Herp-Friendlier Spaces

Free-roaming cats are among the biggest killers of small wildlife. A national study estimated they kill 228 to 871 million reptiles and 86 to 320 million amphibians a year in the lower 48 US states.

Food web: Cats also hunt the mice, insects and small lizards that snakes and other predators rely on.

How:

1. Keep cats inside.
2. For outdoor time, use a catio or a cat run.

How sure are we? The national estimate has a wide range, and the same study found that unowned cats cause most of the bird and mammal deaths. It still recommends keeping pet cats in as a simple way to cut the toll.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

Wildlife rehabilitators regularly take in reptiles and amphibians hurt by pets. In the desert Southwest, a study of dog attacks on tortoises found serious injuries rose sharply closer to towns.

Take care: Keeping dogs close also helps keep them away from venomous snakes where those live.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

Frogs, snakes and other small animals that fall into a pool may not be able to climb back out, and can drown.

How:

1. Anchor a ramp to the pool steps or ladder rail, or use a floating ramp at the edge.
2. Put a grate, cover or ramp device in the skimmer basket.
3. When the pool is closed, use a cover that animals cannot slip under and get trapped beneath.

When: Whenever the pool is open, day and night.

Take care: Keep checking skimmers too. Follow normal pool safety for children.

How sure are we? No study has measured how many animals pool ramps save. Support comes from wildlife groups and from a survey showing that man-made water structures trap large numbers of amphibians and reptiles.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

Skimmers collect animals that fall into the pool, and frequent checks give trapped animals a chance to get out alive.

How:

1. Check skimmers twice a day, such as early morning and evening.
2. Look before you reach in.
3. If an animal is hurt, contact a licensed wildlife rehabilitator (Animal Help Now, ahnow.org, helps find one).

When: All pool season.

Take care: Where venomous snakes live, never reach into a skimmer by hand for a snake you cannot identify as harmless: take three steps back and walk away.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

Water pooled on a cover can look like a pond to frogs and toads, but anything that settles there has no future once the pool is opened.

How:

1. Use a cover pump or push broom to clear water after rain and snowmelt.
2. If eggs or tadpoles are already there, do not move them; ask your state or provincial wildlife agency or a local nature center what to do.

When: Late winter through spring, after rain and snowmelt.

How sure are we? The source says covers collect spring water that draws amphibians in; clearing that water is a common-sense step that has not been tested.

Helps: frogs and toads and salamanders.

Toads, salamanders, frogs, snakes and turtles fall into window wells and cannot get back out.

How:

1. Measure each well and fit a cover; close gaps between the cover, wall and rim.
2. For an open well, set a rough, untreated board at an angle from the floor of the well to the rim.
3. Look into wells regularly.

Take care: Covers on egress windows (windows meant as a fire exit) must still open easily; check your building code. Renters can lean a loose board in without permission but should ask before attaching covers.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, snakes and turtles.

Reptiles, amphibians and other small animals come to tanks to drink and can drown in smooth-sided ones, especially when the water is low.

Food web: Ramps also save the small mammals and birds that snakes and other predators eat.

How:

1. Build it from expanded metal, roughened fiberglass, roughened concrete, or rock and mortar.
2. Make it reach the tank bottom with no gap underneath.
3. Fit the side edges (wings) so the ramp touches the tank wall, where swimming animals will find it.
4. Fasten it firmly to the rim so livestock cannot knock it loose.
5. Add one at least every 30 ft (9 m) of tank edge; every 15 ft (4.5 m) is ideal.

Take care: If you paint a metal ramp, use nontoxic paint.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

Steep, smooth-walled structures work like pitfall traps: one survey of 205 such structures found 1,224 trapped amphibians and reptiles of 25 species.

How:

1. List every open-topped structure deeper than a small animal can climb out of.
2. Cover what can be covered.
3. For the rest, add a ramp that touches the bottom and slopes 45 degrees or less.

Take care: Lids on wells and cisterns must also be safe for children and meet local codes.

How sure are we? The large survey is from eastern Spain; no North American count was found, but the trap works the same way here.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

Lizards and other small animals get into open pipes and cannot get back out.

Food web: Capping pipes also saves the birds and small mammals that snakes and other predators eat.

How:

1. Walk fence lines and around outbuildings looking for open pipe tops.
2. Remove pipes that are no longer needed; that is the permanent fix.
3. Fit caps on hollow posts, or fill pipes with sand, gravel or concrete.

Take care: Do not remove survey or mining claim markers you do not own; contact the owner or the land agency instead.

How sure are we? Most records are of birds, but the sources also report dead lizards and other reptiles in open pipes. Best documented in the arid West.

Helps: lizards and snakes.

Snakes, turtles and frogs get caught in garden mesh and can die, and mesh made of plastic is the most dangerous kind for snakes.

How:

1. Check fruit bushes, garden beds, pond edges, fences and birdhouses for soft plastic netting, and throw it away.
2. Use stiff woven wire such as chicken wire, or cages around young plants instead.
3. If you must keep soft netting, keep it at least 18 in (45 cm) above the ground so small animals can pass under.
4. Check any netting that stays up every day.

Take care: If you find an animal caught in netting, contact a licensed wildlife rehabilitator (Animal Help Now, ahnow.org, helps find one) rather than cutting it free yourself, especially where venomous snakes live.

How sure are we? Sources agree that mesh with plastic in it is the most dangerous kind for snakes, and recommend stiff woven wire such as chicken wire instead.

Helps: snakes, lizards, frogs and toads and turtles.

Snakes crawl into fixed plastic mesh, catch on the joints and die; at one Wisconsin site 22 snakes were found trapped in erosion blankets at once.

How:

1. First choice: loose straw, wood mulch or a netless blanket.
2. If you need netting, read the label: natural fiber with movable, not welded, joints (often sold as 'leno weave').
3. Ask contractors to write wildlife-friendly erosion control into the job.

Take care: Some permits name a specific erosion product, so check that the wildlife-friendly choice still meets yours. For work next to a pond, stream or wetland, check with your state or provincial agency about permits first.

Helps: snakes, lizards, frogs and toads and turtles.

Silt fence protects streams during the work, but left standing it becomes a long barrier that blocks turtles and other animals moving through the area.

Take care: Leave the fence up until the soil is stabilized and any permit allows removal.

Helps: turtles, snakes, frogs and toads and salamanders.

Loose netting near the ground can tangle snakes and other animals that move through yards.

Take care: If you find an animal tangled in a net, contact a licensed wildlife rehabilitator (Animal Help Now, ahnow.org, helps find one).

How sure are we? Advice from a wildlife rescue group; no counts for reptiles or amphibians were found.

Helps: snakes, frogs and toads and turtles.

Frogs and toads will lay eggs in almost anything that holds water, and pouring it out too soon costs them the whole batch.

How:

1. Turn empty buckets, pails and tubs upside down, or stack them in a shed.
2. Before pouring out standing water, look for jelly-like eggs or tadpoles.
3. If you find eggs or tadpoles, hold off on emptying that container.

When: Most important during your local frog and toad breeding season.

Take care: Containers left full can also breed mosquitoes, which is one more reason to store them dry.

Helps: frogs and toads.

Skinks, toads and other small animals shelter under long-sitting objects and can be crushed when those objects are dragged.

Food web: It also spares the beetles, pill bugs and worms living underneath, which skinks and toads eat.

Take care: Lift toward yourself so the object stays between you and whatever is underneath, and never reach under it with bare hands. If you find a snake you cannot identify as harmless, take three steps back and walk away.

Helps: lizards, frogs and toads, salamanders and snakes.

On this site: Free course: Coexisting With Wild Snakes

Snakes, toads and other animals move into brush piles for shelter, so a pile that is burned can become a trap. When disturbed, toads may retreat deeper into a pile and become trapped.

Food web: Brush piles also shelter the insects, spiders and small mammals that snakes and toads eat.

How:

1. Leave settled piles where they are, away from the house foundation, doors, play areas and paths.
2. If you must burn, start a new fire in a clear spot on burn day.
3. Move the old pile onto it piece by piece, so anything sheltering inside has a chance to leave.

When: Once a pile has stood more than a few weeks, do not burn it as it stands.

Take care: Follow burn bans, permit rules and fire-safety rules; burning is not allowed everywhere, so check with your local fire authority first. Where venomous snakes live, move material with a pitchfork or rake, not your hands.

How sure are we? Taking a pile apart before burning is expert guidance from Midwest PARC and rehabilitator experience, not a tested method.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

Gassing a burrow harms the snakes and everything else sheltering inside, and it is an ecologically disastrous practice that some states have already banned.

Take care: Gassing wildlife habitat is illegal in some states.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

On this site: Free course: Coexisting With Wild Snakes

Reptiles and amphibians get tangled in plastic and other litter we leave behind.

Take care: Wear gloves, and do not reach into spots you cannot see.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

Discarded fishing line tangles turtles and other wildlife, and disposing of it properly is an easy way to prevent those deaths.

Take care: Wear gloves and watch for hooks. If you find an animal tangled in line, contact a licensed wildlife rehabilitator (Animal Help Now, ahnow.org, helps find one).

Helps: turtles and snakes.

Night lighting pulls insects out of the surrounding habitat and changes how amphibians grow: in one experiment, young toads from lit ponds were 15% smaller than toads from dark ones.

Food web: Lights draw moths, beetles and other night-flying insects away from the gardens, ponds and woods where toads, treefrogs and salamanders hunt.

How:

1. Ask of each light whether it is needed, and switch off or remove the ones that are not.
2. Put security and path lights on motion sensors or timers.
3. Use shielded (full-cutoff) fixtures so light falls only where needed, aimed away from ponds and woods.
4. Use the lowest brightness that works.
5. Choose amber bulbs for lights that stay on.

Take care: Keep enough light for safe steps and paths.

How sure are we? Effects on toad growth and behavior come from experiments; effects on whole populations are less well established.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders and lizards.

Toads do feed under lights, but lights drain insects from the wider habitat, and young toads kept under night light stayed active when they would normally hide. In Florida, lit walls are where invasive Cuban treefrogs gather to feed.

Food web: Lights pull night-flying insects out of the surrounding habitat and concentrate them where a few predators, like invasive Cuban treefrogs, wait.

How:

1. Remove solar or decorative lights placed to attract insects for toads.
2. Keep habitat corners dark at night.

Take care: Toads gathered at lights near doors and driveways are also more likely to be stepped on or run over.

How sure are we? Some guides note that toads feed on insects drawn to lawn and garden lights. No study shows such lights help toad populations, while night-lighting experiments show harm, so THC takes the cautious side.

Helps: frogs and toads.

Weed killer sprayed directly onto young frogs and toads killed most of them in experiments; spot treatment keeps spray off the animals sheltering in the plants.

Food web: Spot treatment leaves the surrounding plants, and the caterpillars and other insects they feed, in place for toads and lizards.

How:

1. Pull or dig weeds when the soil is moist.
2. Cut woody invasive plants and paint the stumps instead of spraying leaves.

Take care: Follow the product label exactly; in the US and Canada the label is the law.

How sure are we? Contested on real-world risk. One experiment found a glyphosate weed killer killed 68 to 86 percent of young frogs and toads sprayed directly, likely due to an added surfactant (soap-like ingredient); another study at about the highest level expected in temporary ponds found no effect on newts and dragonfly larvae. Formulations differ widely.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders and lizards.

In lab tests, chlorothalonil at about the level expected in the environment killed all tadpoles within a day, and atrazine reduced size at metamorphosis in 19 of 19 studies reviewed.

Food web: Protects tadpoles, which are themselves food for gartersnakes, water snakes and other predators.

How:

1. Check the active ingredient line on weed and disease control products.
2. Choose disease-resistant plant varieties.

Take care: Follow the product label exactly; in the US and Canada the label is the law.

How sure are we? Atrazine is contested: one review found consistent effects on amphibian growth and immune function but uncertain effects on reproduction and whole populations, and it notes that the four earlier reviews of atrazine were all funded by its maker. The chlorothalonil result comes from lab experiments; outdoor tank experiments also found heavy losses.

Helps: frogs and toads and salamanders.

Rodent poisons move up the food web. Studies in Australia and Los Angeles found rodent poison in many of the urban snakes and lizards tested.

Food web: Rodents are prey for many snakes, so poison in rodents becomes poison in snakes.

How:

1. Remove existing bait stations.
2. Seal the gaps rodents use to get in (see the rodent-proofing action).
3. If trapping, put snap traps inside locked boxes and check them daily.

Take care: Keep traps where children and pets cannot reach them. Renters and HOA residents may need to ask the landlord or pest contractor.

How sure are we? Poison exposure in snakes and lizards is well documented; how often it sickens or kills them is less studied than in hawks and owls.

Helps: snakes and lizards.

Keeping rodents out removes the reason for poisons and glue traps that kill snakes, and sealed buildings keep snakes out of the places they get trapped or killed.

Food web: Leaves rodents outdoors, where snakes and other predators eat them, without poisoning that food chain.

How:

1. Walk the foundation and find where rodents are getting in.
2. Seal gaps of 1/2 inch (13 mm) or more with metal mesh or concrete.
3. Move birdseed, pet food and feed into lidded metal bins.

When: Fall, before rodents move indoors.

Helps: snakes.

On this site: Free course: Coexisting With Wild Snakes

Glue traps catch whatever crosses them. Snakes often get stuck going after the insects and rodents on the board, and small birds and bats are caught too.

