State Amphibian Legislation

For years we have been asking that the state of Ohio adopt the Spotted Salamander as the official state amphibian. HB 57 reads:

Sec. 5.033. The salamander, Ambystoma maculatum, commonly known as the spotted salamander, is the official amphibian of the state.

This is simple and to the point. I just became aware that the Senate has come up with a different version. SB 81 reads:

Sec. 5.033. The salamander, Ambystoma maculatum, commonly known as the spotted salamander, is the official amphibian of the state.

Sec. 5.034. The frog, Rana catesbeiana, commonly known as the bullfrog, is the official frog of the state.

This additional line contradicts the first if you consider that a frog is also an amphibian.

So the question of biological systematics is one issue. How many layers of organisms rise to the rank of state symbol? If there is a state mammal, should there also be a state carnivore, state herbivore? There are probably no real or presumed guidelines for the systematics. Perhaps we should begin a campaign for another state insect, since the ladybug is a beetle; we could have a state dragonfly and a state damselfly. Within the damselfly category we could have a state jewelwing, a state spreadwing, a state pond damsel, a state bluet, a state sprite and an official state forktail.

But the argument is not about the various classifications that should be allowed. The question is which organism best serves to represent the qualities we value in Ohio. Do we want the omnivorous bullfrog that shows no preference for quality, just because it is big, or just because it may be the only frog that is known to the masses? Or do we prefer the spotted salamander to represent our natural environment as a delicate and precious balance worthy of our protection and appreciation?

FOWL picnic cancelled

The FOWL picnic scheduled for Saturday, May 23, has been cancelled. My apologies to those of you who are planning to come.

Red-eared Sliders Seeking Home

Patricia got the following email and it really is important that these animals are not released into the wild) that I am passing along:

from
Tracey Knierim
The Bat Farm
440-543-6399
tjncrew@aol.com

Hi Everyone

I'm hoping that one of you can help me. I know someone, who knows
someone, who has had 3 red earred sliders (Turtles) since they were
basically hatchlings. They are very friendly....will eat out of your
hand! Anyway, they have become too big for their tank and the owners
want to get rid of them. They said they called the zoo and they don't
want them. They are talking about just setting them free in the wild.
I have a problem with this because it is illegal for them to do this,
they could over take our local native species, and I'm not sure they
will know how to survive our winters.

Can any of you take these guys or know of someone or an organization
that could take them?

Clinic Construction in Twinsburg Wetland

Last year I attended a workshop and had the pleasure of meeting the President of the Buckeye Forest Council, David Maywhoor. While we were listening to presentations he doodled out this drawing about the Cleveland Clinic development plans in Twinsburg.

Now we hear that the Ohio EPA and the Cleveland Clinic have come to terms that will protect the high quality wetlands on the site. Is this a case of the regulatory agency doing its job? Is the hospital recognizing the error of its ways? Will the wetlands continue to function essentially unchanged by construction activities? This would indeed be good news if we could accept it at face value. Vigilance is still the watchword. See full article at Ohio.com, The Akron Beacon-Journal.

TESHEKPUK WETLANDS SAFE, FOR NOW!

There is a vast wetland complex in Alaska called Teshekpuk Lake. Like the ANWAR it is a potential oil extraction site. Rare and endangered species rely on this habitat for their survival. The National Audubon Society has made significant impacts on the oil politics here. See Audubon Issues & Action for details. For more background and enganging multimedia try the Cornell Lab of Ornithology 'Living Bird'.

Vernal Pool Hikes

Our Vernal Pool hikes were absolutely delicious. Sometimes, I wish I could explore these places in stead of going to work inside a classroom without windows. On most days, it's easier for me to check the weather at my computer than to look outside!
Nonetheless, over the weekend we got to see the birth of a new growing season in the wonderful wild at the Babcock farm with the treasure of spring ephemerals in Happy Valley.
The woodfrog (thanks to Alan Tomko) in this picture is a representative of the delicate ecology on this farm that is likely to survive for future generations. We have documented significant vernal pools on this property where they breed and extensive upland habitat where they exist for the other 51 weeks of the year. This is a notable example of an amphibian that depends not only on the vernal pool wetland that we love to explore but also the adjacent upland that supports it during the 99% of its life when it is not breeding. All too often, the limited wetland protection that does occur ignores the essential supportive contiguous habitat that surrounds the wetlands.
The next week we returned to the luscious backwoods and riparian wonders on the McConnell property. After many visits and surveys of the property, there are still mysteries and plants that defy the identification of local experts. This is a deeply diverse habitat that is worthy of our admiration. Thanks to the birding skills of Brad Phillips I was able to watch the foraging habits of the Grey Cheeked Thrush as it stopped by the Black River Valley during its northward migration.
Such visits include the enjoyment of both the ephemeral and the migratory. We hold these moments precious with our photos, memories and with our community.

A few images from past FOWL picnics:
The tipi was up one year at the picnic site.
Yrs truly bruising a guitar.
The Hoolgans at the 2001 Picnic.
Alan Tomko took this picture of a Spiny Softsell Turtle found along the riverbank.
The Smokin' Fez Monkeys were a huge hit at the 2008 picnic.
The inimitable Ralph McGinnis, one of the Hooligans, who played at several FOWL picnics.
Allison, Daryl's granddaughter, with a dulcimer. She's now a Junior in French Horn at the BW Conservatory.
A Wolf Spider with her progeny on her back. Kathleen Bradley LOVES spiders!
Alan Tomko made this frog cake one year. The next year he made a salamander cake...
A couple of fancypants after a sojourn at the river.
Best buds get some grub.
The 2003 picnic was a little wet for awhile; here's the tent community.
Tim Wallace, of the Hooligans and the Smokin' Fez monys, with his hommade banjo. Works good!
Fiddling around.
Dave with his small friend.
Angela licks the plate clean. Good good food!
Sunlight after the rain, 2003.
Haley and Brady snuggle up under the tent.
Gettin' down with the Smokin' Fez Monkeys!
A bluejay shows up at the festivities.
Jonah tills the picnic.
Robert Wheeler, our host, is the great-great grandnephew of Thomas Edison, whose siste married Homer Page, to whom this historic farm is dedicated.
May Weyburne (left), oneof the most sublime of all beings, is the mother of Jonah and Annie (she of the sandy britches); Mary Lowery (right), her best friend (they have travelled the world together) is a nurse in Alaska.
Haylee does her backbend. Whoa!
Kali and Nathan in teh tree.
The picnic site from atop the farm. That year the tipi was up.
The Huron River, at the picnic site, at rest.












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Some more images from Huron. Sorry I haven't learned to do a better job of formatting text with images. From top to bottom:
* What the place looks like in late summer.
* The scene on April 25 at my back buttonbush pool, with a bed of Carex bromoides (Blunt Broom Sedge) in bloom with a few Marsh Marigolds interspersed.
* A Carex bromoides plant in full bloom.
* Marsh Marigolds in bloom. There are extensive beds of these around the pools.
* Yellow Water Crowfoot (Ranunculus flabellaris) in bloom in a little pool right beside my campsite.
* A little group of Ranunculus flabellaris in bloom

Over the last month I have heard the breding calls of the following species in the front Buttonbush pool: Western Chorus Frog, Spring Peeper, Wood Frog, Northern Leopard Frog, Gray Treefrog, American Toad, and Green Frog. Music to my ears!

On the morning of April 26 I saw and heard many warblers, including Yellow, Yellow-rumped, and American Redstart. There were Swamp Sparrows, very active Flickers and Downy Woodpeckers, and a courting pair of Rose-breasted Grossbeaks were streaking around all over the place, flying right past my ear!