Spring Emergence 2016!

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MCHerper
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Spring Emergence 2016!

Post by MCHerper »

I wanted to start the ball rolling on the 2016 spring emergence thread. I'm thinking that the big push will be around March 15th or 16th this year here in Central NJ. I'm looking forward to hearing the predictions of others, what say you?
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beemaster
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Re: Spring Emergence 2016!

Post by beemaster »

Feels like an early spring is coming to SE Massachusetts. When I say that, I mean like the blue spots out the first week of March, wood frogs out the second week, and spotties and peepers out in full force by the end of the month. I've been wrong before, and you can never tell this early, but it just feels like it. I just wish I had a chance to actually be out when it does come.
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ZantiMissKnit
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Re: Spring Emergence 2016!

Post by ZantiMissKnit »

It's so hard to tell! We had weather nearing 60 on February 1, and it stayed warm for a few days, then we got snow on the 5th and right now it's freezing and windy out. As much as I would love to see an early emergence, I'm afraid that the up and down weather might confuse them. February is always such a shitty month in Massachusetts that it's hard to imagine that spring isn't that far away.
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NewYorkHerper16
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Re: Spring Emergence 2016!

Post by NewYorkHerper16 »

The weather here on Long Island has been pretty inconsistent, so i'm going to play it safe and guess the big emergence will be around March 20th. Obviously its impossible to predict this early though. The rain and warm temps we had today and yesterday night were really good for melting almost all the snow and thawing the ground, so i'm going to be roadcruising tonight in hopes that ill see something. My expectations are low, but its worth a shot!

-Alex
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ZantiMissKnit
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Re: Spring Emergence 2016!

Post by ZantiMissKnit »

The ground is still pretty frozen in some spots. I did see a garter snake outside a den yesterday, but I also saw a large water snake that appeared to have perished halfway outside of a den entrance. :(
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NewYorkHerper16
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Re: Spring Emergence 2016!

Post by NewYorkHerper16 »

Sorry to hear about the water snake, Andrea. The other night i saw a bunch of dead frogs frozen in a small pond, including one enormous male bullfrog. It's especially sad to see big adult animals dead that have survived for so long!

On the other hand, my luck hasnt been all bad lately! After i posted my comment the a couple days ago about going out for early salamanders and frogs, i found my first ever Eastern Tiger Salamander. That pretty much made my year already lol!

Hopefully the spotteds and wood frogs come out soon!

-Alex
MCHerper
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Re: Spring Emergence 2016!

Post by MCHerper »

I just got a report of wood frogs moving last night in Central NJ. No reports of any breeding activity and I know that many of the ponds are still frozen. Did anyone else see any movement?
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cbernz
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Re: Spring Emergence 2016!

Post by cbernz »

I bet there will be some Blue-spotted movement tomorrow night, if not tonight, in Morris County, NJ.
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ZantiMissKnit
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Re: Spring Emergence 2016!

Post by ZantiMissKnit »

We went out looking for laterale last night and did not find any, but we did see two maculatum (one definitely male) and two wood frogs in the rain!
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cbernz
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Re: Spring Emergence 2016!

Post by cbernz »

I didn't go out last night, but I guarantee our laterale started moving. It was 62 degrees last night, with lightning, thunder, and a tornado watch! In February!
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pete
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Re: Spring Emergence 2016!

Post by pete »

I found 14 spotties last night. 9 male 5 female. Earliest i can remember actual breeder migrants.
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Re: Spring Emergence 2016!

Post by MCHerper »

pete wrote:I found 14 spotties last night. 9 male 5 female. Earliest i can remember actual breeder migrants.

Pete, did you see any breeding or courtship activity in pools, or hear vocalizations by any chance?
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Re: Spring Emergence 2016!

Post by MCHerper »

Currently watching the forecast for Friday, March 11th in our area. Tues (3/8), Wed (3/9) and Thurs (3/10) expected to be in 60's with no precip and lows near 40 degrees F, then a moderately heavy rain (approx. 1/2 inch as of now) expected on 3/11 with a high of 65 and a low near 50. Light rain with similar highs and lows expected on 3/12 and 3/13.

I know that it's a long way out, but if the forecast holds steady, this looks to be the one.
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Re: Spring Emergence 2016!

Post by MCHerper »

Warm and dry the last few days, near record highs (80 degrees) in our area, but no rain. Humidity dropped significantly for some time (there was a fire weather warning for a short period). Rain no longer forecast for the 11th. Peepers were booming last night with some scattered reports of wood frog activity throughout the last week. No one I've talked to has reported seeing spotteds in pools or any egg masses yet.