How:

1. Remove glue boards from garages, sheds, crawl spaces, porches and gardens.
2. Find and seal the gaps pests are using instead.
3. If an animal is stuck, keep pets and children away and call a licensed wildlife rehabilitator.

Take care: If the stuck animal is a snake you cannot identify as harmless, take three steps back and walk away while you wait for help.

Helps: snakes, lizards and frogs and toads.

On this site: Free course: Coexisting With Wild Snakes

Even small amounts of chlorine can harm or kill aquatic life, and creeks, ditches and ponds are where frogs and salamanders breed.

Food web: Also protects the aquatic insects that tadpoles, salamander larvae and adult frogs eat.

Take care: Rules on where pool water may be drained vary; check with your city or county.

How sure are we? The guidance is based on toxicity to aquatic life in general, not on amphibian-specific studies.

Helps: frogs and toads and salamanders.

Salt runoff can travel nearly 200 m (about 650 feet) into wetlands and pools, where it may reduce survival and breeding of pool-breeding amphibians.

How:

1. Shovel early, before snow is packed down.
2. Spread a thin layer, not a heavy coat.
3. Sweep up leftover salt once the ice melts.

When: Winter.

Where this applies: Cold-winter areas

Take care: Keep walkways safe; sand or grit adds traction where salt is not working.

How sure are we? Sensitivity varies by species: one study found green frog eggs and tadpoles fairly tolerant of field salt levels, while vernal pool researchers suspect salt in declines of pool-breeding amphibians.

Helps: frogs and toads and salamanders.

Wood preservatives can leach into water, and treatment solutions harm fish at very low concentrations; frogs, salamanders and turtles share that water.

Take care: Building in or over public waters or wetlands may need a permit; check with your state or provincial agency first.

How sure are we? The toxicity evidence comes from fish; no amphibian- or reptile-specific studies were found.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders and turtles.

Mowers injure and kill box turtles, snakes and other reptiles hiding in grass. A walk-through, a higher blade and a slower pass all give animals a chance to get out of the way.

How:

1. Walk the area slowly before you start; tall grass, edges and damp spots are where animals hide.
2. If you see an animal, let it leave on its own or mow somewhere else for now. Do not pick it up.
3. Raise the deck to its highest setting, at least for areas that can stay a little longer.
4. Mow in a low gear or at a slow walking pace.
5. Look before you string-trim along fences, walls and pond edges.

When: Matters most in the warm months, when animals are active

Take care: In venomous snake country, wear closed shoes and watch where you step; for any snake you cannot identify as harmless, take three steps back and walk away. For an injured animal, contact a licensed wildlife rehabilitator (ahnow.org helps you find one).

How sure are we? Advice on time of day disagrees: a UK wildlife trust says to mow on cold days, a US botanic garden says midday on dry days, and Midwest field guidance says the hottest part of hot, sunny days. None of this is well tested, so walking first and going slowly matter more than the hour.

Helps: turtles, snakes, frogs and toads and lizards.

Turtles looking for nest sites are drawn to bare, freshly disturbed ground, where equipment can crush them.

When: Late spring and summer nesting season

Take care: Work near wetlands or streams may need a permit; check with your state or provincial agency first.

Helps: turtles.

Tall curbs keep small frogs, salamanders and turtles trapped on the pavement and steer them into storm drains, often fatally.

How:

1. Find stretches where curbs run between woods and wetlands.
2. Ask the road owner or HOA about sloped curbs or no curb, especially beside drains.
3. For new projects, ask designers for swales with gentle sides (flatter than 1:4) instead of curb-and-catch-basin drainage.

Take care: Curb and drainage changes must meet local stormwater codes and are the road owner's decision.

How sure are we? Recommended by habitat guidelines and adopted by some towns, but we found no published study measuring how much it helps.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, turtles and snakes.

Drains beside breeding ponds act as pitfall traps; animals that fall in starve or are washed into the sewer.

How:

1. Note drains near ponds and ditches where animals are found.
2. Report them to the drain owner and ask about a monitored ladder trial.
3. Never open a storm drain or work in a road yourself.

When: Before the spring breeding migration

Where this applies: Tried mainly in the UK; North American storm drains differ, so treat it as a trial

Take care: Storm drains belong to the town or property owner; only they can open them, with traffic safety in place.

How sure are we? A small Scottish trial suggests ladders help trapped amphibians climb out. We found no North American trials.

Helps: frogs and toads and salamanders.

Rocks warm in the sun for basking, and the gaps inside and the plants beside them give lizards, snakes and turtles a quick escape from predators.

Food web: Rock crevices and the plants beside them shelter insects and spiders that lizards and small snakes eat.

How:

1. Pick a spot that gets sun for much of the day, ideally a south-facing slope or low mound, well away from the strip next to the house.
2. Set the largest stones first so pockets and caves form; short lengths of PVC pipe can be built in as tunnels.
3. Leave or plant dense, low vegetation right up to one edge so animals can bask and then slip into cover.

Take care: Build it stable so rocks cannot shift onto animals or children. Buy or reuse rock rather than taking it from streams, outcrops or natural areas, which destroys existing habitat.

Helps: frogs and toads, lizards, snakes and turtles.

Toads, snakes, skinks and salamanders shelter under flat cover during the day, and a board shows you which species already use your space.

Food web: Slugs, worms and insects gather in the damp soil under the board, food for toads, salamanders and small snakes.

How:

1. Use untreated plywood 1/4 to 3/4 in (6 to 19 mm) thick; bigger than 2 by 2 ft (60 by 60 cm) is better.
2. Press it flat so it touches the soil all over.
3. To look, lift the edge toward you so the board stays between you and anything under it.
4. Do not touch the animals. Once any animal has moved clear, lower the board gently, exactly where it was.
5. Look only occasionally, not every day.

Take care: Use wood, not tin or other metal sheeting, which heats strongly in sun; never put metal near patios, paths or play areas. In venomous snake country, wear gloves and lift toward yourself. Tidy neighborhoods may object to boards in view.

How sure are we? Cover boards are a well-tested way to find reptiles and amphibians; whether they increase their numbers has not been shown.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards and snakes.

On this site: What Lives Near Me

Underneath stays cool and damp, giving frogs, toads, newts and salamanders a daytime hiding place, a hunting spot and somewhere to spend the winter.

Food web: Rotting wood feeds beetle larvae, woodlice, slugs and worms that toads, salamanders, skinks and small snakes eat.

How:

1. Use untreated, locally cut wood; do not bring logs or firewood from far away.
2. Lay the thickest logs first, partly sunk into the soil so they stay damp.
3. Criss-cross smaller branches on top and leave it alone to decay.
4. Nestle it into long grass or plantings so animals can come and go under cover.

When: Building by late summer gives animals a winter refuge; do not pull it apart in winter.

Take care: Where venomous snakes live, keep piles well away from doors, play areas and paths.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards and snakes.

Brush piles give box turtles, lizards and snakes a protected place to rest, find food, spend the winter or lay eggs.

Food web: Brush and the leaves caught in it shelter beetles, spiders and other invertebrates that toads, skinks and gartersnakes eat.

How:

1. Lay a base of logs about 6 in (15 cm) thick at right angles to each other.
2. Pile mixed branches loosely on top; brush piles are meant to be less orderly than log piles.
3. In a residential yard, Virginia extension suggests a pile about 6 to 8 ft (1.8 to 2.4 m) wide and 4 to 5 ft (1.2 to 1.5 m) tall. For rural land, extension guidance suggests piles 4 to 8 ft (1.2 to 2.4 m) tall and 10 to 20 ft (3 to 6 m) across.
4. Add leaves on top if you like, and leave it to settle.

When: Build any time; do not pull an existing pile apart in winter, when animals may be sheltering inside.

Take care: Check local fire codes; in wildfire country, follow defensible-space rules (the cleared zone around buildings) and keep piles away from them. Some HOAs restrict debris piles. Where venomous snakes live, keep piles away from doors, paths and play areas.

How sure are we? Size guidance comes from extension sources; Virginia's suggests a smaller pile for a residential yard.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

Crevices deep in a dry-stack wall hold the day's heat into the night, giving lizards and snakes places to bask and shelter; cooler, shaded walls suit toads.

Food web: Plants at the wall's foot and top feed insects that lizards and toads eat.

How:

1. Use no mortar so crevices stay open deep into the wall.
2. Set the bottom course directly on soil; skip concrete footings and fabric separators.
3. Face walls south for basking reptiles; north- or east-facing walls stay cooler and damper for toads.
4. Let plants grow along the base and on top.

Take care: Retaining walls above a certain height may need engineering or a permit; check local building rules. Build it stable so stones cannot fall.

How sure are we? The design guidance comes from a single Swiss source. It fits North American reptile habitat advice, but we found no North American study of garden walls.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards and snakes.

A mound packed with gaps (a hibernaculum, or winter shelter) gives reptiles and amphibians a dry place to shelter through the cold months.

Food web: Planting the top with native wildflowers or long grass feeds insects that reptiles and amphibians eat.

How:

1. Dig a hole about 20 in (50 cm) deep and 5 ft (1.5 m) across, in a spot with some sun but not full sun all day, where water never pools.
2. Loosely fill it with logs, branches, bricks and rocks, leaving plenty of gaps.
3. Set 2 or 3 short drainpipe sections at ground level as entrances.
4. Cover with soil to about 20 in (50 cm) high and plant native wildflowers or grasses on top.

When: Build in late summer or early fall, before animals look for winter sites.

Where this applies: Designed in the UK for mild winters. In cold-winter areas a pit this shallow will not stay frost-free deep down; see the below-frost-line snake den.

Take care: Never build where water collects: a flooded shelter can drown animals. Call your utility locate service before you dig.

How sure are we? This design comes from UK wildlife groups. We found no studies showing how often small garden hibernacula are actually used, and in cold-winter North America their value at this depth is unproven.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards and snakes.

Snakes must spend the winter below freezing depth; where natural deep crevices are scarce, an artificial den can give them that.

How:

1. Choose a well-drained, sunny, south-facing site sheltered from cold winds, far from houses and paths.
2. Dig below the frost line; Toronto Zoo guidance says at least 2 m (6.5 ft).
3. Place rubble in the bottom to form chambers, with concrete blocks or perforated drainpipe as passages reaching the bottom.
4. Make sure surface and ground water drain away; snakes need to be near the water table but not in it.
5. Be patient: it may take years for snakes to find it. Never move snakes into it.

When: Build in summer, outside the hibernation period.

Where this applies: Cold-winter areas: Canada, the northern US and high elevations.

Take care: This is heavy excavation: call your utility locate service, consider soil stability, and check with your state or provincial wildlife agency first, especially where protected or venomous species live. Not practical on most small lots.

How sure are we? This is practitioner guidance; how well artificial dens work has not been well documented, and depth and drainage have to be right.

Helps: snakes.

On this site: Coexisting With Wild Snakes

Rotting heaps make warmth and food. Toads and frogs shelter and overwinter in them, and some egg-laying snakes use warm heaps as nests.

Food web: Compost teems with slugs, snails and worms that toads, gartersnakes, brownsnakes and box turtles eat.

How:

1. Site it at the far edge of the yard, never beside the house: heaps draw rodents, and snakes follow them.
2. Start with a base of sticks and branches to leave entry gaps; plastic bins need a gap at the base.
3. Make it as big as practical and keep adding leaves, grass clippings and plant scraps.
4. Use your own garden material, and buy only compost that was heat-treated, to avoid spreading invasive jumping worms.
5. Turn it gently with a fork, watching for animals; see the summer egg-season action for timing.

Take care: Do not handle any animal you find. If you uncover reptile eggs, keep each one the same way up, cover them back in place, and do not bring them indoors; rules vary by state.

How sure are we? The egg-laying evidence is strongest for the UK grass snake, which depends on warm heaps. In North America, a species account lists compost and mulch heaps among ratsnake egg sites, but no study shows garden heaps matter for snake numbers.

Helps: frogs and toads and snakes.

On this site: Who Laid This?

Wood on soil holds moisture underneath, making a cool refuge for salamanders, and a shaded lean-to lets a box turtle cool off in summer heat.

Food web: The damp soil under wood holds worms and other invertebrates that salamanders eat.

How:

1. Salvage thick trunk rounds from tree work; use untreated wood only.
2. Lay them flat in a shady, damp spot, pressed into the soil.
3. For a lean-to, prop an untreated board on a stick beneath a shade tree where leaf litter collects.
4. If you peek underneath, lift gently and put the wood back exactly as it was.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, snakes and turtles.

Toads spend the day in cool, damp hollows they dig into soft soil; a floorless shelter near where they hunt gives them one more retreat.

How:

1. Use a clay pot with a small piece of the rim knocked out as a door, or lay it on its side half buried.
2. Leave it floorless so toads can dig into the soil.
3. Make the doorway wide enough for a full-grown toad, and smooth any sharp, chipped edges.
4. Place it in shade on moist soil at the yard's edge, not against the foundation.

When: Spring through fall.

How sure are we? Toad houses are widely recommended, but we found no study showing they increase toad numbers. Moist cover, leaf litter and no pesticides likely matter more; enjoy it as a way to meet your toads.

Helps: frogs and toads.

On this site: Toad ID

The little water left inside makes a humid, shaded daytime hideout for treefrogs, and a peek inside shows you which ones live nearby.

