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0 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? e-edition | subscribe | newsletter | deals Home News Latest Stories Emergency services, May 9 Jackson County deputies searching for wanted man after pursuit Medford schools still filling admin roles Amid the drought, Medford's water supplies still ample Nashville singer/songwriter with local ties dies of cancer Crime, Courts and Emergency Services Emergency services, May 9 Jackson County deputies searching for wanted man after pursuit Medford man sentenced in machete attack Suspect in OSP meth stop will face federal charges Emergency services Politics and Elections Ashland water bills could go up to fund watershed protection Pacific Connector Gas Pipeline opponents rally in Medford BREAKING: Baltimore prosecutor charges officers in Freddie Gray's death Earthquakes hit regularly in Medford (Oklahoma, that is) Medford School Board, Position 6: Curt Ankerberg vs. Janet Lightheart Education Medford schools still filling admin roles Appeals court rules against Central Point schools on bus outsourcing Hedrick principal to take helm at North Medford High School More kindergartners vaccinated in 2015 Elementary students honor local police officers Environment Ashland water bills could go up to fund watershed protection Crater Lake may soon have China connection State waives college placement tests for students who hit high marks Stopping fire in its tracks Pacific Connector Gas Pipeline opponents rally in Medford State News Obama makes pitch on trade deal at Nike: 'Just do it' Forecast for 2015 predicts busy wildfire season Cheers and protest signs greet President Obama in Oregon Oregon Senate OKs bill banning 'conversion therapy' Police: Welsh man traveled to Oregon to have sex with girl Nation - World There's a $10 million precious stone hidden in plain sight at Grand Central Obituaries Dorothy Evans Helen Nadine Sankey Dickie Miles Hayes Nita Day Layne Alan Battenfield Weather Photo Galleries Since You Asked Videos Web Cams Mail Tribune 100 Shareable Sports Latest Stories Newman deals with penalties after appeal denied Kelly, Na share lead at Players Championship After sullied week in sports, let's all shower off In complete control Chris Singleton: No need for a rematch Varsity 541 College Sports Oregon clinches share of Pac-12 title Ex-Panthers Baldovino, Owirka earn honors In the zone Ducks' Keys chases fourth Pac-12 crown Ducks bring in transfer from Villanova Pro Sports Newman deals with penalties after appeal denied Kelly, Na share lead at Players Championship Four tied for lead at Players Many happy returns for Singler Rockets survive Clippers, even series Community Sports Bailey picks up modified win Wilson delivers in return of local boxing Palmer breezes to second straight men’s title Business Latest Stories People in Business Business briefs: Avista, Mcintosh, BOLI Blog: 1-800-Flowers.com SEC filing provides peek into Harry & David revenue and cost figures Blog: Mom is Our Hero! 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Search on for new medical provider for Butte Falls, Prospect clinics Hiking Biking Faith Religion Briefs: Friday, May 8 Religion Briefs: Friday, May 1 Religion Briefs: Friday, April 24 Religion Briefs: Friday, April 17 Religion briefs: Friday, April 10 Milestones and Achievements Bukair-Hinkle Wedding: Stephanie Anne Obad and Mark Douglass Schmor Ashland water bills could go up to fund watershed protection Drones helping create unique wedding photos Pick your favorite wedding flowers Columnist for a Day Rogue Healthy Aging Tempo Latest stories Flowers, art and music highlight Art in Bloom 5 picks for live entertainment Live Music in Local Clubs Peter Rowan, Big Sandy & His Fly-Rite Boys at Rootsfest Dancing People Company presents 'Salon Series' Theater REVIEW: Randall Theatre's 'Little Shop of Horrors' a rollicking good time REVIEW: Carson, Patton shine in 'Arsenic and Old Lace' Some Oregon Shakespeare Festival crew members seek to unionize Randall Theatre stages 'Little Shop of Horrors' 'Much Ado' at SOU Music Live Music in Local Clubs Peter Rowan, Big Sandy & His Fly-Rite Boys at Rootsfest The Farr Side: Mumford & Sons’ latest is full-on rock Tina Malia at SOU Music Hall in Ashland Earthquake benefit for Nepal Community Events 5 things to see at Art in Bloom Flowers, art and music highlight Art in Bloom Hip-Hop Poetry Open Mic at OSF's Black Swan in Ashland Ashland's First Friday Art Walk showcases new exhiits by regional artists Master Gardener Spring Fair at The Expo Movies Movie review: ‘Hot Pursuit’ is a hot mess George Miller returns to his ‘Mad Max’ roots Tom Hardy adapts to life as Mad Max Victor D. 