Each fall, a little-known migration takes place in the forests at Jug Bay. On rainy nights, Marbled salamanders (Ambystoma opacum) emerge from their hiding places beneath leaves and logs, traveling to low-lying areas that will become pools when they are soaked with spring rains, to lay their eggs; in the spring, aquatic larva hatch from the eggs and develop into salamanders.

Research Activity: Volunteers collect migrating salamanders captured in pitfall traps at three forest sites and record the data. While checking the traps, they often find other amphibians such as frogs and toads.

After collecting the salamanders, volunteers count, weigh, measure, and photograph each animal.

This information increases our understanding of the effect of weather on migration, the timing and duration of breeding activity, and differences in activity between male and female salamanders.

Schedule: A training workshop is held in mid-August. The traps are opened between late August-December, at least one volunteer is needed everyday for two-six hours starting between 8-10 am. Some volunteers come weekly, others once or twice a month.

Through this research, more than fifty volunteers and thousands of other visitors, including school children, have learned about amphibian breeding biology and the field methods used to study them.