How:

1. Use PVC pipe 1.5 to 2 in (4 to 5 cm) across and about 2 ft (60 cm) long, with a pipe cap fitted snugly but not glued so you can clean it.
2. Drill a drain hole about 5 in (13 cm) above the capped end and a hanging hole near the top.
3. Hang it in a quiet, partly shaded spot among shrubs, on a tree or fence post rather than the house wall.
4. Pour in a little rainwater and check now and then that it has not dried out or clogged.
5. Peek in with a flashlight; do not pull frogs out.

When: Warm season.

Where this applies: Where native treefrogs live, mostly the East and South. Skip it in Florida and any Gulf Coast area where invasive Cuban treefrogs are established.

Take care: In Florida, pipes attract invasive Cuban treefrogs as well as natives, and local guidance uses them to find and remove the invader, so we suggest skipping tubes there.

How sure are we? Pipes are a standard way researchers find and count treefrogs. We found no study showing backyard tubes increase frog numbers, so treat them as a way to watch, not a fix.

Helps: frogs and toads.

On this site: Frog calls

Many lizards dig holes in loose soil to lay eggs or bury them in leaf litter and crevices; tidy, paved or heavily mulched yards leave them nowhere to nest.

Food web: Roughly 70 percent of native bees nest in the ground, and ground-nesting bees, beetles and ants are food for fence lizards, racerunners, skinks and toads.

How:

1. Pick sunny, well-drained spots away from paths and the house.
2. Pull back mulch, leave the soil bare, and avoid walking on it.
3. Keep leaf litter under nearby shrubs.
4. If you dig up eggs, keep each one the same way up, cover it back in the same spot, and do not take it indoors.

When: Leave nesting patches undisturbed in late spring and summer.

Helps: frogs and toads and lizards.

On this site: Who Laid This?

Reptiles and amphibians warm up and cool down by moving between sun and shade; layered planting gives them cover at every height so they can do it without crossing open ground.

Food web: Layered plantings, especially native ones, feed more insects than lawn or bare mulch, food for lizards, toads and small snakes.

How:

1. Add a low ground-cover layer under shrubs, then taller perennials or small trees behind.
2. Group shrubs so their branches touch.
3. Keep some open, sunny ground beside the planting, with a log or flat rock at the sunny edge for basking.
4. Keep shady, damp corners for amphibians.
5. Keep dense plantings out of the strip right next to the house.

When: Plant in your region's planting season, often spring or fall.

Take care: Choose plants native to your region; some nonnative ground covers, such as some ivies, become invasive.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

Froglets and toadlets need cover right at the water's edge, adults shelter there in winter, and wood in the water gives egg-laying sites, hiding places and basking spots.

Food web: Logs and stones shelter insects and other invertebrates that froglets eat, and submerged wood is colonized by aquatic insects.

How:

1. Pile logs and rocks on at least one side of the pond.
2. Let grasses and dense plants grow along part of the edge.
3. Lay a few untreated branches and logs partly in the water.

Take care: Keep these piles away from the house foundation, doors, play areas and paths; use only untreated wood.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

Pregnant rattlesnakes need warm, sunny rocks (gestation sites) to develop their young, and creating them in suitable openings is a state-recommended way to help.

How:

1. Talk to your state wildlife agency first.
2. Choose a remote opening, or one reached only by a gated road.
3. Place rocks where they get at least 5 to 7 hours of direct sun daily.
4. Stack them no more than two layers high.

When: Plan timing with your state wildlife agency

Where this applies: Timber rattlesnake range only (guidance from Pennsylvania); remote openings or areas behind gated roads

Take care: This deliberately creates habitat for a venomous snake, so it belongs only far from houses, trails, play areas and livestock. Keep the location private.

Helps: snakes.

Female turtles need open, sunny, loose ground to nest and often cross roads to reach it. In an Ontario study, turtles used artificial nesting mounds more than expected.

How:

1. Pick level ground with full southern exposure that gets sun from east to west most of the day.
2. Clear an area at least 20 ft (6 m) in each direction.
3. Spread fine sand, low in clay and gravel, over the soil.
4. Leave some low native plants and structure; it should not be a large bare area.

When: Build outside the late-spring and early-summer nesting season, and leave it undisturbed through hatching

Take care: Never dig up, move or bring in eggs; if a turtle nests, watch from a distance and let the nest be. Raccoons and skunks may find nests. Bringing sand near a wetland can need a permit, so check with your state or provincial wildlife agency first.

How sure are we? The same Ontario study reported higher hatching in its mounds, but those eggs had been moved and protected from predators, so it does not show what an unprotected patch will do.

Helps: turtles.

In experiments, toad tadpoles from lit ponds grew into smaller juveniles, and night lighting can make frogs call less often during breeding.

Food web: Dark water keeps midges, mayflies and other emerging insects around the pond, where frogs and salamanders eat them.

How:

1. Remove or switch off pond and underwater lights.
2. Shield or re-aim nearby house and path lights away from the water.

When: Especially during breeding season (spring and early summer in most areas).

Helps: frogs and toads and salamanders.

Natural predators can reduce or even completely control mosquitoes in wetlands, while repeated larvicides kill midges, an important food for amphibians.

Food web: Protects midges, mayflies, dragonflies and other aquatic insects that feed salamander larvae, tadpoles and adult frogs.

How:

1. Ask your mosquito control district for monitoring-based treatment only, not routine spraying.
2. Do not drain or fill wetlands to control mosquitoes.

Take care: Draining, filling or treating wetlands is regulated in the US and Canada; check with your state or provincial agency first.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders and turtles.

Agencies discourage pesticide use in and near wetlands because of harm to amphibians, and insecticides also reduce the invertebrates that amphibians and reptiles eat.

Food web: Protects tadpoles and the aquatic insects that feed salamanders, frogs, gartersnakes and turtles.

How:

1. Mark a no-spray zone around all water on your land.
2. Remove pond weeds by hand or rake instead of spraying.
3. If aquatic weed control is unavoidable, hire a licensed applicator using products labeled for water.

When: Especially spring and summer, when eggs and larvae are in the water.

Take care: Applying any pesticide to water often needs a permit or a licensed applicator; check with your state or provincial agency first.

How sure are we? The 100 yard distance is agency guidance, not a tested threshold. How harmful a given weed killer is in a real pond is debated (see the weed-control action), but agency and conservation guidance advises keeping sprays out of wetlands or to a minimum near them.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, turtles and snakes.

Nitrate from fertilizer runoff slows tadpole growth and development and reduces survival; one review of 46 studies found nitrate cut amphibian activity by up to 79% and growth by 29%.

Food web: Cleaner water also supports the aquatic insects that salamander larvae and frogs eat.

How:

1. Skip fertilizer on any area that slopes toward water.
2. Let native plants grow along the pond or ditch edge instead of turf.

Take care: Keep the planted strip at the water's edge; the strip next to the house foundation, doors, play areas and paths stays clear.

Helps: frogs and toads and salamanders.

Amphibians leaving the water and snakes hunting at the pond edge are exposed on short lawn; a covered route lets them come and go safely.

How:

1. Stop mowing a strip from the pond edge to the nearest hedge or planted bed.
2. Leave unmowed cover around at least part of the pond.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, snakes and turtles.

Toads and other small animals need a soak more than a swim, and a cool, shallow dish gives them somewhere to rehydrate on hot, dry days.

Food web: Insects drink from the stones too, and those insects feed toads and lizards.

How:

1. Pick a shady spot away from the house foundation, doorways, play areas and paths.
2. Set the dish so its rim sits near ground level and a toad can hop in and out.
3. Add a few stones as perches and exits.
4. Empty, rinse and refill every few days so it never turns stale.

When: Most useful in hot, dry spells.

Take care: Stale water breeds mosquitoes, so refresh it often.

How sure are we? No studies of reptiles and amphibians using water dishes were found; this is common-sense advice from extension services, agencies and THC.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

Even small ponds give amphibians somewhere to cool off and drink in summer, and a deep trough can hold tadpoles while they develop.

Food web: Water beetles, damselflies and other aquatic insects move in quickly and feed frogs, toads and small snakes.

How:

1. Choose a watertight container; farm and garden stores sell durable plastic troughs.
2. Sink it into the ground, or leave it standing and stack logs or stones outside as a ramp.
3. Pile gravel and stones inside so there is a slope to climb out.
4. Fill with rainwater and add one or two native water plants.
5. Do not add frogs, tadpoles, fish or water from another pond.

Take care: Place it away from the house foundation, doors and paths; a freestanding container is safer than a sunken one where small children play. Water is heavy, so check load limits with the building owner before putting one on a balcony.

Helps: frogs and toads and salamanders.

Frogs, toads and salamanders need standing water to breed, and a pond is the best way to bring them to a garden. A deeper zone shelters animals from summer heat and winter freezing.

Food web: A pond raises dragonflies, mayflies and other aquatic insects that feed frogs, salamanders, snakes and birds.

How:

1. Choose the spot first (see the siting action) and call your local utility-locate line before you dig.
2. Aim for at least 1 to 2 m (3 to 6.5 ft) across; any size helps, but amphibians prefer bigger.
3. Dig one zone about 60 cm (2 ft) deep, or 75 cm (30 in) or more where ponds may freeze solid.
4. Slope at least one side gently to dry land and add shallow shelves around the edge.
5. Use a flexible rubber liner over a soft underlay; many preformed shells are made for fish and lack gentle slopes for wildlife.

Take care: Ponds are a drowning risk for small children, so site it where you can supervise or fit a sturdy grid or fence, and check with your state or provincial wildlife agency before digging near a wetland or stream. Worried about mosquitoes? Tip out buckets and saucers that hold water; a fish-free pond with natural predators like dragonfly larvae is the aim.

How sure are we? Depth advice differs by climate: UK guidance says about 60 cm (2 ft), while North Carolina guidance says 30 in (75 cm) or more may be needed so the whole pond does not freeze.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, snakes and turtles.

On this site: Who's that tadpole?

Froglets and toadlets must be able to walk out of the water when they leave the tadpole stage; steep sides can trap and drown them. Warm shallows are where tadpoles feed and grow.

Food web: Shallow shelves are often the richest part of a pond for insects and other small invertebrates that tadpoles and frogs eat.

How:

1. Make at least one end slope gently up to dry land.
2. Shape shallow shelves 1 to 30 cm (0.5 to 12 in) deep around the margins.
3. Add pebbles, logs and planted areas along the edge as extra exits.

When: Easiest while you dig; an existing steep-sided pond can get a ramp of stones or logs any time.

How sure are we? Most of this detail comes from British guidance, but the gradual slope is also part of the Canadian Hinterland Who's Who pond plan.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders and turtles.

Many frogs lay eggs in warm, shallow water, but too much sun can overheat a small pond; a mix of sun and shade suits most places.

Food web: Sun-warmed shallows grow the algae and aquatic insects that tadpoles and frogs eat.

How:

1. Watch the site through a day before you dig.
2. Avoid spots directly under large trees.
3. Aim for a few hours of direct sun with some shade on part of the water; give more shade in hot climates.

When: At the planning stage, before digging.

How sure are we? Sources disagree on sun: UK guidance wants a lot of sun, a Canadian schoolyard plan suggests no more than about four hours of direct sun a day, and an Alabama guide prefers full or part shade. Local climate is the likely reason, so a few hours of sun with some shade is the practical middle.

Helps: frogs and toads and salamanders.

Tap water contains chlorine or chloramines, which are harmful to amphibians.

How:

1. Collect rain in a barrel or run a downspout to the pond.
2. If using tap water, use a pond water conditioner that handles both chlorine and chloramine.
3. Let treated tap water stand a few days before adding plants.
4. Keep a barrel of rainwater for top-ups in dry spells.

Helps: frogs and toads and salamanders.

Dense plants hide tadpoles and frogs from predators, and native plants keep out invaders that can change a pond for native amphibians and turtles.

Food web: Native water plants host native aquatic insects that feed tadpoles, frogs and gartersnakes.

How:

1. Ask a native plant nursery or your extension office for local pond plants.
2. Plant one end of the pond densely.
3. Use mesh pots so plants can be thinned later.
4. Check new plants for hitchhiking snails, eggs or weed fragments.

Take care: Many plant lists come from the UK and do not transfer: some name purple loosestrife, which is not a native choice here, so use only plants native to your region.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders and turtles.

Fish eat amphibian eggs and tadpoles, and urban pond researchers note that fish shut many amphibian species out.

Food web: A fish-free pond fills with dragonfly larvae, beetles, snails and tadpoles that feed salamander larvae, gartersnakes, watersnakes and turtles, and natural predators like these can help keep mosquitoes down.

How:

1. Leave new ponds fish-free.
2. Never release pet fish or aquarium animals outdoors.
3. If you have a fish pond, add a separate fish-free pond or bog area.

Take care: Some states and provinces regulate moving or releasing fish.

How sure are we? Nearly all amphibian pond guidance agrees, but a Canadian schoolyard plan says to add fish and some mosquito advice suggests mosquitofish; amphibian-focused sources say no fish.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, snakes and turtles.

The suction of pumps and filters can kill plankton (tiny drifting plants and animals) at the base of the pond food web that tadpoles and the animals that eat them depend on.

Food web: Plankton feeds tadpoles and aquatic insects, which in turn feed frogs, salamanders and snakes.

How sure are we? This is UK guidance (Froglife). Some North American wildlife-garden advice favors moving water to attract wildlife and discourage mosquitoes, but not for amphibian breeding ponds.

Helps: frogs and toads and salamanders.

