Rare creature found at odd time in the Bog

A species of salamander with no recorded sightings in Ozaukee County was found in the Cedarburg Bog nature preserve by two University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee students this fall.

Discovery and documentation of the four-toed salamander (Hemidactyliam scutatum) will be published in the Journal of Herpetological Review and offer a new perspective on where the salamander may be located and how it can be conserved.

The amphibian, which is the smallest salamander species in Wisconsin, was found during a nature walk in the UWM Conservation and Environmental Science Field Methods class. The class, which gives students the chance to bring classroom practices to the field, operates out of the UWM Field Station located in the Bog.

Recent environmental studies graduate Morgan Schmanski said she was walking with members of the class when a rock lying next to an upturned tree caught her attention. Having an interest in minerology, she went to examine the rock and noticed a small lizard-like creature near the upturned tree. Nervous to pick up the creature herself, she explained her findings to Joey Cannizzaro, a graduate student studying herpetology.

The two went to the site where Schmanski saw the creature, and Cannizzaro started rummaging through dirt and leaves to find it.

“Sure enough I pulled the thing out,” Cannizzaro said. “I knew what it was immediately and I was ecstatic.”

Schmanski said she had never seen a grown man so excited.

Cannizzaro was able to identify the species using tell-tale signs like the salamander’s four toes and its white belly with black speckles.  

After some photos and notes, the two released the salamander back into the wild where they found it.

Cannizzaro said while the Bog has been studied and well documented over the years, he suspected that the four-toed salamander may have been in the preserve before actually discovering it. He said the salamander is often found in wetland areas containing Sphagnum moss, which is present in the Bog.

The salamanders lay their eggs in the moss directly above water. The mother salamander will keep watch on the eggs in the moss until they hatch, drop into the water and grow.

Cannizzaro and Schmanski said it was strange to have found the salamander where and when they did. Rather than in a wetland, it was found in a beach maple forest.

“It was very uncharacteristic for this little guy to be there,” Schmanski said.

And rather than it being found in the spring or summer when salamanders are more active, it was found in the fall when most are preparing to hibernate through the winter, adding to the rarity of the find.

With the discovery documented and available for public review, Cannizzaro and Schmanski said their findings may aid in future land conservation efforts to protect the species, which has a special concern status in Wisconsin.

Cannizzaro said when a species is known to reside in an area, the area can be managed correctly to protect it.

Schmanski said spreading information that a species resides in an area can also spur on other conservation efforts.

“The best way to aid conservation efforts is to extend knowledge to people who don’t know,” she said. “A lot of people don’t know what’s out there. Even we didn’t.”

Both students said they are grateful that the UWM Field Station offers the opportunity to apply what they learn in the classroom to the field.

Schmanski said her class at the station connected many topics she learned in other classes to a real-world application.

Cannizzaro said working in the woods and getting hands-on experience is extremely valuable to students in many fields of study.

“I’m a large proponent of the field station.”