Habitat loss and climate change make it tough to be an amphibian. Some humans are helping

HONEOYE, N.Y. (AP) — On a rainy March evening, John Bateman puts on his boots and a headlamp and heads to a wetland cut through by a busy road. As he walks, he scans the pavement for spring peepers, toads, salamanders and newts making their slow way as they migrate to new habitat each spring, and leans down occasionally to help guide one across.

It’s a small act that makes a big difference for these amphibians, who need different habitats for different stages of their life cycle — sometimes wetlands, sometimes drier uplands. Roads often separate these habitats, and migrating amphibians can get squished.

They already face challenges from habitat lost to development. That’s especially true for vernal pools, the small pools that show up each spring in forested ecosystems as snow melt and rainwater collect at low points on the ground. These pools hold water as late as July, and provide essential breeding habitat for amphibians like salamanders and frogs.

Larger wetlands can enjoy federal protections, but not the vernal pools, which are too small and temporary.

“Unfortunately, with urban sprawl and development, a lot of the forests are being cleared for new housing developments as people move out of the cities and into the suburbs,” said Bateman, a professor of environmental conservation and horticulture at Finger Lakes Community College. “When they clear these forest habitats, vernal pools are going to be buried and become new houses, condominiums, and neighborhoods.”

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EDITOR’S NOTE: This story is a collaboration between Rochester Institute of Technology and The Associated Press.

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The U.S. Geological Survey calls amphibian declines “a global phenomenon” and one that’s been underway in the U.S. since at least the 1960s. The agency said populations are dropping almost 4% each year in the U.S.

Development isn’t the only threat. Amphibians are being affected by Earth’s changing climate. The Appalachian region is particularly rich in salamander species, and with temperatures rising, their range is shifting northward, Bateman said.

That concerns him.

“At one point you hit the top and there is nowhere else to go,” Bateman said.

A warming climate also requires cold-blooded amphibians to spend more time hunting to get the food they need to maintain their metabolism, said Karen Lips, a University of Maryland biology professor whose research found salamanders becoming smaller as a result.

Bateman isn’t the only conservationist working to help amphibians.

Margot Fass owns A Frog House, a center for frog advocacy in Pittsford, New York. In April, she raised money and worked with 70 volunteers to build three vernal pools as part of Save the Frogs Day. The pools should help amphibians, but will also be a source of water for birds and other wildlife.

Fass grows animated as she talks about chemical-free gardens and their importance to amphibians: “One spray of pesticides can kill a frog within an hour. It’s just horrible.”

Both she and Bateman are strong believers in educating their communities to help amphibians. They often give talks in schools, libraries and to various groups.

“It’s amazing how few people really know that frogs are endangered or that a third of them have gone extinct,” Fass said.

The Genesee Land Trust, a not-for-profit conservation organization, is another active member in preserving and protecting land in the greater Rochester region. It owns Cornwall Preserve in Pultneyville, New York, on the edge of Lake Ontario. The trust bought the 77-acre property in 2016, becoming the first non-farmers to own the land in 200 years. They’re preserving the historical farmland and in doing so have restored some wetlands and vernal pools.

“The wetland immediately served a population of birds after we first started digging,” said Elliotte Bowerman, the trust’s director of communications.

Catching amphibians may just be a nostalgic childhood memory for most, but for Bateman it never lost its magic. He believes preserving wetlands and vernal pools is critical not only for the amphibians and the environment, but for the next generation to experience the childlike wonder of discovering these hidden creatures.

“I think that the future generations are absolutely going to be at a loss to not have those experiences that I did as a child, to have that connection with nature,” he said.

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