Autumn is when the fewest animals are breeding or developing in the water, and leaving material on the bank lets trapped animals return.

Food web: Pond silt holds the eggs and larvae of aquatic insects that tadpoles, newts and frogs eat.

How:

1. Remove only a portion of plants or silt in a year.
2. Pile what you remove beside the pond for a few days.
3. Leave most of the bottom silt in place.

When: Autumn; avoid spring and early summer when eggs and tadpoles are in the water. Where frogs breed in winter, check local timing first.

How sure are we? This is UK guidance; in parts of the US South and Pacific coast some amphibians breed in winter, so the best window may differ.

Helps: frogs and toads and salamanders.

Shock waves from breaking ice can kill animals overwintering in the pond, ice shards can puncture the liner, and chemicals are toxic to them.

How:

1. Clear fallen snow from the ice.
2. Do not break the ice or pour hot water on it.
3. Keep de-icing salt away from where runoff drains into the pond.

When: Winter.

Where this applies: Areas where ponds freeze

How sure are we? This is UK guidance, but it applies equally to cold-winter areas of the US and Canada.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders and turtles.

Shallow, plant-filled water is where many amphibians breed and where young turtles and frogs hide and feed; in one Oregon study, frog populations held on better where emergent plants and streamside forest were more extensive.

Food web: Emergent and shoreline plants hold aquatic insects and snails that feed frogs, young turtles and gartersnakes.

Take care: Keep the strip next to the house, doors and paths mowed; use only native plants at the water's edge.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, turtles and snakes.

Permanently damp ground gives frogs, toads and salamanders a moist refuge and hunting ground, and widens the pond's edge habitat.

Food web: Wet soil and marsh plants support worms, slugs and insect larvae that toads and salamanders hunt.

How:

1. Dig 30 to 45 cm (12 to 18 in) deep beside the pond.
2. Line with a cheap pond liner and pierce it with a garden fork every meter (3 ft) or so.
3. Backfill with the dug soil mixed with compost.
4. Plant marsh plants native to your region.

Take care: Use only plants native to your area; some UK bog-garden lists suggest purple loosestrife, which is not a native choice here.

How sure are we? Guidance from conservation groups; no study of reptiles and amphibians using bog gardens was found.

Helps: frogs and toads and salamanders.

Rain gardens soak up runoff before it reaches streams and ponds where amphibians breed, and offer reptiles and amphibians a cool, damp spot after rain.

Food web: Native rain garden plants support insects that toads and lizards eat.

How:

1. Find where runoff already flows, away from the house foundation and paths.
2. Size it to drain in 24 to 48 hours, following a local rain garden guide.
3. Plant natives that tolerate both wet and dry spells.

Take care: A rain garden is not a breeding pond: eggs laid in water that drains in a day or two will dry out. Call your local utility-locate line before you dig.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards and snakes.

School ponds give local amphibians breeding water and give students a living lab right outside the door.

Food web: School ponds raise aquatic insects that feed amphibians and birds.

How:

1. Get written approval from the school or district and plan who tops it up in summer.
2. Pick a partly shaded spot with no more than about four hours of direct sun.
3. Dig at least 3 x 3.5 m (10 x 11.5 ft) and 50 cm (20 in) deep, with one gradual slope.
4. Line with flexible rubber and set native plants in pots at different depths; do not add fish.
5. Smaller version (Alabama Wildlife Federation): at least 10 to 15 sq ft (1 to 1.4 sq m), 6 to 12 in (15 to 30 cm) deep, with a bog garden alongside.

Take care: Supervision and child safety come first; many schools require a fence or a shallow design. Keep it away from building doors and main paths.

How sure are we? The Canadian plan includes a step to add fish, which conflicts with all other amphibian pond guidance, so this record leaves fish out. The small Alabama design may dry out or freeze solid outside warm climates.

Helps: frogs and toads and salamanders.

Introduced American bullfrogs eat and compete with native frogs and other small animals, and permanent, deep ponds favor them.

How:

1. Never buy, stock or move bullfrogs or any tadpoles.
2. If the pond can be lowered, let it drop in late summer so bullfrog tadpoles cannot overwinter.
3. Report suspected bullfrogs to your regional invasive species program.

When: Any draw-down in late summer, after native frogs and salamanders have left the water.

Where this applies: Western North America, where bullfrogs were introduced (British Columbia, the Pacific states and much of the interior West). In eastern and central North America bullfrogs are native and belong in ponds.

Take care: Native frogs are often mistaken for bullfrogs, and draining or poisoning ponds harms native animals, so get your state or provincial wildlife agency's advice before any control.

How sure are we? A review describes bullfrogs as harmful invaders that are hard to control and notes that draining ponds can reduce them but harms other species.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, snakes and turtles.

On this site: What lives near me

Stormwater ponds are often a neighborhood's only breeding water, but polluted ones can be traps: frogs lay eggs there as readily as in clean water, while tadpoles survive less well.

Food web: Planted margins support aquatic insects that feed froglets, turtles and watersnakes.

How:

1. Find out what drains to the pond: roads, parking lots, lawns.
2. Propose a no-mow native buffer around part of the shoreline.
3. Ask for gentle, planted banks in any regrading and oppose fish stocking.
4. Push for rain gardens, porous paving and similar fixes upstream, or a separate pond fed only by roof water.

When: Plan changes outside the main breeding season.

Take care: Stormwater ponds are engineered facilities with legal maintenance rules, so any change needs the owner's and often the municipality's approval.

How sure are we? The research base is small: a review of 25 studies found these ponds can be either good breeding sites or ecological traps depending on pollution, banks, plants and predators, and the egg-laying and tadpole survival finding comes from an Australian study.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, turtles and snakes.

Fish eat amphibian eggs, tadpoles and small frogs, so many frogs and salamanders can breed successfully only in water without fish.

Food web: Fishless pools hold large numbers of aquatic insects that fish would otherwise eat, food for salamander larvae and frogs.

Take care: Stocking fish is regulated by state and provincial agencies in many places.

Helps: frogs and toads and salamanders.

Seasonal drying keeps fish out, which is why many salamanders and frogs depend on these pools, and their larvae need the water to last long enough to finish developing.

Food web: Seasonal wetlands hold specialized aquatic insects that feed amphibians, turtles and snakes; draining them wipes those out.

Take care: Altering a wetland can require permits, so check with your state or provincial wildlife agency first.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, turtles and snakes.

Many turtles and frogs spend the winter in the mud at the bottom of ponds and wetlands, so changing water levels while they are there can harm them.

When: Avoid fall to spring; Ontario guidance near snake overwintering sites says September 15 to May 15.

Where this applies: Cold-winter areas especially

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, turtles and snakes.

A seasonal, fishless pool gives frogs and salamanders breeding water without fish, and nearby cover lets the young survive after they leave the water.

Food web: Seasonal pools produce swarms of aquatic insects that feed amphibians, snakes and birds.

How:

1. Size: about 20 x 30 ft (6 x 9 m) up to 1/4 acre (0.1 ha), per NC State Extension.
2. Depth: about 1.5 to 2.5 ft (45 to 75 cm), aiming for 90 or more days of water in winter and spring.
3. Slopes: about 10 to 1 (1 ft of rise per 10 ft across), which looks natural.
4. Place it next to the woods or cover amphibians use after breeding.
5. Look for a spot where a wetland used to be, such as where ditches or drain tile dried it out.

When: Finish building before winter so it fills for spring breeding.

Take care: Get any permits first and check with your state or provincial wildlife agency so rare species habitat is not harmed. Do not dig in an existing wetland, do not add fish, and call your utility-locate line before digging.

How sure are we? This guidance comes from extension and Forest Service practitioners rather than outcome studies. Depth advice varies: NC State suggests 1.5 to 2.5 ft, while the Forest Service guide notes pools 20 in (50 cm) deep or less in sun, or 15 in (38 cm) or less in shade, usually dry by fall.

Helps: frogs and toads and salamanders.

Restoring the original water regime brings back breeding habitat where the wetland soils already are.

Food web: Restored wetlands rebuild the aquatic insect life that feeds frogs, salamanders, turtles and snakes.

How:

1. Look for clues: ditches and drain tile often mean a larger wetland once stood there.
2. Get a professional design that blocks or breaks all buried drain lines.
3. Ask NRCS about Wetland Reserve Easements for land degraded by farming.

When: Build when soils are dry and finish before winter so the basin fills for spring.

Take care: Permits may be required, so check with your state or provincial wildlife agency first. Blocking tile can flood neighbors' land if it carries their drainage.

How sure are we? Practitioner and agency guidance; no peer-reviewed study of this technique was in the sources.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, turtles and snakes.

Turtles need to bask to warm up, and secure basking spots away from people help them do it safely.

How:

1. Use untreated logs at least 3 m (10 ft) long, or lash two or three together so they do not roll.
2. Cut the ends on a slant so turtles can climb on.
3. Anchor with rope or heavy wire to a cement block.
4. Platform option: about 1.2 x 1.2 m (4 x 4 ft), anchored away from shore.
5. Replace logs when they waterlog and sink.

Take care: Placing boulders or structures in rivers may need a permit, so check with your conservation authority or state or provincial agency first; keep them away from boat traffic and swimming areas.

How sure are we? Agency practitioner guidance from Ontario; no outcome study was in the sources.

Helps: turtles and snakes.

Pond-breeding salamanders, frogs and turtles spend most of the year in the uplands around water, often hundreds of feet away, feeding, nesting and overwintering.

Food web: Unmowed buffers and forest leaf litter hold the insects and other invertebrates that pool-breeding salamanders and frogs eat.

How:

1. Along wetlands and streams: at least 50 ft (15 m) of natural vegetation; 500 ft (150 m) or more of upland habitat if possible.
2. Around a vernal pool: no clearing or building within 100 ft (30 m); keep canopy and understory.
3. From 100 to 750 ft (30 to 230 m): keep at least 75% in connected forest with undisturbed ground cover.

How sure are we? The 50 ft figure is a minimum; studies of amphibian movement point to hundreds of feet of upland. The vernal pool figures come from northeastern forest guidance.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

Beaver dams create ponds that hold water longer, giving slow-developing frogs and salamanders time to finish growing.

Food web: Beaver wetlands support abundant aquatic insects that feed frogs and salamanders.

Where this applies: Where beavers live

Take care: Beaver flooding can damage trees, roads and culverts; local rules govern beaver removal and dam changes, so check with your state or provincial wildlife agency.

How sure are we? Based on one field study in Washington State, which found amphibian species richness 2.7 times higher at dammed sites; fast-developing species showed no gain, and toads may lose out.

Helps: frogs and toads and salamanders.

Removing introduced fish may let native frogs return to waters where fish had pushed them out.

Food web: Fish removal also lets aquatic insect life recover, feeding frogs and salamanders again.

Take care: Fish removal methods and fish ownership are regulated; never use chemicals without agency approval.

How sure are we? The best evidence comes from Sierra Nevada mountain lakes; how well it applies to farm ponds is untested in the sources.

Helps: frogs and toads and salamanders.

Stream salamanders and hellbenders need clean water, and amphibians are especially sensitive to changes in water quality.

Food web: Clean, silt-free streams keep the aquatic insects that stream salamanders eat.

Take care: Removing streamside plants, even invasive ones, can destabilize banks, so plan replanting, and check permit rules before work in or near a stream.

How sure are we? Regional guidelines note that standard streamside rules are sometimes enough to protect amphibians and reptiles and sometimes need strengthening.

Helps: salamanders, frogs and toads and turtles.

Livestock trample shorelines, strip cover and foul the water; in a Tennessee study, fencing cattle out of wetlands helped some frogs.

How:

1. Fence ponds, wetlands and stream banks.
2. Provide water elsewhere, such as a trough or other supply.
3. Ask NRCS or Partners for Fish and Wildlife about cost-share for fencing and water.

How sure are we? Effects vary by species: the Tennessee study found fencing helped true frogs, while toads might benefit from controlled grazing, and some bog turtle fens are grazed lightly on purpose (see the grazing action).

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders and turtles.

Zappers kill large numbers of harmless and helpful insects that toads, treefrogs and lizards eat, while catching very few biting insects.

Food web: In one Delaware study only 31 of 13,789 insects killed were biting flies; nearly all the rest were harmless or beneficial insects, food for toads, treefrogs, geckos and anoles.

How sure are we? The key study is from 1996; nothing in the sources gathered contradicts it.

Helps: frogs and toads and lizards.

Insects and other small invertebrates are the main food of most frogs, toads, salamanders, lizards and small snakes, and pesticides kill that food or make it unwholesome.

Food web: Spares the beetles, caterpillars, spiders and other invertebrates eaten by toads, salamanders, lizards, small snakes and box turtles.

How:

1. Skip calendar-based insecticide treatments.
2. Ask your lawn service for its product list and remove scheduled insecticide visits.
3. Treat only a diagnosed problem, only where it is (see the action on fixing the cause first).

Take care: Renters and HOA residents may not control a spray contract; ask whether your unit, yard or patio can be skipped.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

Imidacloprid, a common neonicotinoid, can stay active in a plant for a year or more, so the plant itself becomes toxic to the insects that feed on it, and neonicotinoids turn up year round in urban streams.

Food web: Keeps caterpillars, beetles and aquatic insects free of a long-lasting insecticide, protecting food for toads, treefrogs, lizards and salamander larvae.

How:

1. Before buying, ask garden center staff about the plants' treatment history.
2. Check the active ingredients on any insecticide you already own.

