Hundreds of Salamanders Gather on Homeowner’s Doorstep

[Omaha Steve]

http://www.care2.com/greenliving/hundreds-of-salamanders-gather-on-homeowners-doorstep.html


Animal Planet October 28, 2014 9:00 am



That’s exactly what happened to one St. Louis area homeowner. No, these are not snakes, or even reptiles. They are an amphibian species called a ringed salamander.



The Missouri Department of Conservation posted this picture of the gathering–which is called a “congress of salamanders”–to their Facebook page and had this to say about it:

“Our St. Louis office got a call last week from a homeowner who had this pile of ringed salamanders trapped in an outside stairway. In autumn they travel by night to fishless woodland ponds where they may congregate by the hundreds for breeding. The salamanders were moved to a nearby fishless pond so they could continue…. If you see activity like this, let us know so we can help wildlife get back on the right road.”

Want to help exotic animals? Sign here to prevent exotic animals from being euthanized.

FULL story at link.

[Glassunion]

1. That's so cool. nt

[In_The_Wind]

2. That's really cool!

[Autumn]

3. A Congress of salamanders would beat the Congress we have in a heart beat.

Cool , thanks for posting this.

[shenmue]

6. Yep

[JEB]

11. Is one of those congress critters wearing a diaper?

[jmowreader]

13. No, but one of them has a face like a turtle

[radicalliberal]

20. That would be Mitch without his shell. n/t

[Louisiana1976]

4. Way cool.

[HereSince1628]

5. Near the farm I owned, spotted salamanders migrate to retreats every fall.

Scores of scores are crushed by vehicles as they cross the road.

Sad but no one out there cares.

[Jenoch]

7. My grandparent's had a stairwell to their basement

just like the one in the photo. Sometimes we would find a salamander. I remember my old cousins tying a parachute made with a knapkin to a salamander and tossing it off the second floor balcony. The salamand landed in the grass uninjured and was then set free in the garden, away from the house.

[Scuba]

8. I've spotted the occasional salamander around my home, but nothing like this! Cool!

[jtuck004]

9. "congress of salamanders" < Salamander Orgy would have been better. <G>

'Cause nobody likes congress right now

[hifiguy]

10. That's kind of spooky and Lovecraftian.

Any sightings of this creature?

[pinboy3niner]

14. iirc the last known cthulu sighting was in England...

[hifiguy]

15. Zoinks!!!

[littlemissmartypants]

19. Perfect. nt

[BumRushDaShow]

12. When I was a kid, we used to pour water along the brick edging

in the backyard, lift a couple bricks, and out came the salamanders! Hadn't seen any in decades and then stumbled upon one a couple years ago.

[arthritisR_US]

16. That would totally freak me out! nt

[Aldo Leopold]

17. OMG, it's the herpocalypse!

[undergroundpanther]

21. amphibolocalypse

[jwirr]

18. Years ago I and my girls were living at house that had a cave/cellar where food was stored for the

winter. I did not use it but the salamanders sure did.

[madokie]

22. Over at our home place

we have a pond down in the holler that is full of salamanders. The kind with the red gills. Leaves wash down and pile up in this pond and it gives them the perfect home to live in.

9 of us kids counting me, oldest is 85 youngest is 62, I'm 66 and when our parents passed away we elected to keep our home place in one piece belonging to us as a collective. Its been great that I know that anytime I want to I can go over and stake out a place where I can build a house if I want. I or most of us don't because we want it to stay as it is now, a get away, a place where salamanders can live in peace. Where the deer roam at will, where the foxes call home, where the hoot owls and great horned owls live, where the red tail hawks feel safe to build their nests to raise the new generation at and on and on.
I'm proud of my brothers and sisters and myself for that matter for having the fortitude to do this for the future of our children and grand children. A place for them to be able to call home too.
A place where the animals feel safe and appreciated

[Enthusiast]

23. Signed. K&R! Thank you, Omaha Steve.

[rhett o rick]

24. k&r. Thanks for posting. nm

[Tommy_Carcetti]

25. So a group of slimy, cold blooded, small brained creatures is called a "congress"?

Funny, that's also what they call a group of salamanders.





I know, I know, it's been done.

[dreamnightwind]

26. Wow

I have never seen a "congress" like this.

At my house there are Sonoma Tiger Salamanders, an endangered species IIRC. I used to find them pretty often in a moist area near a woodpile, but in these last few drought years I have not seen any. Hopefully they will survive the drought.