What is it Wednesay: May 5, 2021

 

Can you identify what's in this photo?

 

 

Each Wednesday morning 

on Camp Lutherlyn's Facebook page

 the Lutherlyn Environmental Education Program posts a photo. 

 

 

Readers have all morning and afternoon 

to make their best guess about what the photo is. 

 

Around 6 pm LEEP provides the answer and a brief explanation.

 

 

Each week's What is it Wednesday post 

will also be posted on the Nature of Lutherlyn blog, 

 after it is posted on Facebook,

sometimes with additional bonus information. 

 

In addition to bringing you current editions of What is it Wednesday 

on the Nature of Lutherlyn blog, 

we will be reposting old editions,

creating a What is it Wednesday archive. 

 

This photo was posted as a What is it Wednesday on

May 5, 2021. 

 

 

 

And the answer is....

 

This is a pickerel frog. 

The image is a little funky-looking and it looks like there is an extra separate foot because we are viewing this pickerel frog through the side of a container, and the image is refracted through the water and plastic. Here's what it looks like with a clearer view from above: 

We usually leave critters in their homes at Lutherlyn, aside from a short scoop-up to look at them – the animals who live here are best cared for by mother nature. But this week, LEEP had a chance to visit Northwest Elementary in Butler, PA to help the kindergarteners through fourth graders get to know some mammals and amphibians. We brought some of our Discovery Room friends with us to give students a closer look at mammals, and caught a pickerel frog, green frog, tadpoles of spring peepers and green frogs, and red-backed salamanders to show them amphibians. 

It was wonderful to spend a day with the students of Northwest Elementary! After their adventure, all the amphibians were returned to where we found them at Lutherlyn, including this pickerel frog.

Pickerel frogs are smaller than green frogs and larger than spring peepers, and fairly easy to indentify by their square and rectangular markings. (Leopard frogs look similar, but have circular or oval markings.)  You may also be able to identify that there are pickerel frogs around without even seeing them – their call sounds a bit like a squeaky door slowly swinging open. Like most frogs, they can been found near water (this one came from alongside the amphitheater pond), but they also frequently wander out into grassy areas further from their water source. Spring is a great time to look and listen for frogs and other amphibians!

For more on how LEEP can bring nature knowledge to you, either by coming to your location or welcoming your group to Lutherlyn, check out www.Luthelryn.com/ee. 

Like and follow Camp Lutherlyn on Facebook, to see What is it Wednesday posts when they come out and have the opportunity to share your guesses in the comments!

What is it Wednesday archive: sometime in 2017

Can you identify what's in this photo?

Each Wednesday morning 

on Camp Lutherlyn's Facebook page

 the Lutherlyn Environmental Education Program posts a photo. 

Readers have all morning and afternoon 

to make their best guess about what the photo is. 

Around 6 pm LEEP provides the answer and a brief explanation.

Each week's What is it Wednesday post 

will also be posted on the Nature of Lutherlyn blog, 

 after it is posted on Facebook,

sometimes with additional bonus information. 

In addition to bringing you current editions of What is it Wednesday 

on the Nature of Lutherlyn blog, 

we will be reposting old editions,

creating a What is it Wednesday archive. 

This photo was posted as a What is it Wednesday 

sometime in 2017 - one of our earliest! 

And the answer is....

This little cutie is a Red-spotted Newt. Newts are a type of salamander. 

Red Spotted Newts begin their life when they hatch from eggs laid in water. The newly hatched larvae live in water until the end of the summer when they emerge as bright orange efts. We often see this terrestrial stage of the newt on trails at Lutherlyn during wet weather. Red-spotted Newts live as efts for up to 7 years, then they become adults and return to the water to live out their life for up to 10 more years. As adults they are olive green with fin-like tails that help them swim well. 

Based on its color, the red-spotted newt in this picture is probably in transition from eft stage to adult stage, on its way back to the water, probably in Upper or Lower Lake. 

Like and follow Camp Lutherlyn on Facebook, to see What is it Wednesday posts when they come out and have the opportunity to share your guesses in the comments!

What is it Wednesday archive: May 16, 2018

Can you identify what's in this photo?

Each Wednesday morning 

on Camp Lutherlyn's Facebook page

 the Lutherlyn Environmental Education Program posts a photo. 

Readers have all morning and afternoon 

to make their best guess about what the photo is. 

Around 6 pm LEEP provides the answer and a brief explanation.

Each week's What is it Wednesday post 

will also be posted on the Nature of Lutherlyn blog, 

 after it is posted on Facebook,

sometimes with additional bonus information. 

In addition to bringing you current editions of What is it Wednesday 

on the Nature of Lutherlyn blog, 

we will be reposting old editions,

creating a What is it Wednesday archive. 

This photo was posted as a What is it Wednesday on

May 16, 2018. 

And the answer is....

The black dots inside the spirally blobs of gel are spring peeper eggs, found in the garden pond at Terra Dei. 

These were discovered in late April and are now hundreds of tadpoles. In about another month they will hop out of the pond as small frogs. 

Spring peepers are responsible for the high-pitched “peeping” sounds heard when the weather gets warm. Many people think this sound is created by an insect, but it is actually the call of these small frogs looking for a mate. Though they are not much larger than a fingernail, they can raise quite a loud sound on spring and summer nights!

The LEEP staff frequently encounters spring peepers during Animal Encounters in Life in the Wild camp, on night hikes during summer camp and overnight field trips, during Camp Blast and other special occasions, and of course they are the backdrop sound of summer nights at Lutherlyn. Check out Lutherlyn.com for more on ways you can visit Lutherlyn and encounter these delightful little parts of God’s creation. 