How sure are we? In a national stream survey (2011 to 2014, released in 2015), levels did not exceed federal aquatic-life limits; the concern is long persistence and effects on insects.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders and lizards.

Insecticides can slow amphibian growth and delay metamorphosis (the change from tadpole to adult), and they remove the insects herps eat; fixing the cause avoids both.

Food web: Leaves the general insect community, which feeds every insect-eating frog, toad, salamander and lizard, untouched.

How:

1. Get the pest identified; your county or provincial extension office can often help.
2. Remove what draws it in or seal the way it gets in.
3. If treatment is still needed, spot-treat only the affected plant or area.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards and snakes.

Barrier sprays stay toxic on plants for a long time; in one study every yard sprayed by a private company had insecticide levels high enough to kill bees or other beneficial insects, and 75% of samples from neighboring yards were contaminated too.

Food web: Protects the moths, beetles, dragonflies and aquatic insects that toads, treefrogs, anoles and skinks eat.

How:

1. Cancel or decline any barrier or perimeter spray contract.
2. Point a box or pedestal fan across your seating area; mosquitoes are weak fliers.
3. Empty small containers of standing water weekly (see that action).

When: Warm months, before the first scheduled spray.

Take care: If mosquito-borne disease is active locally, follow your public health department or mosquito control district.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders and lizards.

Container mosquitoes need only about 1 inch (2.5 cm) of water and 8 to 10 days to develop, so weekly emptying controls them without sprays that kill the insects herps eat.

Food web: Removes the reason for sprays that kill the insects toads, treefrogs and lizards eat; ponds with healthy predator communities can hold mosquitoes down on their own.

How:

1. Walk the yard or balcony weekly and tip out anything holding water.
2. Check for hidden flower pots and trash cans that have filled with rain.
3. Clear gutters and corrugated drain pipes.

When: Warm months.

Take care: If a container holds frog eggs or tadpoles, leave that container where it is rather than dumping or moving them.

Helps: frogs and toads and lizards.

Bti is far more selective than chemical insecticides: amphibians in lab tests were relatively tolerant of Bti but very sensitive to a common chemical insecticide.

Food web: Bti also kills non-biting midge larvae, a key food for tadpoles, newts, salamander larvae and pond insects, so using it sparingly protects that food.

How:

1. Empty or refresh containers and dishes first.
2. Use a Bti-only product at the label rate, never more.
3. Do not treat natural ponds, vernal pools (seasonal woodland pools) or wetlands yourself; leave that to your mosquito control district.
4. Never use other insecticides in or near water.

When: Warm months, only when mosquito larvae are present.

Take care: Treating natural wetlands may require a permit. Follow the product label exactly; in the US and Canada the label is the law.

How sure are we? Contested. In a 2025 lab study, tadpoles of three frog species were relatively tolerant of a granular Bti product and very sensitive to a common chemical insecticide; high doses of the Bti product could kill tadpoles, but its maximum label rate was below lethal levels. Bti also cuts midge larvae that pond animals eat, and a 2021 review calls the evidence variable.

Helps: frogs and toads and salamanders.

Spray drift reaches neighboring yards, and a drift barrier of non-flowering shrubs can help protect nearby gardens and wildlife.

Food web: Shields the insects in your habitat areas that toads, lizards and treefrogs eat.

How:

1. Plant along the property line, away from your house foundation, doors, play areas and paths.
2. Choose dense, non-flowering native shrubs or conifers so the hedge does not draw pollinators into the drift.

When: Plant in fall or spring.

How sure are we? A Xerces Society recommendation that follows from a 2025 drift study; how much drift a hedge catches has not been measured.

Helps: frogs and toads and lizards.

Metaldehyde is very toxic to dogs and other animals that eat it, and slug baits of any kind remove a main food of toads, brownsnakes and box turtles.

Food web: Keeps slugs and snails, a main food of toads, brownsnakes and box turtles, available and unpoisoned.

How:

1. Read slug bait labels for metaldehyde.
2. Protect seedlings by planting out sturdy transplants grown in pots instead of tiny seedlings.

Take care: Iron phosphate baits sold as "pet safe" can still be toxic, especially products with added chelating agents (such as ferric sodium EDTA). Store all bait out of reach of pets.

How sure are we? No source here measured slug bait poisoning in reptiles or amphibians; the concern comes from their slug-heavy diets, known harm to dogs and other animals that eat bait, and UK guidance that even organic pellets harm garden wildlife.

Helps: frogs and toads, snakes and turtles.

Slugs and snails are a main food of brownsnakes, made up about half the diet of box turtles in one Kentucky study, and toads eat them too.

Food web: Leaves slugs and snails for DeKay's brownsnakes, box turtles and toads.

How:

1. Start seedlings indoors and plant them out when larger.
2. Grow less slug-attractive plants in damp spots.

When: Mild, damp evenings, when slugs come out to feed.

Take care: Many garden slugs in North America are nonnative; this is about not poisoning the food web, not about adding slugs.

How sure are we? The growing-practice advice comes from UK horticultural guidance; the principles transfer to North American gardens.

Helps: frogs and toads, snakes and turtles.

Fire ants kill turtle hatchlings and other herps, but whole-yard treatments also wipe out native ants, which fire ants already push out.

Food web: Protects native ants and other ground insects, food for small lizards and toads.

How:

1. Note which mounds are true problems (near doors, paths and play areas).
2. Treat only those mounds, following the label.
3. Keep all treatment away from water.

Where this applies: Southern US, where red imported fire ants are established

Take care: Fire ants sting; protect your hands and feet. Follow the product label exactly; in the US and Canada the label is the law.

How sure are we? Harm to turtle hatchlings is well documented, and fire ants have been implicated in declines of some lizards and snakes, but little research has looked at their effects on amphibians.

Helps: turtles, lizards, snakes and frogs and toads.

Around the Great Lakes there is no evidence of earthworms before European settlement, and nonnative worms eat the leaf litter that woodland salamanders and their tiny prey live in.

Food web: Protecting the leaf layer keeps the mites, springtails and insects that woodland salamanders and toads eat.

How:

1. Bag and trash unused bait worms.
2. Skip worm purchases for gardens and vermicomposting outdoors.

Where this applies: Most important in northern areas such as the Great Lakes region, and wherever jumping worms are spreading

How sure are we? Effects are mixed: invasive jumping worms were linked to fewer young red-backed salamanders, and earthworms reduce leaf litter and its tiny animals, but in one study worm burrows also helped salamanders survive winter.

Helps: salamanders and frogs and toads.

Jumping worms spread in mulch, compost, topsoil and potted plants, and they strip the leaf litter where many small animals live and feed.

Food web: Protects leaf-litter invertebrates eaten by salamanders, toads, brownsnakes and box turtles.

How:

1. Ask suppliers whether compost and mulch were heat-treated.
2. Check pot soil before buying or swapping plants.
3. If you find jumping worms, bag them and put them in the trash.

Where this applies: Most important in the eastern and midwestern US and other areas where jumping worms are spreading

Helps: salamanders, frogs and toads, snakes and turtles.

Wild-collected lady beetles are not an effective way to control local pests, and they can carry parasites to native beetles in the insect community herps feed on.

Food web: Protects native insect populations that frogs, toads and lizards eat.

Helps: frogs and toads and lizards.

Leaf litter keeps soil cool and moist, giving toads, salamanders and box turtles shelter and a place to hunt and hibernate.

Food web: Leaf litter is home to spiders, snails, worms, beetles and millipedes, food for salamanders, toads, small snakes and box turtles.

How:

1. Rake or gently blow leaves off lawn and paths; keep them whole, not shredded.
2. Spread them 3 to 4 in (8 to 10 cm) deep in beds and under trees, keeping a few inches clear around trunks.
3. Keep thick layers off the lawn, which they can smother, and out of storm drains.
4. Keep beds right next to the house thinly covered, and put the deep layers farther out.

When: Fall; leave in place through winter and into spring.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

Woodland salamanders decline as leaf litter thins, because the litter holds their prey and keeps them moist.

Food web: Leaf litter supports the termites, ants and other small invertebrates that red-backed and other woodland salamanders eat.

How:

1. Mark wooded areas as no-rake zones.
2. Keep leaf blowers out of the woods.

Where this applies: Wooded areas.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, snakes and turtles.

Rotting wood shelters salamanders, snakes, lizards and box turtles, and snags give lizards shade, hiding places and perches to ambush insects.

Food web: Rotting wood grows termites, beetle larvae, ants and spiders eaten by five-lined skinks, fence lizards, salamanders and toads.

How:

1. Have an arborist check any dead tree near buildings, paths, play areas or power lines; shortening it is often enough.
2. Leave stumps to rot rather than grinding them.
3. Leave fallen logs where they lie, or roll them to a quiet corner away from the house.
4. In a woodlot you harvest, leave stumps, logs and dead standing trees after cutting.

Take care: A snag that could fall on people, buildings, vehicles or power lines must be made safe. In wildfire country, follow local defensible-space rules (the cleared zone around buildings).

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

Native wildlife does best among native plants, which give reptiles and amphibians shelter and shade and grow the insects they eat.

Food web: Native plants draw far more native insects than nonnative ornamentals, the food base for toads, lizards, treefrogs and small snakes.

How:

1. Start with one bed or the lawn edge.
2. Use a regional native plant society list or a native plant nursery.
3. Ask whether plants were treated with systemic insecticides, and avoid those.
4. Skip anything on your state or provincial invasive plant list.

When: Plant in your region's planting season.

Take care: Check HOA landscaping rules. Keep the strip right next to the house low and open, and put denser plantings farther out.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

Caterpillars and other plant-eating insects are a big share of what lizards, toads, treefrogs and box turtles eat, and most depend on native host plants.

Food web: A native oak can host more than 530 kinds of moth and butterfly caterpillars, food for treefrogs, toads, lizards and box turtles.

How:

1. Check a local native plant list for which oaks, willows, cherries or birches are native where you live.
2. If you have room for only one, start with an oak.
3. Ask the nursery whether stock was treated with neonicotinoid (systemic) insecticides, and avoid it.

When: Plant in fall or early spring, as your local nursery advises.

Take care: Large trees need room away from foundations and power lines; check HOA rules.

How sure are we? The keystone-plant finding is strong for caterpillars across the US; the step from more caterpillars to more reptiles and amphibians is inferred from their diets, not measured.

Helps: frogs and toads, lizards and turtles.

A balcony rarely hosts reptiles or amphibians, but these flowers are top hosts for caterpillars and other insects, the base of the food web that lizards, toads and treefrogs depend on.

Food web: Goldenrods, asters and sunflowers feed caterpillars and draw insects that anoles, fence lizards, skinks, toads and treefrogs eat.

How:

1. Choose 2 or 3 species native to your area; clump-forming ones suit tight spaces.
2. In containers, use well-drained soil and water more often than plants in the ground.
3. Group pots together so they shade each other.
4. Check the weight limit before loading a balcony or roof with big planters.

When: Plant in spring or fall.

Where this applies: Choose species native to your region.

Take care: Some goldenrods and sunflowers spread aggressively in small beds.

How sure are we? Balcony container plantings have not been studied for wildlife benefit; treat them as a small, low-risk contribution to the neighborhood food web.

Helps: frogs and toads and lizards.

Yards above that level grew enough insects to sustain breeding insect-eating birds; the same insect supply feeds reptiles and amphibians that hunt insects.

Food web: More native plant mass means more caterpillars and other insects for toads, treefrogs, lizards and box turtles.

How:

1. List your plants and mark which are native.
2. Replace the largest nonnative shrubs and trees first.
3. Remove invasives by cutting or digging rather than broadcast herbicide spraying.

How sure are we? The 70 percent figure comes from a study of chickadees in Washington, DC area yards; it is a bird threshold, not one tested on reptiles or amphibians.

Helps: frogs and toads, lizards, snakes and turtles.

An invasive ornamental may host almost no caterpillar species while native plants host many, so each swap adds insect prey for reptiles and amphibians.

Food web: Native shrubs grow caterpillars and other insects eaten by lizards, toads, treefrogs and box turtles.

How:

1. Check your state or provincial invasive plant list.
2. Cut out the invasive shrub and dig or cut the stump; avoid spraying herbicide near ponds.
3. Plant a native shrub in the same spot.

When: Remove before the invasive plant sets seed.

Where this applies: Invasive status varies by state and province.

Helps: frogs and toads, lizards and turtles.

Meadow plants hold insect prey and give reptiles and amphibians cover; adding prairie strips to Iowa farm fields greatly raised insect variety and pollinator numbers.

Food web: Native meadow plants support caterpillars, grasshoppers, beetles and spiders eaten by toads, fence lizards, racerunners, gartersnakes and box turtles.

How:

1. Remove turf by smothering it under cardboard or digging, rather than with broadcast herbicide.
2. Seed or plant regional native grasses and wildflowers, including goldenrods and asters.
3. Mow a border or path so neighbors can see it is planned.

When: Prepare the ground in late summer or fall; seed when regional guidance says.

Take care: Check HOA rules and municipal weed ordinances.

How sure are we? The evidence comes from prairie strips in Iowa farm fields; benefits at yard scale, and to reptiles and amphibians, are extrapolated.

Helps: frogs and toads, lizards, snakes and turtles.

Hollow and pith-filled stems shelter overwintering and nesting insects that become food for reptiles and amphibians the next season.

