On Saturday March 25th, 27 volunteers gathered at Powell Butte Nature Park to embark on a wildlife journey! The group came together to document amphibian species at Powell Butte.
In May of 2016, ecoblitz volunteers documented the first ever Oregon Slender Salamander on Powell Butte. This exciting scientific find got local land managers and scientists wondering, is there a population of rare Oregon Slender Salamanders in our urban park?
To answer this question, our brave volunteers crawled on their hands and knees along Powell Butte, searching under rotting logs for these elusive species. After 4 hours, the group discovered 34 Ensatina Salamanders, 1 Northern Red Legged Frog, 1 Oregon Slender Salamander, 1 Garter Snake, and plenty of cool bugs! Wow! We now know that Powell Butte is home to a huge diversity of amphibian species. Thank you to our volunteers for their dedication to wildlife!