Like and follow Camp Lutherlyn on Facebook, to see What is it Wednesday posts when they come out and have the opportunity to share your guesses in the comments!

What is it Wednesday: April 15, 2020

Can you identify what's in this photo?

Each Wednesday morning 

on Camp Lutherlyn's Facebook page

 the Lutherlyn Environmental Education Program posts a photo. 

Readers have all morning and afternoon 

to make their best guess about what the photo is. 

Around 6 pm LEEP provides the answer and a brief explanation.

Each week's What is it Wednesday post 

will also be posted on the Nature of Lutherlyn blog, 

 after it is posted on Facebook,

sometimes with additional bonus information. 

In addition to bringing you current editions of What is it Wednesday 

on the Nature of Lutherlyn blog, 

we will be reposting old editions,

creating a What is it Wednesday archive. 

This photo was posted as a What is it Wednesday on

April 15, 2020. 

And the answer is....

This is a northern spring salamander, found along the Chapel Rock trail near Shawnee Run last week. 

Spring salamanders are part of the family of lungless salamanders, which take in oxygen through their skin. Because of this, they require a habitat with cold, unpolluted water with a lot of oxygen. They love hanging out in and near springs, seeps, and flowing streams – which perfectly describes the area where this salamander was found. 

This salamander appeared to be injured – it was sitting in the middle of the sunny trail, had blood in its mouth, and you can just see in the photo a raw patch of skin on the back of its head. I suspect some critter – maybe a garter snake – tried to eat it and changed its mind. Like many amphibians, spring salamanders release toxic secretions from their skin that deter predators. It may be hard to tell because of how it is positioned in this picture, but this salamander was big enough to require two hands when I carried it in some leaves to a safer and shadier spot near the stream.

We don’t see spring salamanders often at Lutherlyn, maybe because they are mostly nocturnal, but we usually come across one or two a year. Based on its size and color this salamander was probably an “elder” - older spring salamanders have a darker color and fewer mottled markings than younger ones. They can live up to 18 years and spend 3-4 years as a juvenile in the water! I hope it survived whatever caused its injury that day.

Like and follow Camp Lutherlyn on Facebook, to see What is it Wednesday posts when they come out and have the opportunity to share your guesses in the comments!

What is it Wednesday: May 8, 2019

Can you identify what's in this photo?

Each Wednesday morning 

on Camp Lutherlyn's Facebook page

 the Lutherlyn Environmental Education Program posts a photo. 

Readers have all morning and afternoon 

to make their best guess about what the photo is. 

Around 6 pm LEEP provides the answer and a brief explanation.

Each week's What is it Wednesday post 

will also be posted on the Nature of Lutherlyn blog, 

 after it is posted on Facebook,

sometimes with additional bonus information. 

In addition to bringing you current editions of What is it Wednesday 

on the Nature of Lutherlyn blog, 

we will be reposting old editions,

creating a What is it Wednesday archive. 

This photo was posted as a What is it Wednesday on May 8, 2019. 

And the answer is....

These are the eggs of a red-back salamander. (We saw a variation of the redback salamander, called a “leadback,” in a recent What is it Wednesday post.)  

Redback salamanders lay their eggs in grooves in rotting logs, or sometimes under decaying leaves, like these ones, in late spring and early summer. The eggs are laid in a grape-like cluster, usually attached by a single thread to the leaves or log. The female salamander stays with the eggs and young salamanders, protecting them until they are large enough to head out on their own.

Redback salamanders are one of the most common salamanders we see at Lutherlyn, and looking for salamanders and other amphibians is one of our most popular nature activities at Camp Blast! Join us this Saturday May 11 for this fun FREE open house for EVERYONE with dozens of great Lutherlyn activities happening all day. Check out www.Lutherlyn.com/campblast to find out more! 

Like and follow Camp Lutherlyn on Facebook, to see What is it Wednesday posts when they come out and have the opportunity to share your guesses in the comments!

What is it Wednesday: April 17, 2019

Can you identify what's in this photo?

Each Wednesday morning 

on Camp Lutherlyn's Facebook page

 the Lutherlyn Environmental Education Program posts a photo. 

Readers have all morning and afternoon 

to make their best guess about what the photo is. 

Around 6 pm LEEP provides the answer and a brief explanation.

Each week's What is it Wednesday post 

will also be posted on the Nature of Lutherlyn blog, 

 after it is posted on Facebook,

sometimes with additional bonus information. 

In addition to bringing you current editions of What is it Wednesday 

on the Nature of Lutherlyn blog, 

we will be reposting old editions,

creating a What is it Wednesday archive. 

This photo was posted as a What is it Wednesday on

April 17, 2019. 

And the answer is....

These are both redback salamanders, but the one in the center of the photo is an unusual color variation known as a “leadback.” 

Redback salamanders typically look like the one in the bottom of the photo – dark and a little speckled on the sides and belly, with a brick-red stripe running the length of the back. Upon seeing a leadback, some people may think the red stripe hasn’t developed yet, but the stripe is either present from the beginning of a redback salamander’s life, or it is not present at all.

For more on how LEEP can help you learn about the splendid variety of nature, through school field trips, summer camp, Saturday safaris, special events, and more check out www.lutherlyn.com/ee. 

Like and follow Camp Lutherlyn on Facebook, to see What is it Wednesday posts when they come out and have the opportunity to share your guesses in the comments!