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ENVIRONMENT Herptilian haven Plywood boards are placed at Denman Wildlife Area in hopes critters will crawl underneath Comment By Mark Freeman Mail Tribune MailTribune.com By Mark Freeman Mail Tribune Posted Mar. 16, 2015 at 12:01 AM By Mark Freeman Mail Tribune Posted Mar. 16, 2015 at 12:01 AM » Social News WHITE CITY — Steve Niemela vividly recalls as a kid joining a friend on a snake hunt in Michigan's Upper Peninsula by walking into a field full of debris and turning over plywood to see what slimy treasures they could find. They flipped over one piece of plywood and discovered a garter snake, freaking Niemela out. Then the so-called friend made Niemela hold the wiggling reptile, and a boy's world forever changed. "I handled that first snake, and I was hooked," says Niemela, now a wildlife biologist for the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife. "I was flipping boards everywhere I could after that." Now the biologist is playing boy again. Niemela has launched a herptile survey at White City's Denman Wildlife Area by systematically placing sheets of plywood on various habitats within the state-owned lands to see what snakes, lizards and salamanders gravitate toward these herptilian magnets. The 2-by-4-foot sheets of old plywood poached from the wildlife area's aged pheasant pen imitate logs and other woody debris where snakes, lizards and other so-called "herps" live, nest and feed. Niemela is in the midst of scattering 90 of these "cover boards" around the wildlife area, then once or twice a year, he'll count what's living under these faux logs — from rattlesnakes and ringneck snakes to rough-skinned newts and long-toed salamanders. "It's not really technical but more of a snapshot of what reptiles are on the wildlife area," Niemela says. "To get it, basically we''ll be walking around kicking boards over like when we were kids." It's the first-ever attempt to figure out what slithers and skulks through the brush at the 1,760-acre wildlife area, where decades of studies and surveys have focused on game species such as waterfowl and deer but rarely, if ever, on its non-game denizens. Niemela read of a statewide study in Pennsylvania wildlife areas and thought he'd do a similar, smaller-scale study. Having the old pheasant pen boards proved advantageous. Using habitat maps of the wildlife area, he decided to get boards in each of the five distinct habitats, riparian, oak woodland, oak savannah, grassland/agriculture and vernal pools. The boards are spraypainted ODFW HERP in hopes that wildlilfe area visitors who discover them will let them be. Niemela on Friday loaded a dozen boards on the department's four-wheeler and headed into the vernal pool area, placing the boards on wet, grassy patches and noting the habitat immediately surrounding it. Then he logged the GPS coordinates so he can find them again. Over time, the boards will kill the grass beneath them and imitate what it would be like should a flat rock or fat tree limb be available for the snakes and salamanders to discover. "This will create its own little environment that's different from everything else around it," Niemela says. He might wait a year for environmental changes to occur and for the herps to discover them, then play it by ear. "If we put out a bunch of boards and in five years we didn't find any herps, it'll probably end there," Niemela says. "But if it does work, it could theoretically go on forever." The vernal pool habitat is some of the hottest and driest summer habitat on the wildlife area, Niemela says. The mixed oak woodlands show the most promise for high numbers. "I think we'll get some neat stuff in the oak habitat," he says.  The project costs nothing, so Niemela likely will keep it in-house for now, perhaps later branching out to volunteers and even school kids to monitor the sites. "Any kid who's ever been interested in lizards and snakes has gone to a junkyard, and flipped stuff over to see what's under there," Niemela says. "Maybe they can do it here." Reach reporter Mark Freeman at 541-776-4470 or [email protected] . Follow him at www.twitter.com/MTwriterFreeman .   By Mark Freeman Mail Tribune MailTribune.com By Mark Freeman Mail Tribune Posted Mar. 16, 2015 at 12:01 AM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. calendar Connect with MailTribune.com Facebook Twitter RSS Back to top Reader Services Reader Services Home Subscriptions Subscriber controls Contact us Submissions Photos Events Letters to the editor Corrections Announcements Obituaries Story ideas Since you asked Alerts Email Alerts RSS Feeds Text Alerts Advertise Media Kit Home Products and services Ad rates Advertising contacts Propel Marketing Mail Tribune Daily Tidings The Nickel Shop Our Valley Blogs Stay Informed Email newsletter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. 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