EAST BRUNSWICK, N.J. — The annual salamander migration is set to begin tonight, prompting overnight road closures on Beekman Road in East Brunswick and White Pine Road in South Brunswick, officials said.
The closures, which will occur between Church Lane and Davidsons Mill Road, are intended to protect salamanders as they cross the roadway to reach breeding ponds. The amphibians migrate from the woods to vernal pools on warm, rainy nights in late winter or early spring.
Officials said the road will be closed sporadically from 6 p.m. to 5 a.m. over the next several weeks, depending on weather conditions that encourage movement. “Once the salamanders are done laying eggs, they will sporadically cross the road back to the woods over the course of a month,” officials noted.
Motorists are urged to use Cranbury Road or Fresh Ponds Road as alternate routes and to drive with caution in the area.