Most promising forecast for any kind of uniform push has shifted to Tuesday, March 15th. Some lighter rain on Monday the 14th with a heavy, warm rain on Tuesday. Hopefully this sticks.

:thumb:
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NewYorkHerper16
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Re: Spring Emergence 2016!

Post by NewYorkHerper16 »

Its been warm and dry here too. The peepers have been going nuts, but other than that, i havent seen much myself or heard many reports from other people in the area. I did get to see plenty of redbacks, newts, one yearling laterale and some four-toed salamanders, but no spotteds or even wood frogs yet! Hopefully the rains this week will help move things along!

-Alex
SteveWinks
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Re: Spring Emergence 2016!

Post by SteveWinks »

I took a walk through some conservation land by me over the weekend and during it was happy to hear the quacking of wood frogs congregating in a pool somewhere nearby.
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cbernz
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Re: Spring Emergence 2016!

Post by cbernz »

I'm curious what others' experiences have been this season, because around here it's been a really strange early spring. My brother confirmed Bluespot movement on Feb. 24, on a night I wasn't able to get out. I went back to the same spot on a wet, warmish night last week and saw nothing migrating, not even a frog. Typically, on a night like that in mid-March, I would find 20-40 Bluespots and several dozen each of Peepers and Wood Frogs (there were Peepers and Wood Frogs in the vernal pools already). It's extra strange because there have not been a lot of rain events for the amphibians to chose from. The weather has been really dry overall, with huge fluctuations in temperature from day to day. Every morning I have to feel outside just to determine whether to wear a winter coat or a T-shirt. I can't imagine what this is doing to the amphibians.
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Kyle from Carolina
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Re: Spring Emergence 2016!

Post by Kyle from Carolina »

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MCHerper
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Re: Spring Emergence 2016!

Post by MCHerper »

cbernz wrote:I'm curious what others' experiences have been this season, because around here it's been a really strange early spring. My brother confirmed Bluespot movement on Feb. 24, on a night I wasn't able to get out. I went back to the same spot on a wet, warmish night last week and saw nothing migrating, not even a frog. Typically, on a night like that in mid-March, I would find 20-40 Bluespots and several dozen each of Peepers and Wood Frogs (there were Peepers and Wood Frogs in the vernal pools already). It's extra strange because there have not been a lot of rain events for the amphibians to chose from. The weather has been really dry overall, with huge fluctuations in temperature from day to day. Every morning I have to feel outside just to determine whether to wear a winter coat or a T-shirt. I can't imagine what this is doing to the amphibians.
Same here. It's been insane. Seems that there was some movement around the same time here (February 23rd/24th) but it was spotty (no pun intended). On the night of March 1st into the 2nd, there was some moderate rain, and on March 2nd (a chilly day) a friend sent me a message telling me that wood frogs were going nuts in a vernal near him. There was a crossing on March 14th and I got some messages saying that it was only spotted sals and it appeared that the wood frogs were finished for the season (?).

I really hope that it's not a dry season like last year. I watched several vernals dry up and herp sightings in general suffered quite a bit because of how dry it was. I agree that it can't be good for them. Hopefully the temps stabilize and we get a few good precipitation events soon.
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ZantiMissKnit
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Re: Spring Emergence 2016!

Post by ZantiMissKnit »

I saw a few wood frogs in the water and spotted salamanders moving in Bristol County, MA, on February 24. The frogs weren't yet calling.

On March 10, we took a drive through a state park in Plymouth County, MA, in light-to-moderate rain, and saw Americans toads, spring peepers, four-toed salamanders, spotted salamanders, bullfrogs, efts, and redbacks moving around. We didn't see wood frogs, and I can't recall if we heard them, then, but we moved on to one of our spots in Bristol County the same night and the wood frogs were going nuts in the vernals, as were the spotted salamanders. We saw blue-spotted salamanders, redbacks, and four-toed salamanders crossing the path. American Toads and peepers were also calling, but I didn't see any.

On March 25, after it had been raining most of the day, we checked our vernal pools in Bristol County. There were a few wood frogs in the pools, as well as American Toads. The woods, toads, and peepers were calling like crazy. We saw many egg masses in the ponds. A couple of four-toed salamanders were on the path, and we flipped one small spotted salamander.

My guess is that it will continue to be sporadic for a while. It's been raining all day here, so a few things probably moved around.
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