Feeling Groovy? King’s Student Research Featured at Susquehanna River Symposium

Wilkes-Barre, Pa.—King’s environmental students, May Fredericks, Emily Kane, and Kayla Osborne, working with Professors Tara and Brian Mangan, recently presented their research at the 19th Susquehanna River Symposium held Nov. 8, 2024, at Bucknell University in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania.  

The title of their research poster was, “Feeling Groovy? Salamander Use of Artificial Cover Objects in a Riparian Forest.” 

The work was initiated in Professor Tara Mangan’s wildlife techniques class this semester and, with the support of students in that class, experimented with the use of two types of artificial microhabitats by red-backed salamanders. Red-backed salamanders are common throughout the northeast, and this species of salamander occurs in two color phases (a red phase and dark phase) in their study area.  These microhabitats, termed artificial cover objects (ACOs), were 30-cm square plywood boards placed in six grids at three locations in a forest along the Susquehanna River.  Half the ACOs were smooth boards, while the other half had grooves cut in the surface of the board placed on the forest floor.  The point of the research was to see if these salamanders used one type more than the other.  Preliminary results suggest that grooved boards are used more often.  However, the results also suggest that the dark phase of the salamander uses grooved ACOs more than the red phase.  Their work is ongoing throughout this semester and will continue into the next.