Food web: Protects stem-nesting bees, wasps and other insects that lizards, treefrogs and toads eat.

How:

1. Leave stalks standing through winter, in beds or in balcony pots.
2. In spring, cut them to 8 to 24 in (20 to 60 cm), roughly knee high.
3. Leave the stubble; new growth hides it by summer.

When: Leave from fall to spring; cut once spring has warmed.

Helps: frogs and toads and lizards.

Thick bark mulch blocks ground-nesting insects, leaving less prey near the surface where reptiles and amphibians feed.

Food web: Lets ground-nesting insects and soil invertebrates reach the surface where toads, skinks, brownsnakes and salamanders feed.

How:

1. Pull up landscape fabric and plastic in beds.
2. Top-dress with compost or your own leaves instead of bark.

When: Spring or fall.

Take care: Mulch, compost and topsoil sold at garden centers can carry invasive jumping worms; your own leaves and compost avoid that.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards and snakes.

In Iowa trials, prairie strips raised insect variety and pollinator numbers and slowed runoff and soil loss.

Food web: Strips raised insect variety 2.6-fold and pollinator numbers 3.5-fold, food for toads, gartersnakes, lizards and box turtles.

How:

1. Place strips on the contour and where runoff collects at the foot of slopes.
2. Use a diverse native seed mix.
3. Ask your local NRCS office about cost-share.

Where this applies: Row-crop farmland; studies are from Iowa

Take care: If the strips must be mowed, mow high and in the dormant season. Keep them away from the farmyard and house.

How sure are we? Reptiles and amphibians were not measured; the benefit to them comes through more insects and slower runoff.

Helps: frogs and toads, snakes, lizards and turtles.

Neonicotinoid insecticides wash into farm streams in pulses at planting time, and insecticide exposure impairs amphibian growth and development while cutting the insects herps eat.

Food web: Protects ground beetles, spiders, grasshoppers and aquatic insects eaten by toads, frogs, gartersnakes, salamanders and turtles.

How:

1. Work with your extension agent or crop adviser on scouting and thresholds.
2. Keep unsprayed strips next to ponds, wetlands and ditches.

When: Planting season, when insecticide pulses in farm streams are highest.

Take care: Follow the product label exactly; in the US and Canada the label is the law.

How sure are we? No farm-scale study of herp outcomes was found; the case rests on insecticide effects on amphibians and their food.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

Long grass gives reptiles and amphibians cover to move and hunt in, while short lawn offers amphibians little cover on their way to and from breeding sites.

Food web: Long grass holds the insects, spiders and slugs that toads, frogs, gartersnakes and lizards hunt.

How:

1. Pick an edge away from the house: along a fence, hedge, wall or the back of the lot.
2. Along any pond, ditch or wet area, leave a 5 to 10 ft (1.5 to 3 m) unmowed buffer.
3. Mow a neat edge and add a small sign so it looks intentional and crews skip it.
4. If you cut it, do so rarely and at a high setting, after walking through it to check for animals.

Take care: Check HOA rules and local weed-height ordinances first; on shared grounds, agree it with whoever manages the mowing.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

Lawns mowed every three weeks grew up to 2.5 times more flowers in one study, and flowering lawns hold more insects for toads and lizards to hunt.

Food web: Lawn flowers feed bees, flies and beetles that toads, fence lizards and skinks eat.

How:

1. Mow every 2 to 3 weeks instead of weekly.
2. Walk the lawn first; taller grass hides turtles, toads and snakes from the mower.
3. Keep the strip next to the house and the main paths shorter if you like.

When: Growing season.

Take care: Many box turtles are run over by people mowing. Check local weed-height or HOA rules.

How sure are we? The flower and bee counts come from Massachusetts suburban yards; effects on reptiles and amphibians were not measured.

Helps: frogs and toads, lizards and turtles.

Toads, frogs and many insects hibernate in leaf litter and plant debris, so a full fall cleanup removes them along with their shelter.

Food web: Keeps overwintering moths, butterflies, beetles and other insects alive to feed reptiles and amphibians in spring.

How:

1. Cancel fall leaf removal for beds, or ask your service to skip them.
2. Leave wild corners in secluded spots away from the house and paths.
3. Keep leaves off driveways and sidewalks for safety.
4. Wait until daytime temperatures are consistently warm before spring tidying.

When: Fall through mid-spring.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

Snake eggs buried in a warm heap are destroyed if the heap is turned or emptied before they hatch.

How:

1. Top up the heap in spring.
2. Leave it alone from early summer until at least early fall.
3. Use a second heap for compost you need in summer.
4. If you find eggs, keep each the same way up, cover them back in place, and do not take them indoors.

When: UK guidance: top up in April or May; no turning from mid-June to late September, ideally until the next spring.

Where this applies: Timing comes from UK grass snake guidance; in North America laying and hatching dates vary by species and latitude.

Take care: Rules on reptile eggs vary by state and province; leaving them where you found them is the safe default.

How sure are we? This is UK guidance; we found no North American source giving dates for snakes that nest in compost.

Helps: snakes.

On this site: Who Laid This?

Shared grounds are often wide, mown lawns; a few low-maintenance features add shelter and prey for reptiles and amphibians at almost no cost.

Food web: Unmown grass and leaf litter support insects, spiders and worms that toads, skinks and small snakes eat.

How:

1. Get permission from the grounds manager or board.
2. Pick a corner along a fence or wall, away from paths and play areas.
3. Mark it with a small sign so crews do not mow it by mistake.
4. Add a log pile, leave leaves in place, and keep pesticides out.

When: Propose in winter so the corner can start in spring.

Take care: Where venomous snakes occur, keep wild corners well away from paths, doors and play areas.

How sure are we? Each feature is supported on its own; we found no North American source on managing churchyards, cemeteries or community gardens for reptiles and amphibians.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

Turtles and snakes moving through tall grass in the active season are killed and maimed by mowers. Mowing while they are dormant (inactive for the winter) avoids most of that harm.

Food web: Fields left uncut through summer keep cover for the insects that toads, lizards and small snakes eat.

How:

1. Put field and meadow mowing on the calendar for late fall or winter.
2. If a summer cut can't be avoided, raise the blade, mow from the center outward and leave unmown strips (see the related actions).

When: Late fall through very early spring. In Massachusetts rare-turtle habitat, turtles use fields most from about May 15 to September 15.

Where this applies: Cold-winter and temperate areas; the dates come from Massachusetts and the Northeast, so adjust for your climate

Take care: Hay and grazing operations have their own timing needs, and cost-share contracts may set mowing dates, so check yours. Keep the strip around the house, barn doors and paths mowed as usual.

How sure are we? Agencies agree on dormant-season mowing but differ on summer: a Northeast box turtle guide treats mid-July through August as a second-best window, while Massachusetts counts it as peak turtle use. Time-of-day advice also conflicts, so treat any summer mowing as a compromise.

Helps: turtles, snakes, lizards and frogs and toads.

Many turtles, snakes and frogs shelter low in the grass. A high blade passes over them and leaves cover behind.

Food web: Taller stubble keeps cover for the insects and spiders that toads, snakes and turtles eat.

Take care: Most lawn mowers can't cut this high; this guidance is for field mowers, brush mowers and haying equipment.

How sure are we? Recommended heights vary (Massachusetts 7 to 12 inches, Midwest guidance 8 or more, NRCS 10 to 12 for warm-season grasses, the grasses that grow mainly in summer heat). A review of mostly European studies found higher cutting heights less damaging; higher is the safer choice.

Helps: turtles, snakes, frogs and toads and lizards.

Mowing from the outside in herds turtles, snakes and frogs into a shrinking patch where they are killed. Mowing outward lets them escape to the edges and cover.

How:

1. Begin at the center of the area.
2. Work outward back and forth or in large circles.
3. Go slowly, in a low gear.
4. Cut the outer edge last, or leave it for later in the year.

How sure are we? Consistent advice from NRCS, Massachusetts and Midwest guidelines, but not directly tested on reptiles and amphibians in the studies we found.

Helps: turtles, snakes, frogs and toads and lizards.

Uncut strips and patches give animals cover to escape into during mowing and keep habitat available all season.

Food web: Unmown strips keep flowering plants, and the insects that toads, lizards and small snakes eat, through the summer.

When: In turtle areas, leave edge strips uncut until after about September 15

Take care: Keep the strip around the house, doors, paths and play areas mowed; leave the long grass farther out. Keep sight lines clear at driveways and road corners.

Helps: turtles, snakes, lizards and frogs and toads.

Bar mowers cut above the ground without suction, so animals below the cut are less likely to be hit; in trials they killed the fewest amphibians.

How sure are we? A review of mostly European trials found bar mowers the least damaging, averaging 11 percent amphibian deaths. US agency guidance agrees, but we found no North American study comparing mower types for reptiles and amphibians.

Helps: frogs and toads, turtles and snakes.

Burns timed for when animals are underground, with unburned patches left, spare animals that would otherwise be moving across the surface.

How:

1. Work only with a certified burn manager, under a written burn plan and permit.
2. Tell the burn manager which reptiles and amphibians live on the site so timing can be planned around them.
3. Burn in units, leaving some areas unburned each year.
4. Ask for fire behavior that leaves unburned spots under logs and other cover.

When: Midwest guidance: about November 1 to March 1, before spring emergence

Where this applies: Fire-maintained habitats such as prairies, savannas and pinelands; the dates given are for the Midwest

Take care: Prescribed fire is professional work: it needs trained crews, permits and a burn plan, and it is not a yard tool. If protected species live on the land, check with your state or provincial wildlife agency first.

How sure are we? Evidence is mixed: a 2003 review of amphibians says deaths during fires are thought to be rare and of minor importance to most populations, but calls responses variable and notes that spring and fall burns overlap with their surface activity. Dormant-season timing can also conflict with other burn goals.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

Gopher tortoises, gopher frogs and many snakes and lizards need open, sunny pine habitat that fire keeps open. Without fire the canopy closes and shades out ground plants, and fewer young tortoises join the population.

How:

1. Contact your state forestry agency or NRCS office to find a certified burn manager.
2. Florida targets burning pine habitat every 5 years or less.
3. Do not plow firebreaks through wetland edges.

When: Follow the fire season your burn manager recommends; burn wetland basins only when water is naturally low

Where this applies: Fire-adapted pinelands of the Southeast (longleaf pine, sandhill, flatwoods); not for forests that are not fire-adapted

Take care: Burning needs trained crews, burn permits and smoke management. Gopher tortoises and their burrows are protected by state law in Florida; check your own state's rules and talk to your state wildlife agency first.

How sure are we? Florida targets burning pine habitat every 5 years or less. A Mississippi pine savanna study found more reptiles and amphibians in burned than unburned stands, with similar diversity.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

Ruts and compaction damage the moist forest floor and soil that salamanders and other amphibians live in.

Food web: Undisturbed soil and leaf litter keep the worms and other small invertebrates that salamanders eat.

When: Frozen ground in winter, or dry spells

Where this applies: Forested land; frozen-ground logging applies to cold-winter areas

Helps: salamanders, frogs and toads, turtles and snakes.

Smaller cuts and standing patches keep shade, moisture and cover spread across the forest instead of opening it all at once.

Where this applies: Forested land

How sure are we? Expert guidance rather than tested prescriptions; a Northeast box turtle guide suggests keeping clearcuts to about 1.2 to 12 acres (0.5 to 5 ha) in large intact forest.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

Wider bed spacing keeps undisturbed ground between rows, and thinning and burning keep the open, grassy understory many southern reptiles and amphibians use.

Where this applies: Southeastern pine plantations

Take care: Prescribed fire needs a certified burn manager, a permit and a burn plan.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

Off-road vehicles crush animals, compact soil and rut the seasonal wetlands where amphibians breed.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

Dense invaders block movement and shade out the sunny nesting and basking spots turtles and snakes need; spot treatment leaves the rest of the plant community in place.

Food web: Spot treatment spares the native plants that support the insects toads, lizards and young turtles eat.

When: Plan timing with a local expert to avoid the herps' active season

Take care: Near water, use only aquatic-labeled herbicides exactly as the label says; some states and provinces require permits. Removing streambank plants can cause erosion, so plan replanting.

Helps: turtles, snakes and frogs and toads.

Wild pigs root up wetlands and raid reptile nests, and in a Southeastern diet study amphibians were the vertebrates they ate most often.

Where this applies: Where feral hogs occur, mostly the southern US

Take care: Hunting, trapping and firearm laws apply and vary by state; follow professional advice on methods.

How sure are we? The diet study shows wild pigs eat many amphibians, but effects on whole amphibian populations have not been studied.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

Overgrazing strips cover, while managed grazing can slow the shrub growth that shades out the open wetlands bog turtles need.

Take care: Bog turtles are a protected species found in Northeast and mid-Atlantic fens; grazing in their habitat should be planned with NRCS or your state wildlife agency.

How sure are we? Grazing effects depend on species and site; compare with fencing livestock out of wetlands.

Helps: turtles, frogs and toads and snakes.

Field boundaries give snakes, toads and lizards places to bask, feed and travel across farmland.

Food web: Rough margins and hedgerows hold insects, spiders and small mammals that toads and snakes eat.

When: If margins need cutting, cut them in the dormant season

Take care: Keep the strip around the house, barn doors and paths mowed and clear.

How sure are we? The main field-boundary study was in the UK, with different species; NRCS supports similar native mixes here, but we found no North American field-margin study on reptiles and amphibians.

