalist Project)
Vashon-Maury Island Roadkill Project
• Vashon-Maury Island Roadkill Project (iNaturalist Project)
Defensive Posture (unken reflex)
> When threatened, newts display their defensive posture called an unken reflex, in which they arch their backs to show their bright orange undersides to warn predators that they're toxic.
> A slight distinction between CA newts and rough-skinned newts is that in the unken reflex, the CA newt's tail goes straight out and does not curve towards its head whereas in rough-skinned newts the tail tip curves toward the head and sometimes curls.
> http://www.californiaherps.com/salamanders/pages/t.t.torosa.html (California newt)
> http://www.californiaherps.com/salamanders/pages/t.granulosa.html (Rough-skinned newt)
> Here's a good example of a roadkill CA newt in unken reflex:
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/68574635
How to Differentiate Juveniles from Adults:
> The terrestrial juvenile phase is called an eft. According to the Amphibiaweb accounts, the smallest recorded reproductive adult was 5 cm/2 in in snout to vent length (SVL), though there is variation and average adult size is 6.9-8.7 cm/2.7-3.4 in (SVL). So there is some fuzzy area, but this provides a conservative threshold. If we estimate the tail length is about the same as the SVL, then total length of smallest reproductive adult recorded is about 10 cm/4 in.
• A road in London closes for a month to allow toads to migrate. (Good News Network, Mar 22, 2022)
• Metro Vancouver Regional Parks is looking for information on the presence of roughskin newts in Belcarra Regional Park (iNaturalist Project, January 14, 2021)
• Will Climate Change Push These Amphibians to the Brink? (Tara Lohan, The Revelator, Apr 6, 2020)
• With the World on Pause, Salamanders Own the Road (Brandon Keim, New York Times, May 18, 2020)
• Pacific Newts: Arguably California’s Most Complex Salamanders (So Cal Reptile and Amphibian Adventures, Nov 18, 2019)
• The deceptively cute newt: 'You don't want to kiss them' (The Seattle Times, Feb 24, 2003)
• California Special Concern Species: Taricha torosa (California Newt) (DFG-CSC): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/California_newt
• IUCN Red List Species Account:
https://amphibiaweb.org/cgi/amphib_query?where-genus=Taricha&where-species=torosa&account=iucn
• Daytime driving decreases amphibian roadkill
https://peerj.com/articles/5385/
• Life history variation in two populations of California Newt, Taricha torosa, MICHAEL P. MARCHETTI1,* AND ABIGAIL HAYES2 (Western North American Naturalist 80(2), © 2020, pp. 165–174)
• Trophic relationships in larval California newts (Taricha torosa), MICHAEL P. MARCHETTI1,*, KIRSTI DUNKEL1, AND CHARLOTTE MOXLEY1 (Western North American Naturalist 82(1), © 2022, pp. 77–85)
• The value of monitoring wildlife roadkill (Amy L. W. Schwartz, Fraser M. Shilling, & Sarah E. Perkins, European Journal of Wildlife Research, 2020)
• Endangered Florida panther population size determined from public reports of motor vehicle collision mortalities (Brett T. McClintock, Dave P. Onorato, Julien Martin, Journal of Applied Ecology, 2015)
• Roadkills as a complementary information source for biological surveys using rodents as a model (Alberto González-Gallina, Griselda Benítez-Badillo, Mircea G. Hidalgo-Mihart, Miguel Equihua, Octavio R. Rojas-Soto, Journal of Mammology, 2015)
• Humane Society Roadkill Stats:
https://www.care2.com/causes/california-records-roadkill-statistics.html
• Everything You Were Afraid to Ask About Roadkill: What Happens When an Animal Doesn’t Make it to the Other Side of the Street?
https://news.nationalgeographic.com/2016/08/roadkill-animals-disposal-science-food/
• Best management practices for mitigating the effects of roads on amphibian and reptile populations:
https://files.ontario.ca/bmp_herp_2016_final_final_resized.pdf
• This paper describes a method for estimating newt population size: Bias in estimation of newt population size: A field study at five ponds using drift fences, pitfalls and funnel traps
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/233733449_Bias_in_estimation_of_newt_population_size_A_field_study_at_five_ponds_using_drift_fences_pitfalls_and_funnel_traps
• “This [article] suggests that many roadkills in national parks happen because of the expectation that animals are to be found in the habitat alongside the road, rather than on the road itself.”
