It's Big Night!
Big Night Is....
Big Night is the most important night on the amphibian calendar! When nighttime
temperatures are above 40°, and the air is damp with recent or active rainfall, frogs and
salamanders embark on a vital mission to create little frogs and salamanders. The race
is on! Many amphibians in the Hudson Valley travel to their natal forest pool on the
same night, eager to lay their eggs and get them growing before spring pools dry out.
To mate, frogs and salamanders can travel nearly a mile from their upland homes to the
woodland pools where they were born. Roads constructed through their habitat have
made the journey dangerous for these relatively slow-moving animals, and many never
reach their destination. Luckily, you can help!
How Do I Help?
If you're reading this article, chances are you're already on the DEC mailing list as an
interested Big Night volunteer. You'll receive an email from Laura Heady of the Hudson
River Estuary Program notifying you when we're anticipating Big Night will happen. Be
alert! Big Night depends on very specific weather conditions, which often can't be
anticipated more than a day or two ahead of time. You're part of an amphibian SWAT
team, so you'll need to be ready to go on short notice. Keep checking for that email!
While you're waiting for the call to go out, make sure you've got everything you'll need to
take with you. You'll be out on dark, rainy
roads, which means you need to be prepared to
make yourself visible to traffic. Safety vests,
light colors, head lamps/flashlights and
anything reflective will help you stay safe.
Never go out alone! It's more efficient to search
in teams, and it keeps you safer too. Be
cautious even in low-traffic areas: if vehicles
weren't a danger, frogs and salamanders
wouldn't need our help crossing!
In addition to bright, reflective, waterproof clothing, you should have:
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flashlights and/or headlamps (the brighter the better!)
clipboard with waterproof cover (sheet protectors work well)
DEC Amphibian Migrations and Road Crossings Data Form
Frog & Salamander Photo Identification Guide
Amphibian Migrations and Road Crossings Fact Sheet
pencils (pens and rain are a poor combination)
clean plastic cup or milk jug scoop
bucket
old spatula, plastic dish or scraper
It's Big Night - now what? If you don't already
have a crossing location in mind and you're in the
northwestern Dutchess County area, contact one of
our volunteer coordinators. They'll be able to
point you in the right direction, plus answer any
questions you may have. Just after sunset, head
out!
Volunteers from past years have suggested having one volunteer drive slowly with their
headlights on while the other members of the team walk ahead, using the light from the
headlights to check the road. Do this ONLY on low-traffic roads! Where this isn't
feasible, be sure to park in a safe area as far off the road as possible. Then walk up and
down the length of your crossing while sweeping the ground side to side with your
brightest flashlight. Keep your feet on the road unless passing traffic forces you onto the
shoulder: it's dark out, and amphibians that are hard to see on the road are nearly
impossible to see in leaves and grass. Be sure to check around your feet when changing
direction or resuming walking - frogs and salamanders aren't watching out for you, so
you need to watch for them!
What do I do when I find an amphibian? The DEC is keeping careful track of
amphibians using roadways with the hope of making things safer for them in the future.
Using the Woodland Pool Wildlife Photo Identification Guide, try to work out what
species you've found. In many cases this will be easy, but sometimes subtle coloration
or, worse, impact with a vehicle, may make it hard to be certain. If you aren't entirely
confident in your identification, take pictures of the animal from several angles so that
they can be used for later identification. Including an object (pencil, ruler, coin, etc.) in
the photo for scale will help in determining the size of the animal. Using the Amphibian
Migrations and Road Crossings Data Form, record your observation. The species you
saw and the direction it was headed are valuable data!
Then, if the animal is alive, move it carefully across the road
in the direction it was already traveling. These amphibians
know where they're going, so don't second-guess them! To
mate, they return to the woodland pool where they were
born, not necessarily the closest or most obvious pool. Be
sure your hands are clean and free of lotion, hand sanitizer
and other chemicals before handling amphibians. They
absorb almost everything through their delicate skin, and it's
possible that things on your hands that are harmless to you
can be damaging to them. If possible, wet your hands before
picking up your frog or salamander. If you prefer, use a clean plastic cup to safely move
them across the road.
Some volunteers choose to move frogs and salamanders in a bucket, particularly when
there are large numbers of them or traffic is heavy. If you do this, be sure the bucket is
clean and free from potentially harmful residues.
If your frog or salamander is dead, use an old spatula or plastic cup to remove the
animal from the road. Be sure to put the body somewhere where you won't be tempted
to consider it a new animal - you don't want to record the same observation as two
separate amphibians.
Remember: at no point should you attempt to stop traffic or move in front of a vehicle to
save an amphibian. Your safety is of the utmost importance! Cars may stop to ask what
you're up to. Feel free to tell them all about Big Night, and consider carrying cards with
Big Night contact information on them to distribute to curious motorists and neighbors.
Monitor your crossing for as long as you are willing - even
15 minutes can save a lot of lives on a crowded stretch of
road! Be sure to record the length of time you spent at your
crossing on your data sheet to give an idea of the crossing
rate. When you're ready to head inside and dry off, make
certain to complete your tallies, taking care to include as
much information as possible on your data sheet. If you
visit more than one crossing location, be sure to use a separate data sheet for each
location so there's no confusion about which amphibian belongs where.
Other Ways to Help
If acting as a crossing guard isn't what you had in mind, or if you're just looking for
another way to help, consider driving around your town looking for new crossings. We
don't know of all the roads frogs and salamanders cross on their way back to their home
pool, so any place where you spot more than one amphibian in the road has a good
chance to be a Big Night crossing location. Drive around with a friend to do the writing,
and keep notes on a paper map of where you see frogs or salamanders during your drive.
Sending your findings in will give us a better idea of where to send next spring's
volunteers.
Together we can learn more about these fascinating creatures and inform new
approaches to keeping them safe on their annual journey!
Questions? Like what you've read and want to join in? Contact
Winnakee Land Trust at 845-876-4213 ext. 3 or
[email protected].
NYS DEC Biodiversity Outreach Coordinator
Laura Heady
845-256-3061
[email protected]
Volunteer Coordinator, Rhinebeck & Surrounding Areas
Lisa Camp
845-264-0295
[email protected]
Volunteer Coordinator, Red Hook & Surrounding Areas
Laurie Husted
845-464-8025
[email protected]