Helps: frogs and toads, snakes, lizards and turtles.

Natural woodland keeps the moist forest floor and leaf litter that salamanders and frogs need between breeding seasons.

Food web: Leaf litter holds the insects, worms and other invertebrates that salamanders, frogs and small snakes eat.

Where this applies: Wooded areas near vernal pools; guidance is from the Northeast

Take care: Keep the cleared, mowed area around the house, doors, paths and play areas; the woodland belongs farther out.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, snakes and turtles.

THC's roadway guidance times brush removal for fall to early spring, but in cold-winter areas some reptiles and amphibians shelter under brush and roots then, so cutting above ground is the gentler choice.

When: Fall through early spring

Take care: Leave some brush piles in place as shelter, away from the house, doors, paths and play areas.

How sure are we? Timing advice is thin: the Primer gives no reason for fall-to-spring clearing, and in cold-winter areas animals may be overwintering in brush during that window.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

A patchwork leaves refuges during and after management and gives the mix of young and older habitat that different species need.

Food web: Staggered work keeps flowers and the insects that toads and lizards eat available somewhere on the land all season.

How sure are we? A widely recommended principle in regional guidelines rather than a tested prescription.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

Snakes shelter under cover, so a clear strip means fewer surprise meetings at the door, while the rest of the yard can still welcome reptiles and amphibians. Fewer scares means fewer snakes killed.

How:

1. Mow and trim the band nearest the house, the doors and the paths people use most.
2. Move board piles, firewood and rock or brick piles away from the foundation.
3. On a farm or acreage, do the same around barn doors, the equipment shed, the play area and the path to the mailbox, and let the rest of the land be.

Helps: snakes, lizards and frogs and toads.

On this site: Free course: Coexisting With Wild Snakes

Sealing the building keeps snakes and other wildlife outside where they belong, at no cost to the yard.

How:

1. Caulk or foam around pipes and wires where they enter the walls.
2. Fit door sweeps and garage door threshold seals.
3. Screen crawlspace vents.
4. Check that no animal is inside before you close a gap.

Take care: Renters: ask your landlord before sealing; a door sweep is an easy first request.

Helps: snakes, lizards and frogs and toads.

On this site: Free course: Coexisting With Wild Snakes

Woodpiles are prime shelter. Keeping them away from doors means the snakes and other animals using them aren't right where people reach in.

How:

1. Move firewood and lumber well away from the foundation and doors.
2. Stack it neatly, raised off the ground.
3. If you want a log pile for wildlife, make it a separate pile, far from the house, doors, play areas and paths.

Take care: Look before you reach into a woodpile, wear gloves, and don't gather wood after dark.

Helps: snakes.

On this site: Free course: Coexisting With Wild Snakes

Spilled food draws rodents, and rodents draw snakes to the doorstep. Moving the snack bar away from the house means fewer snake visits where people are, without harming any snakes.

Food web: This moves rodent food away from the house; it doesn't remove the mice and rats that ratsnakes and other snakes hunt across the wider property.

How:

1. Use lidded metal or heavy plastic bins for feed and seed.
2. Bring pet food bowls in after meals.
3. If you feed birds, keep the feeder away from the house and clean up spilled seed.

Helps: snakes.

On this site: Free course: Coexisting With Wild Snakes

Tests found none of these stopped snakes, and many are poisons that end up in the soil, in pets and in the animals you are trying to help.

Food web: Keeping mothballs and other poisons out of the garden spares the soil insects and worms that toads, salamanders and small snakes eat.

Take care: Mothballs are a pesticide, and their labels don't allow use as an animal repellent. Using any pesticide in a way its label doesn't describe can put people and animals at risk.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

On this site: Free course: Coexisting With Wild Snakes

A small barrier gives peace of mind where it matters most and leaves the rest of the property open, so turtles, snakes and other animals can still move through.

How:

1. Use rigid 1/4 inch (6 mm) hardware cloth, about 3 ft (90 cm) tall.
2. Bury the bottom edge several inches into the ground (one extension guide uses 6 in, 15 cm).
3. Angle the top outward, away from the protected area.
4. Keep the fenced area small; fencing a whole property usually isn't practical.

Take care: Use hardware cloth. No fence makes a yard snake-free; this only helps for one small area, and gates and gaps undo it.

How sure are we? We found no study testing how well these fences work. THC's own sources give different specs (the Primer suggests a 2 ft, 60 cm, partly buried barrier); this follows THC's current course.

Helps: snakes.

On this site: Free course: Coexisting With Wild Snakes

Snakes visit coops for eggs and for the rodents eating spilled feed. Keeping them out protects the flock without killing snakes that help keep rodents in check.

How:

1. Cover pens and openings with 1/4 inch (6 mm) hardware cloth.
2. Bury the bottom edge of the mesh in the ground.
3. Spray-foam gaps too small for mesh.
4. Keep feed in sealed containers and collect eggs often.

Take care: Where venomous snakes live, look before reaching into nest boxes.

Helps: snakes.

On this site: Free course: Coexisting With Wild Snakes

Neighbors who read wild areas as neglect may push for them to go. Visible signs of care help habitat be accepted, so the cover reptiles and amphibians use is more likely to last.

How sure are we? Landscape research shows tidy frames make natural areas more acceptable to people; the benefit to reptiles and amphibians is indirect.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

Zones protect the home while leaving native plants, rocks and cover farther out, where lizards, snakes and other animals can still live.

Food web: Patches of native plants in the outer zone keep insects and other prey around for lizards and snakes.

How:

1. Zone 0, 0 to 5 ft (0 to 1.5 m): no wood piles, woody plants or burnable mulch; use rock or gravel.
2. Zone 1, 5 to 30 ft (1.5 to 9 m): remove dead plants, space shrubs apart, lift lower tree limbs.
3. Zone 2, 30 to 100 ft (9 to 30 m): remove dead material and thin plants, but keep patches of native vegetation.
4. Put any brush or log piles for wildlife outside the required clearance zones.

Where this applies: Wildfire-prone areas; zone distances follow California guidance, so use your local rules

Take care: Fire safety comes first, and your local fire authority's rules may be stricter. Native vegetation may be protected, so check with your county before clearing land that has never been cleared.

How sure are we? California's zone guidance doesn't address wildlife; the habitat-friendly framing comes from a nonprofit, and we found no study of defensible space and reptiles or amphibians.

Helps: lizards, snakes, salamanders, frogs and toads and turtles.

Frogs and salamanders migrate to breeding pools in large numbers on these nights and must cross roads to get there, where cars can hit them.

How:

1. On your own driveway or farm lane, slow down near water at dusk and after rain.
2. On migration nights, choose bigger roads or stay home.

When: Spring, on rainy nights about 40°F (4°C) or warmer, and at dusk.

Where this applies: Strongest in cold-winter areas with spring breeding migrations; timing varies by region.

Take care: Never brake or swerve in a way that puts you or other drivers at risk. If you stop to watch, park well off the road and wear something reflective.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders and turtles.

Turtles live long and mature slowly, so losing adults, especially nesting females, hurts populations. Car strikes alone account for about a third of turtles taken to wildlife rehabilitators in New York.

How:

1. Pull off only where it is safe, and turn on your hazard lights to warn other drivers.
2. Move the turtle straight across in the direction it was traveling, then let it go on its way.
3. Do not take it to a pond, a park or home with you: it knows where it is going.

When: Most turtles cross in late spring and early summer, when females travel to nest.

Take care: Your safety comes first: never stop on a busy or fast road. If a turtle is hurt, contact a licensed wildlife rehabilitator (Animal Help Now, ahnow.org, helps find one).

Helps: turtles.

Moved firewood can carry invasive insects and diseases that kill native trees, and a few keystone native trees support much of the caterpillar life that food webs depend on.

Food web: Protecting native trees protects the caterpillars and other insects they host, food for lizards, treefrogs, toads and box turtles.

How:

1. Buy firewood near where you will burn it.
2. Look for certified heat-treated firewood when traveling.

Take care: Some states and provinces legally restrict moving firewood.

How sure are we? The link from firewood to herps is indirect, through native trees and the insects they feed.

Helps: lizards, frogs and toads and turtles.

Many reptiles and amphibians return to the same winter retreat (hibernaculum) year after year, and a reptile disturbed during hibernation takes longer to recover.

Food web: Undisturbed piles and litter also shelter overwintering insects that feed reptiles and amphibians in spring.

How:

1. Note where piles, crevices and burrows are, and plan any clearing or digging near them for late spring or summer.
2. If a pile must go, take it apart by hand in warm weather.
3. If you uncover a sleeping animal, put the cover back gently as it was and leave the spot alone.

When: Fall through spring.

Where this applies: Most important in cold-winter areas.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

One small yard rarely meets all of an animal's needs; ground-level gaps let toads, snakes and lizards use several neighboring yards as one larger habitat.

How:

1. Leave or cut a few small gaps under solid fences or at the base of walls.
2. Talk with neighbors about matching gaps and features on their side.

Take care: Keep gaps small enough to contain your pets.

How sure are we? This comes from UK wildlife trust guidance, similar to 'hedgehog highway' advice; we found no study of fence gaps for reptiles and amphibians.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

Moving spawn, tadpoles or pond water can spread amphibian diseases such as ranavirus and invasive pond weeds, and bought tadpoles may come from anywhere.

How:

1. Do not accept, give away or collect spawn or tadpoles.
2. Do not buy tadpoles or pond snails to stock a pond.
3. Be patient and listen for frog calls in spring.

Take care: In many states and provinces, moving native amphibians is also regulated or illegal.

Helps: frogs and toads and salamanders.

On this site: Frog and toad calls

Released goldfish and koi spread into natural waters, where they compete with native fish for food and space and stir up the bottom.

Take care: Releasing these fish is illegal in some places, including Minnesota.

Helps: frogs and toads and salamanders.

Bulldozed firelines can wreck the wetland edges where amphibians breed, and fire retardants can be toxic in water.

Where this applies: Wildfire-prone areas and land where prescribed fire is used

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders and turtles.

Slash, silt and machinery damage the pool itself, and shade keeps the surrounding forest floor cool and moist, which pool-breeding salamanders and frogs need between breeding seasons.

Where this applies: Forested land with vernal pools; canopy targets come from Northeastern forestry guidelines

Take care: Some vernal pools and the land around them are regulated; check with your state or provincial wildlife or environment agency before harvesting near them.

Helps: salamanders and frogs and toads.

Many snakes share a few winter dens, so damage to one site can affect every snake that uses it.

When: All year, and especially from fall through spring while snakes are underground

Where this applies: Mostly cold-winter areas, where snakes overwinter together; guidance is from Ontario

Take care: For any snake you cannot identify as harmless, take three steps back and walk away. Keeping den locations private protects the snakes from persecution and collection.

Helps: snakes.

On this site: Free course: Coexisting With Wild Snakes

Timber rattlesnakes rely on a few traditional dens and basking spots, so disturbance there affects the whole local population.

How:

1. Keep slash out of basking areas and at least 100 ft (30 m) from dens.
2. Build no new roads or log landings within 660 ft (200 m) of a den or 330 ft (100 m) of a basking site.
3. In the active season, avoid cutting within 330 ft (100 m) of basking areas and 660 ft (200 m) of dens.
4. Ask your state wildlife agency before any work near a known den.

When: Limits are strictest during the snakes' active season

Where this applies: Timber rattlesnake range, mainly the East and Appalachians; distances are from New York forestry guidance

Take care: Timber rattlesnakes are venomous; give them plenty of room and never approach or handle one. Many states protect them, so check with your wildlife agency, and keep den locations private.

Helps: snakes.

On this site: Free course: Coexisting With Wild Snakes

A gopher tortoise burrow shelters the tortoise and more than 350 other species, so one burrow protects a whole community of animals.

Where this applies: Gopher tortoise range in the Southeast coastal plain. Desert tortoise burrows in the Southwest deserve the same care; check your state's rules.

Take care: Gopher tortoises and their burrows are protected by state law in Florida, which requires a permit for construction and similar work within 25 feet (7.6 m) of a burrow; routine lawn care is allowed if it does not collapse burrows or harm tortoises. Check your own state's rules. Never move a tortoise yourself.

Helps: turtles, snakes and frogs and toads.

Open nesting sites slowly shade over and disappear, and gravel shoulders near lakes and wetlands are favorite nest sites that spring and summer grading can disrupt.

When: Clear woody growth in the dormant season, outside nesting and hatching; no grading near water in spring and summer

Take care: If you find a nesting turtle or a nest, leave it alone. If you uncover reptile eggs while gardening, keep each egg the same way up, cover them back in the same spot and do not bring them indoors; rules vary by state and province.

Helps: turtles.

On this site: Who Laid This? (egg ID)

Many reptiles and amphibians travel between breeding water, summer feeding areas and winter sites; gaps in habitat strand them or send them across roads and lawns.

Take care: Keep corridors away from the house, doors, paths and play areas. Work along streams can need permits.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

Large, connected, undisturbed habitat is what declining reptile and amphibian populations need most, and breaking it into pieces is one of the main harms.

Food web: Large intact areas hold a complete food web, from soil insects up to the snakes and other predators that eat them.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

Roads between wetlands and woods kill migrating amphibians and turtles; narrower roads slow traffic and shorten the time animals spend crossing.

Take care: Work in or near wetlands usually needs permits; check with the US Army Corps of Engineers and your state agency, or your provincial agency in Canada, first.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

Less traffic during migration and nesting means fewer animals killed on the road.

