Salamander Lagoon

In 2002, a salamander lagoon was created in the north woodlots. The lagoon provides new habitat to increase the abundance and diversity of salamander at the farm. Two herpetologists, Dr. Martin Rosenberg from the Department of Biology and Dr. Tim Matson from the Cleveland Museum of Natural History, are involved in the project. Dr. Matson has been introducing wood frogs and spotted salamanders into the lagoon for the last several years. He is researching the effects of metal toxicity on northeast Ohio amphibians and conducts a variety of experiments at the farm.

Since 2004, the wood frog population at the lagoon has become well established. During the spring of 2007, Jefferson salamanders (Ambystoma jeffersonianum) were found in the lagoon for the first time.

In Summer 2013, a new property was added to the Farm, thanks to an anonymous donor generosity. This new research site contains a pond located in a wooded area ideal for salamander studies.