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!