When: Spring breeding migrations and early-summer nesting

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

Fencing alone keeps animals off the road but cuts them off from habitat; fences that lead to a passage let them travel safely.

How:

1. Record where animals are killed to choose the spot.
2. Use culverts at least 36 in (90 cm) across for dry crossings, and the full stream width where water flows year-round.
3. Run fencing tight to the ground so it leads animals to the culvert.
4. Fit fence ends tightly to the culvert or bridge railings.
5. Build in a way for animals already on the road to get off it.

Take care: Stream and wetland crossings usually need permits; involve an engineer and your state or provincial agency.

How sure are we? These designs are expert recommendations; the road-fencing studies we found combined fencing with other measures, so how well a crossing works depends on its design and site.

Helps: turtles, frogs and toads, salamanders and snakes.

Records of where animals die show decision-makers where crossings, fencing or lower speeds will help most.

Take care: Signs on public roads need the road authority's permission. Stay safe near traffic; for a turtle on the road, slow down, watch and give it room.

Helps: turtles, frogs and toads, snakes and salamanders.

NRCS can plan and help pay for practices like fencing, prescribed burning, invasive plant control and wetland work that help reptiles and amphibians.

How:

1. Find your local USDA Service Center and ask for the NRCS conservationist.
2. Ask for a free conservation plan and about EQIP cost-share.
3. If you have gopher tortoise or bog turtle habitat, ask about Working Lands for Wildlife, which targets help for those species.

Where this applies: United States

Take care: Program contracts carry obligations and rules change; read the terms before signing.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

A biologist can tailor improvements to your land and local species, and Partners for Fish and Wildlife offers free technical and financial help.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

Habitat work lasts only as long as the land stays wild; an easement keeps reptile and amphibian habitat protected after a sale or inheritance.

Where this applies: United States (in Canada, see the conservation agreement action)

Take care: Easements are permanent; get independent legal and tax advice first.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

The program helps landowners protect, restore and enhance wetlands damaged by past farming, which can bring back breeding sites for frogs, salamanders and turtles.

Where this applies: United States

Take care: Easements limit future land use; review the terms carefully and get independent advice.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, turtles and snakes.

It lets landowners help a listed species and still return the land to its starting condition when the agreement ends, removing a common reason not to improve habitat.

Where this applies: United States

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

It protects wetlands, nesting sites and other habitat from future development, and an Ecological Gift can reduce the taxable capital gain on the donation to zero.

Where this applies: Canada

Take care: These agreements are long-term or permanent; get independent legal and tax advice.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

ALUS pays participants annual per-acre amounts to maintain these projects, which create habitat reptiles and amphibians use.

Where this applies: Canada (participating communities)

Take care: Open to farmers, ranchers and land tenants with a registered or legally defined farming operation.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

Unpermitted work can destroy breeding wetlands and bring fines, and permit review can steer a project away from sensitive spots.

How:

1. US: contact your US Army Corps of Engineers district office and your state environmental agency (Clean Water Act Section 404 covers fill in wetlands and streams).
2. Canada: contact your provincial or territorial environment ministry.
3. Also ask your town or county about local rules.

Take care: Some farming and forestry activities are exempt from the federal rule, but state, provincial and local rules may still apply; ask before you dig.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

Ratsnakes and similar snakes are skilled rodent hunters around barns and coops. Many keepers count a few missing eggs as fair pay for that service.

Food web: Snakes at the coop eat the mice and rats that spilled feed attracts.

Helps: snakes.

Snakes around homes are usually there for rodents, slugs and other pests. Trying to kill a snake is how many bites happen, so leaving it be is the safer choice for you and for the snake.

Food web: Ratsnakes and similar snakes eat mice, rats and chipmunks, keeping rodent numbers in check around homes and barns.

How:

1. Keep children and pets back until the snake leaves.
2. Leave rodent eaters such as ratsnakes to work in barns, sheds and woodpiles.
3. If a snake is inside the house or somewhere it can't stay, keep it in sight from a safe distance and call a wildlife professional or your state or provincial wildlife agency.

Take care: Killing snakes may be illegal where you live.

Helps: snakes.

On this site: Free course: Coexisting With Wild Snakes

Moved animals lose the shelter, food and winter spots they know, often try to get home across roads, and many die. A review of snake moves found long-distance moves turned out far worse than short ones.

Take care: A snake inside the house is a job for a wildlife professional: keep it in sight from a safe distance and call for help.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

Released pets can carry diseases native animals can't fight off, and some, like red-eared sliders, become invasive elsewhere.

How:

1. If you keep amphibians, treat used tank water with household bleach, 1/4 to 1/2 cup (about 60 to 120 ml) per liter, for at least 10 minutes before you dispose of it.

Take care: Handle bleach with care and never mix it with other cleaners.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

Animals from elsewhere can carry ranavirus and other diseases, and a plant or animal in balance in one place can become a destructive invader in another.

How:

1. Put unused bait in the trash.
2. Rehome unwanted aquarium plants and animals through a store or club.

Take care: Bait rules vary; check your state or provincial rules before moving live bait.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders and turtles.

Every adult taken out of the wild can no longer breed, and long-lived animals like box turtles can't replace those losses quickly.

Take care: Collecting many native species is illegal or needs a permit, and laws vary by state and province.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

Mother turtles lay their eggs and leave them to hatch on their own. Moving, jostling or turning eggs can kill the young developing inside.

How:

1. Mark the nest spot so nobody mows, digs or drives over it.
2. If you uncover reptile eggs while gardening, keep each egg the same way up, cover them back in the same spot, and don't bring them indoors.
3. Let hatchlings find their own way.

When: Turtles mostly nest from late spring to early summer; hatchlings appear from late summer into fall, or the next spring.

Take care: Rules on nests and eggs vary by state and province, and protected species have extra protection; check with your wildlife agency before doing anything more.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

On this site: Who Laid This? (egg ID)

A cage can keep diggers out of a nest, but a badly made cage can trap the hatchlings it is meant to protect.

How:

1. Ask your state or provincial wildlife agency first.
2. Use mesh with gaps of at least 1 inch (2.5 cm) so hatchlings can get out.
3. Follow local guidance on whether to remove the cage before hatching.

When: Only right after the eggs are laid; follow local guidance on what to do before hatching.

Take care: Mesh with gaps smaller than 1 inch (2.5 cm) can trap hatchlings. Some protected species need a permit for any nest work.

How sure are we? Guidance disagrees: the Virginia Herpetological Society says a cage with 1 x 2 inch (2.5 x 5 cm) mesh can stay through hatching, while Vermont Fish & Wildlife says wire laid over a nest must be removed before hatching.

Helps: turtles.

Harming or harassing a listed species is against the law, and agencies can help you plan work so the animals stay and you stay on the right side of the rules.

Take care: In the US, illegal 'take' of a listed species includes harming, harassing, capturing or collecting it, not only killing it.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

Habitat guidelines for the South recommend restricting bait collection of salamanders to protect stream populations.

Where this applies: Streams and springs, especially in the Southeast and Appalachians

Take care: Collection rules vary by state and province.

Helps: salamanders.

Human food doesn't give wild animals what they need and can cause malnutrition and other health problems.

Food web: Wild herps do best on the insects, worms, slugs and other prey a healthy yard produces.

How:

1. In alligator country, never feed an alligator, and keep dogs leashed and back from the water's edge.

Take care: If an alligator worries you, call your state wildlife agency rather than acting yourself.

Helps: turtles, frogs and toads and lizards.

Predation is part of a healthy pond, and one predator rarely makes much difference to a frog population.

Food web: A pond that feeds gartersnakes, watersnakes, herons and dragonfly larvae is a working food web.

How sure are we? Our sources are UK charities writing about grass snakes and garden ponds; the hands-off principle transfers well, but we found no North American source saying it directly.

Helps: snakes, frogs and toads and salamanders.

People can carry amphibian chytrid fungus, ranavirus and snake fungal disease from one site to another on muddy gear.

How:

1. Scrub off mud and plants with tap water, never water from another pond.
2. Disinfect with a dilute bleach solution (Virginia's wildlife agency suggests 3%), then rinse with tap water.
3. Do bleach work on a hard surface away from ponds, ditches and storm drains.
4. Let gear dry completely before the next site.

Take care: Bleach harms aquatic life: never use it or pour it out near water, and wear gloves.

How sure are we? Bleach strengths differ between published protocols; pick one and follow it consistently.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, snakes and turtles.

Good cover is limited. Each disturbed log or rock leaves animals without shelter, and many small disturbances add up quickly.

Food web: Logs and rocks also shelter the beetles, worms and slugs that salamanders and small snakes eat.

Take care: Where venomous snakes live, use a tool rather than your hands to lift cover.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

Knowing the rules up front keeps a wildlife-friendly yard from being forced back into lawn, which protects the cover reptiles and amphibians rely on.

Take care: Renters need the landlord's permission before changing the landscaping.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

Regular checks show which reptiles and amphibians use your land and whether your management is helping, without collecting a single animal.

How:

1. One citizen-science study used 2 by 4 ft (60 by 120 cm) boards of 1/2 in (12 mm) plywood, weathered for three months first.
2. It placed six boards 16 ft (5 m) apart along 82 ft (25 m) lines, two lines per habitat, 49 ft (15 m) apart.
3. Lift each board toward you, look and photograph, then lower it gently exactly where it was.
4. Record what you find; iNaturalist is one good place to log sightings.

When: Check through the active season.

Take care: Do not handle animals, and watch for venomous snakes where they occur. Keep exact locations of rare species private.

How sure are we? Board size and layout come from one California study, not a fixed standard.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

Getting to know the animals that share your space eases fear and builds the kind of fondness that leads people to protect them.

Food web: You'll also notice the insects and spiders the lizards and toads are hunting.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

When you and your neighbors can tell harmless animals apart, there's no reason to fear or kill them.

Take care: Knowing a species is for peace of mind, not for handling: give every snake room.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

On this site: What Lives Near Me · Free course: Coexisting With Wild Snakes

Photo records from ordinary people help biologists confirm where species live and track how populations change over time.

Food web: Logging insects, spiders and plants too helps show the food web your herps rely on.

How:

1. Photograph animals where they are; don't pick them up for a better shot.
2. For rare or vulnerable species, obscure the location before sharing.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

Rare reptiles and amphibians can be taken by collectors who follow posted locations, and county-level information is enough for identification.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

Early reports help biologists catch outbreaks of amphibian diseases such as chytrid and ranavirus, and of snake fungal disease, sooner.

Take care: Don't handle sick or dead animals with bare hands, and clean your boots afterward.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

On this site: Free resources, including disease reporting

Early reports let agencies respond before invaders spread and harm native frogs, turtles and other wildlife.

How:

1. In Florida, report tegus, Nile monitors and any invasive snake to 1-888-IVE-GOT1.
2. West of the Rockies, where American bullfrogs are not native, report them to your state or provincial invasive species program.
3. Don't move or release the animal.

Take care: Be sure of the identification first; many natives look alike. Bullfrogs are native to much of eastern North America and belong there.

Helps: frogs and toads, lizards, snakes and turtles.

On this site: Ways to Help

Cuban treefrogs eat Florida's native treefrogs, but mistaking a native for one harms the very frogs you want to help.

Where this applies: Florida, and nearby Southeast states where Cuban treefrogs may turn up

Take care: Be certain of the identification before doing anything.

Helps: frogs and toads.

Call surveys show which species breed nearby and how that changes over the years, without disturbing a single frog.

How:

1. Go at least 30 minutes after sunset.
2. Note the air temperature and cloud cover.
3. Listen for about three minutes and record each species you hear.
4. Return every 2 to 4 weeks from early spring to late summer.

When: Early spring to late summer, after dark; the season varies by region

Take care: Stay on safe ground at night, and get permission before visiting private land.

Helps: frogs and toads.

On this site: Frog call library · Ways to Help

The program's checklist covers the basics reptiles and amphibians need too: food, water, shelter and safe places to raise young.

Food web: The program's emphasis on native plants supports the insects that lizards, toads and small snakes eat.

Where this applies: United States (a National Wildlife Federation program)

Take care: Keep any water, cover or wild patches you add away from the house, doors, play areas and paths.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

On this site: Ways to Help

Injured wildlife needs trained, licensed care. Having the number ready means a quick call instead of a guess.

How:

1. In the US, search Animal Help Now (ahnow.org).
2. Your state or provincial wildlife agency can also point you to licensed help.

Take care: Don't try to treat or feed an injured animal yourself; caring for wildlife needs proper training and a license.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

A frightened neighbor wants to feel safe, not a lecture on ecology. Hand them something that works, and you have likely saved a snake, and probably several.

Helps: snakes.

On this site: Free course: Coexisting With Wild Snakes

Nearly every backyard reptile and amphibian is a predator, so its prey is part of its habitat. Knowing the menu shows which yard habits matter most.

Food web: Treefrogs and fence lizards eat mostly insects and spiders, and brownsnakes eat slugs, snails and earthworms.

How:

1. Look up each species you see or expect in your wildlife agency's field guide.
2. Note the main prey groups, such as slugs, ants, beetles, earthworms or rodents.
3. Match those prey groups to actions in this tool; for slug eaters, skip slug bait.

How sure are we? Diet accounts show what these animals eat; they don't measure how much yard changes help them. The examples here are eastern and central species, so use your own region's pages.

Helps: frogs and toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes and turtles.

On this site: What Lives Near Me