http://www.amphibians.org/news/ewt-roadkill-survey/
• Monitoring and Predicting Traffic Induced Vertebrate Mortality Near Wetlands
https://docs.lib.purdue.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?referer=&httpsredir=1&article=2604&context=jtrp
"A large proportion of the carcasses (88%) were amphibians, a taxonomic group that has declined precipitously in recent years. Overall, the major findings of this study were that 1) significantly more roadkill occurs near wetlands versus uplands; 2) the occurrence of amphibian roadkill dwarfs that of every other vertebrate group; 3) roadkill levels varies annually and seasonally (it is highest in the summer months); 4) the identification of roadkill carcasses is difficult and can be greatly assisted by DNA barcoding; and 5) specific habitat variables are valuable with regard to predicting where roadkill hotspots will occur. "
• There was a significantly positive correlation between amphibian road mortality and mean night-time traffic volume (in China).
https://peerj.com/articles/5385/
• Predicting Hot Spots of Herpetofauna Road Mortality Along Highway Networks (Tom A. Langen, Kimberly M. Ogden, Lindsay L. Schwarting, HerpRoadMortality.pdf
• Mitigation Measures to Reduce Highway Mortality of Turtles and Other Herpetofauna at a North Florida Lake (Matthew J. Aresco, Department of Biological Science, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL 32306-1100, USA, ARESCO-2005-The_Journal_of_Wildlife_Management.pdf)
• Roadkill costs Californians millions of dollars: https://www.kcra.com/amp/article/roadkill-costs-californians-millions/29842860
• Tunnel of love for Stanford's salamanders / Breeding amphibians offered way to escape commuters' cars: https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Tunnel-of-love-for-Stanford-s-salamanders-2883540.php
• Shenandoah Salamander (Virginia): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KR3fsTvZHZg
• Salamander Crossing Brigade (NJ): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yIIsWzIEztQ
• Save the salamanders, unsung heroes of the forest: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cnrSa18-onc
• How to Save Salamanders part 1 (VT): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GVxIlKI3djU
• How to Save Salamanders part 2 (VT): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U1zr3SYdxx0
• Amphibian Crossing (NY): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eqDbRCa3E78&feature=youtu.be
• Brett Amy Thelan of the Harris Center for Conservation (New Hampshire) is a wonderful, compassionate person who offered lots of advice and suggestions. She’s been hosting salamander crossing events for >10 years.
https://harriscenter.org/programs-and-education/citizen-science/salamander-crossing-brigades
Here’s her video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yIIsWzIEztQ
• Conserve Wildlife Foundation of New Jersey; Amphibians Crossing!
http://www.conservewildlifenj.org/protecting/projects/amphibian_crossing/
http://www.conservewildlifenj.org/blog/tag/amphibian-conservation/
Amphibians may be disproportionately affected by vehicle-caused road mortalities compared to other wildlife because of their tendency to migrate en masse to breeding sites. These annual road mortalities can have devastating effects on amphibian population sizes, especially for the local at-risk salamander populations. In fact, as little as about 10% annual risk of road mortality in spotted salamanders can lead to the local extinction of an entire population.
• Save the Frogs Website (Kerry Kriger, Ph.D.)
• contact@savethefrogs.com
• www.savethefrogs.com/roads
• Amphibian Road Mortality and How to Prevent It ( Benedikt Schmidt and Silvia Zumbach, 2008)
• https://savethefrogs.com/d/threats/roads/images/toad-road-planning-guide-ARG-UK.pdf
• Save the Salamanders website: https://www.savethesalamanders.com/
Also see the references under "Local Projects" to read about what others have done to mitigate amphibian roadkill in northern CA.
• Best management practices for mitigating the effects of roads on amphibian and reptile populations: https://files.ontario.ca/bmp_herp_2016_final_final_resized.pdf
• California Amphibian and Reptile Crossing Preliminary Investigation: http://www.dot.ca.gov/newtech/researchreports/preliminary_investigations/docs/california_amphibian_reptile_crossing_preliminary_investigation.pdf
• Major Road In Burlington To Be Closed For Salamander Migration
https://www.inhalton.com/major-road-in-burlington-to-be-closed-for-salamander-migration?fbclid=IwAR0lYWbW0nT8pmjnVPeuxSdl3vy2q3VnkkrVXoRaHL1eDGV3Ke_rXCR6KUE
• Newly Constructed Tunnels Help California Tiger Salamanders Cross The Road
http://www.reptilesmagazine.com/Tiger-Salamanders-Get-Tunnels-To-Cross-Road/
• Michael McNamara < mac@brushroad.com> What has worked for reducing amphibian deaths along country roads between the fields and the stream is to install 8 inch drain pipes under the road every few 100 feet or so (if they are not already there for drainage), and then to install a low mesh fence or berm, no more than 12 to 18 inches of height is needed.
