Fourth grade students from Powell Elementary School testified Wednesday to the D.C. Council in support of a bill they helped launch last year that would make the red-backed salamander the official amphibian of D.C.
“In the pandemic it was boring, so we went herping in Rock Creek Park. ‘Herping’ is looking for reptiles and amphibians, then we found red-backed salamanders,” said Powell student, Max Girshick.
The tiny red-backed salamander is typically found in leaf litter or under logs in the city’s woodlands. They’re the most abundant vertebrae in eastern American forests.
“Salamanders help address one of D.C.’s worst problems — (like) mosquitoes. I think we can all agree that mosquitoes are terribly annoying and that we all hate mosquito bites. Guess what … salamanders eat mosquito larvae, so they help reduce the mosquito population,” testified Powell student Shula Toich.
It was Girshick’s Rock Creek Park outings that led to the idea of proposing the red-backed salamander as D.C.’s official amphibian.
D.C. Council Chairman Phil Mendelson questioned the students on why they chose to study the red-backed salamander and propose it as the city’s official amphibian when there are other small amphibians here that also eat mosquitoes, like the red-spotted newt.
“The red-backed salamander’s red stripes emulate the D.C. flag,” said Milo Evans Snyder. The students also told the council there are far more red-backed salamanders in D.C. than there are red-spotted newts.
“While this bill was introduced by me and my fellow colleagues, it was researched and written by the students of Powell Elementary. … I am proud of your dedication in what started as an idea and made into a reality and getting so many adults to pay attention along the way,” said Ward 4 Council member Janeese Lewis George.
The council is expected to have its first vote on the red-backed salamander bill as soon as October and could face a final vote by the end of the year.
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