Are these salamanders doomed?

October 29, 2009 8:46 PM

I found three salamanders under a trash can sitting on the cement walk next to my house. Is there anything I can do to increase their chances of survival through the winter?

The trash can is filled with leaves, and will be left in place through most of the winter. It might get moved around once, though, if we have work done on our gutters.

Is it too late in the fall to encourage the salamanders to relocate to a more protected setting?

Should I even be worried about this? I have the impression that salamanders are protected in Massachusetts. Over the years I've found a few of them under old boards and such in my yard. It's always exciting to see them, and I always try to put the boards back carefully so as not to crush the little critters.

Other details:

The salamanders are muddy brown.

I live near Boston.

posted by alms to Pets & Animals (5 answers total)

A Jefferson Salamander perhaps? Sounds like you could take them to a park where they can overwinter. I've never been to Boston so I know nothing about the terrain. However, we have plenty of salamdanders in the Northwest and I know that they like leaf litter and other damp, dark areas.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jefferson_Salamander
posted by rotifer at 10:23 PM on October 29, 2009

I think the little guys you found are probably Jefferson Salamanders. Does that look about right? It seems they can survive the winter if they can find a way to avoid freezing (normally by burrowing below the frost line). I doubt there's anything you can do - they've probably got it figured out on their own, and they've got a while yet until the ground freezes in Boston.

Here's the relevant info that you're looking for (from wikipedia):

The secretive adults tend to hide under stones or logs, or in leaf litter and other underbrush in deciduous forests during damp conditions. They are usually not found in conifer forests, likely due to the dryness and prickliness of some pine and spruce needles, which may injure amphibians with their thin skins. They are found burrowed underground for most of the year during dry or freezing conditions. They must get below the frost line (about 18 inches) in order to survive winter conditions in northern latitudes. They often burrow in rich sandy soils found in upland deciduous forests or sometimes in older-growth damp hemlock forests.

I love salamanders too! Always fun to find them scurrying about or hiding under rocks.
posted by Salvor Hardin at 10:31 PM on October 29, 2009

Actually the trash can was their way of finding shelter. Leave them be. They are very smart. Cats seem to like torturing them, so maybe just keep cats away from where you found them.
posted by watercarrier at 2:01 AM on October 30, 2009

A friend has three of those living near the shower drain in the basement bathroom that he rigged up in his 100 year old farmhouse (Illinois). We always have to remember to turn the lights on before going in there to avoid stepping on them. We guess that they keep the thousand legger and spider population down there in check.

Do you use mulch and leaf piles to protect your yard plants during the winter? These tend to insulate the soil from freezing earlier and provide some protection for salamanders. Maybe relocate them there if you need to use the trash barrel?
posted by jeanmari at 5:31 AM on October 30, 2009

As @jeanmari said, relocate them to somewhere vegetated or mulched and they should be able to find shelter. If they are Jeffersons they are pretty hardy when it comes to winter as I have seen them walking over a foot of snow to get to a vernal pool to breed. They tend to shelter under rocks and logs for the winter. Jeffersons are more typically bluish though so it could be another species (maybe one of the duskies). Could you take any photos if you move them.
posted by buttercup at 8:47 AM on October 30, 2009