When encountered, this encourages the newts (or frogs) to move sideways to the right or left until they find the under road pathway, and they proceed through the tunnel to their destination (be it the lake or the forest).
I first saw this in use in the alps region of Austria and Germany.
Quite inexpensive to set up, and Anne’s team could take over insuring that the fence remains in good repair.
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/281755635_Amphibian_Road_Mortality_and_How_to_Prevent_It_A_Review
https://www.agrotel.eu/en/smart-solutions/amphibian-protection-fence
https://www.maibach.com/en/mobile-amphibian-robust.html
https://www.legacy-habitat.co.uk/reptile-amphibian-fencing.html
• Effectiveness in mitigating toad mortality, whether such a concept might be effective for newts, vehicle weight-restrictions, etc.): https://www.usgs.gov/center-news/toad-crossing-ahead-new-study-tests-elevated-roads-underpasses-rare-toad?qt-news_science_products=1#qt-news_science_products
• Major Road In Burlington To Be Closed For Salamander Migration
https://www.inhalton.com/major-road-in-burlington-to-be-closed-for-salamander-migration?fbclid=IwAR0lYWbW0nT8pmjnVPeuxSdl3vy2q3VnkkrVXoRaHL1eDGV3Ke_rXCR6KUE
• Crab migrations (Australia)
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/australiaandthepacific/australia/12045930/Crabs-get-their-own-bridge-to-cross-busy-road-on-Christmas-Island.html
• Salamander Crossing signs & t-shirts:
https://www.cafepress.com/ultrasigns/4080802
• Brett Amy Thelan:
https://harriscenter.org/programs-and-education/citizen-science/salamander-crossing-brigades https://naturegroupie.org/story/salamander-crossing-brigades-help-amphibians-safely-cross-roads
• Save the Salamanders
https://savethesalamanders.com
• Conserve Wildlife
http://www.conservewildlifenj.org/protecting/projects/amphibian_crossing/
Books
• “Something Rotten: A Fresh Look at Roadkill,” by Heather Montgomery, Bloomsberry, 2018.
• The California Roadkill Observation System (CROS) system can be used to record observations from anyone out in the field who come across identifiable road-killed wildlife: https://www.wildlifecrossing.net/california/user
• Crowdsourcing and Government…about governmental projects that incorporate crowdsourced data.
https://crowdgov.wordpress.com/case-studies/california-roadkill-observation-system-cros/
• HerpMapper
http://www.herpmapper.org/importing-data
• California Wildlife Crossings Guidance Manual:
https://www.wildlifecrossing.net/california/files/xing/CA_Wildlife%20Crossings%20Guidance_Manual.pdf
• Wildlife Crossings Website: http://www.dot.ca.gov/hq/env/bio/wildlife_crossings
• The California Department of Fish & Game web site is the best source of official web-based information on California’s wildlife:
https://www.wildlife.ca.gov/
• The California Wildlife Habitat Relationships (CWHR) system is an information resource for California's wildlife and contains life history, geographic range, habitat relationships, and management information on 692 non-marine species of amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals known to have breeding populations in the state.
http://www.dfg.ca.gov/biogeodata/cwhr/wildlife_habitats.asp
• These species notes are available as downloadable PDF files from: http://www.dfg.ca.gov/biogeodata/cwhr/cawildlife.asp
This web site provides updated versions of the species accounts in the three-volume set "California's Wildlife" edited by Zeiner, et al. (1988-1990) and contains 46 more accounts than the original publications, bringing the total to 692 vertebrate species.
• California Newt: https://nrm.dfg.ca.gov/FileHandler.ashx?DocumentID=1428&inline=1
• Rough-Skinned Newt: https://nrm.dfg.ca.gov/FileHandler.ashx?DocumentID=1426&inline=1
• https://www.dec.ny.gov/lands/51925.html
• https://www.dec.ny.gov/docs/remediation_hudson_pdf/amrc2018.pdf
Updated January 26, 2023 with 3 new references.
Comments
Thanks for your conservation efforts and this extensive reference library. As an Aussie I have missed out on the joy of ever observing these incredible amphibians.
Cheers,
Pete
@merav, here is a list of references I've accumulated over the years that you might want to include in your website.
Anne, this is amazing - thank you!
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