The recent rains have brought the salamanders out of their hiding places, enabling nature‑lovers to spot this stunning creature — a beautiful, elusive amphibian that is endangered in Israel.
In recent years, a long‑term citizen‑science project has been underway, in which volunteers are monitoring two urban populations in Haifa, through a collaboration between the Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel, the Israel Nature & Parks Authority and other bodies.
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Salamanders are endangered in Israel
(Photo: Liron Shapira, Society for the Protection of Nature)
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Volunteers track the salamanders in Haifa
(Photo: Omri Selner, Society for the Protection of Nature)
From an analysis of presence in the wadis it emerges that 85% of the salamanders that were observed more than once were found in the same location twice; that is, each salamander tends to remain in a certain area, hence it is of great importance to preserve all the habitat sites throughout the wadi.
Dr. Nirit Lavie Alon, coordinator of citizen‑science at the Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel, says that, in addition to the ecological insights, the study highlights “the great contribution of citizens‑volunteers to nature‑conservation and the many ways in which public involvement in natural‑science can create positive impact.”
In addition, the age and survival of the salamanders were estimated, and it was found that the young salamanders suffer from much higher mortality and only about a third reach sexual maturity. The chance that a larva will survive to reproductive age is only 2%.
These low survival percentages indicate the great importance of preserving the waterbodies used by the salamanders for breeding and larval development. A larva that manages to reach maturity despite all the odds will enjoy an annual survival rate of 85%, and here arises the need to protect the adult salamanders.