Salamander Tunnels

Every year after the first spring rains in Amherst, Massachusetts, volunteer "bucket brigades" used to stop traffic along Henry Street to carry migrating salamanders safely across the road.

That is, until the animals could cross on their own through two underpasses.

Two-lane Henry Street separates salamanders from the warm, fishless vernal pools (small temporary ponds) where they migrate every spring to mate and to lay their eggs. "Local residents knew when the salamanders would head for the pools," says wildlife biologist and consultant Tom Tyning. "They knew the prime conditions for migration - sustained rain, the beginning of a thaw, and temperatures above 42 degrees."

Those who came out to watch the nighttime migration noticed salamanders killed on the road. When word spread about the animals' plight, the British Fauna and Floral Preservation Society and ACO Polymer in Germany provided funds for an experimental tunnel project on Henry Street. The Amherst Department of Public Works, University of Massachusetts, Massachusetts Audubon Society, Hitchcock Center for the Environment (a local conservation group), and local residents worked together to make it happen.

In 1987 two tunnels, 200 feet (61 m) apart, were built at the salamanders' crossing site, and short "drift fences" were constructed to guide migrating salamanders into the tunnels. Each tunnel had a slotted top to let in light and provide the damp conditions salamanders need.

One night every spring, most of Amherst's migrating salamanders use these tunnels to get to vernal pools where they mate and lay their eggs.

To study the effectiveness of the project, volunteers caught salamanders as they approached the tunnels and marked each one with a colored paper dot representing the section of fence from which they had come. "We wanted to be sure the length of the fence didn't interfere with the salamanders' movement into the tunnels," says Scott Jackson, University of Massachusetts amphibian and reptile expert. "If it did, the two tunnels would need to be closer."

Study results indicated that salamanders at fences farthest from the tunnels were just as successful in reaching the tunnels as those at fences closer to the entrances. The study also revealed that more than three quarters of the animals that reached the tunnels successfully used them to cross the road.

Jackson offers these tips to those who may be considering salamander tunnels in their communities:

• Design tunnels to accommodate specific site conditions.
• Avoid single-species designs.
• Know the biology of the target species.
• Locate tunnels close to the movement corridors of these species.
• Monitor the project and make appropriate adjustments.
• Share the results (positive and negative).

A "Watch Out for Salamanders" sign identifies the location of the Henry Street tunnels and warns motorists to drive slowly.

For more information, contact Scott Jackson at 413-545-4743 or sjackson@umext.umass.edu, or Tom Tyning at 413-442-2165 or ttyning@massaudubon.org