Escorting the salamanders
On rainy spring nights, uncounted thousands of salamanders, frogs, and newts scurry across small stretches of road from New England to Philadelphia during their annual mating migration. Many don’t make it, squashed by passing motorists. Now, thanks to the efforts of local conservation groups, the hapless amphibians are getting help from human escorts who scoop them to safety and direct cars around them. “It’s really cool,” said Kaitlin Freidman, 20, who recently did the honors in New Haven, Vt. “You feel like maybe you’re making a small reduction in their mortality rates, maybe, just for that hour or so.”
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
Join more than 350,000 subscribers and keep yourself informed with a selection of The Week’s most interesting, enlightening and entertaining stories - plus daily puzzles.
Join more than 350,000 subscribers and keep yourself informed with a selection of The Week’s most interesting, enlightening and entertaining stories - plus daily puzzles.