Still Life with Robin: Commander Salamander

 by Peggy Robin

Just to let you know that our esteemed DC Council cares about our City --from the grand halls of power to the slippery undersides of rocks in Rock Creek -- I am here to tell you of an action recently taken that fits squarely on the latter side of the political spectrum.

DC Council has passed a bill called the Red-Backed Salamander Official State Amphibian Designation Act (Bill-25-811), which designates the Red-Backed Salamander the Official State Amphibian of the District of Columbia. The students at Powell Elementary school – who studied the Red-backed Salamander in class – were the proponents of this legislation. 

Here's how our Council Member Matt Frumin put it in his most recent constituent e-newsletter (October 3, 2024):

"Thanks to students at Powell Elementary School, the Council moved legislation to designate the Red-Backed Salamander as the official state amphibian of the District of Columbia. As one Powell student testified, if we are going to be a state, we are going to need a state amphibian. I was pleased to join my colleagues in voting for the legislation. The deciding factor for me, and several other Councilmembers, was that the salamanders help to control our mosquito population by eating mosquito larvae."

(Somehow, I suspect if the kids had selected a salamander that has no particular utility in the war against mosquitoes, CM Frumin still would have supported their choice. But it does help to have a practical rationale.)

Take a look at our little amphibian friend, up close and in action [you can skip the commercial]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AMLJkqWtjeY

DC now enjoys a nearly full panoply of state symbols: DC's state symbols:

Amphibian: Red-Backed Salamander

Bird: Wood Thrush

Crustacean: Hay's Spring Amphipod

Dinosaur: Capitalsaurus 

Fish: American Shad

Flower: American Beauty Rose

Fruit: Cherry 

Mammal: Little Brown Bat

Rock: Potomac Bluestone

Tree: Scarlet Oak

Nearly full? Do you know what's missing? A State Insect! official insect 

Are you connected with a DC elementary school that needs a good project? Selecting and presenting a State Insect to the Council could be it! If you undertake this momentous task, please get in touch and I'll give your campaign a boost in some future "Still Life with Robin" column!

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Still Life with Robin is posted on the Cleveland Park Listserv and on All Life Is Local on Saturdays.