Dicamptodon aterrimus

Saturday, September 6, 2014

After a couple months living in Idaho I was finally able to explore the Idaho Panhandle National Forest, where giants roam. Well, giant salamanders, anyway. It was in a small headwater stream that I discovered my first tailed frogs and Dicamptodon aterrimus, the giant salamander.

Plethodon vehiculum

Wednesday, August 15, 2012

After the WCH, my friend, Rory Telemeco, and I took a day to explore Vancouver Island in the vicinity of Victoria. Luckily, on the ferry over from Vancouver we bumped into Kristiina Ovaska, a herpetologist who lives and works in Victoria. She was kind enough to show us her field site, where we flipped about a dozen of these species, which is more or less the West Coast version of Plethodon cinereus, the species I work on in Massachusetts. This species is slightly different in general form, and the dorsal stripe is wider and extends to the tip of the tail, unlike with P. cinereus. It's a pretty little 'mander.

Ensatina eschscholtzi oregonensis

Thursday, August 9, 2012

While at the World Herp Congress in Vancouver this year I was able to sneak away to a secluded corner of the UBC campus, where I was lucky enough to flip an individual of this beautiful, if somewhat enigmatic species. While many scientists agree that the Ensatina salamanders form a single species, this is the result of years of discussion and heated debate. The source of the confusion is that while members of this species can (usually) freely interbreed with their neighbors, the distribution of the species forms a great arc around the Central Valley in California and at the southern edge the east and west forms coexist without much (if any) swapping of genetic material. To complicate matters further, this species is highly variable, with the northern forms looking like the individual I discovered, while some of the southern forms take on the appearance of syntopic (found at the same locality) toxic newts or bright splotches of color that break up their salamander-esque outline on the forest floor. In summary, this salamander is absolutely fascinating. I hope to find more in the future.

Bolitoglossa striatula

Saturday, May 12, 2012

On a recent trip to Costa Rica I was able to spend over a week herping the Limon Province. On one night hike we found an individual of this beautiful species foraging on a banana leaf near a marshy grassland, its preferred habitat.

Plethodon caddoensis

Monday, March 12, 2012

The next day, we traveled to a different corner of the Ouachitas, the Caddo Mountains. These mountains contain Plethodon caddoensis, their own mountain-top endemic species of plethodontid. Like many mountain-top endemics, they make up for their small range by becoming locally abundant. We found well over a couple dozen in just a couple hours of searching!

Eurycea multiplicata

Sunday, March 11, 2012

In addition to the many individuals of P. ouachitae, we flipped a single Many-Ribbed Salamander in a seep downslope from the P. ouachitae habitat.

Plethodon ouachitae

Sunday, March 11, 2012

Over spring break a few friends and I struck out from the windswept plains of Iowa on a herping expedition to the Ouachitas of Arkansas. On our first day, a drizzly, air as thick as pea soup sort of day, we scaled Rich Mountain looking for a salamander named after the mountain range it was found on. Sure enough, the wet weather coaxed this species out of the talus slopes it calls home and we were able to turn up several handsome chestnut individuals.

Hemidactylium scutatum

Thursday, June 2, 2011

I was thrilled to find this beautiful individual in central Massachusetts while hunting for N. viridescens and P. cinereus!

Plethodon cinereus

Friday, May 20, 2011

The first time I saw this species I was herping a backyard in Grand Marais, Minnesota with my nephew on his fourth birthday. Boy, were we both surprised when we flipped a piece of plywood to find a dozen!

This picture was taken of an erythristic and striped individual in Dubuque State Forest, Massachusetts.

Desmognathus fuscus

Sunday, May 15, 2011

I first found this species while sampling N. viridescens and P. cinereus in Massachusetts.

Eurycea bislineata

Sunday, May 8, 2011

I first found this species while sampling N. viridescens and P. cinereus in Massachusetts.

Plethodon virginia

Thursday, May 5, 2011

On my way to my field sites in Massachusetts in 2011 I looped through George Washington National Forest straddling the border between Virginia and West Virginia. There, next to a small brook on Shenandoah Mountain, I was able to find three large adult Shenandoah Mountain Salamanders.

Plethodon dunni

Monday, June 28, 2010

While at the 2010 Evolution Meetings in Portland, Oregon I stole some time away from the meetings to poke around some nearby city parks. I found my first western Plethodon!

Plethodon dorsalis

Sunday, June 6, 2010

Along with P. longicrus, I first encountered this species by spotting a small juvenile in Hoosier National Forest, Indiana. This is one of my favorite pictures of a salamander I have taken.

Eurycea longicauda

Sunday, June 6, 2010

I first found this species while looking for P. cinereus with my dad in Indiana. Conditions for herping were miserable that week (hot and dry), but we still managed to find around a dozen of this species while we were there. Unfortunately, only a single P. cinereus. I'm happy my luck has improved since then!

Plethodon glutinosus

Thursday, June 3, 2010

I first found this species while herping in Pennsylvania. They look much like their southern cousins, but their distribution is far greater.

Ambystoma maculatum

Tuesday, June 1, 2010

This beautiful species was one of my favorite new species on my very first collecting trip to Massachusetts in June 2010. I found this large adult in the Fisk Meadows Wildlife Management Area near Northampton. If you ever find yourself near here, I recommend checking out the wildlife management areas in Massachusetts. They're off the beaten track, but they are often beautiful little gems.

Plethodon shenandoah

Monday, May 31, 2010

This species was a blast to find - they were everywhere! Virtually every board we flipped covered a salamander, each quite distinct in terms of coloration.

Plethodon sherando

Sunday, May 30, 2010

I tracked down my first sherando up-slope of Lake Sherando on a drizzly day in May, 2010.

Plethodon hubrichti

Sunday, May 30, 2010

I first found the Peaks of Otter Salamander in (where else?) the Peaks of Otter Mountains in Virginia on my drive north from North Carolina to Massachusetts.

Desmognathus ochrophaeus

Sunday, May 30, 2010

This species was found near P. hubrichti and P. cylindraceus. 

Notophthalmus viridescens

Sunday, May 30, 2010

Of course, I have found my fair share of N. viridescens. The first one I found was an eft-stage newt crossing the road in the Southern Appalachians. The individual pictured above was found the next day alongside P. sherando in Virginia.

Plethodon teyahalee

Saturday, May 29, 2010

I found this lonely juvenile along with my first P. cheoah.

Plethodon cheoah

Saturday, May 29, 2010

As I left North Carolina for Massachusetts to begin my field season, I decided to stop by Stecoah Gap to look for P. cheoah on Cheoah Bald. Lukily, I soon flipped a small piece of wood just off the road, uncovering this energetic adult.

Plethodon aureolus

Saturday, May 29, 2010

I found this atypical aureolus (they usually have brassy flecks on their backs) on Hooper Bald not long after encountering my first eft.

Desmognathus marmoratus

Wednesday, May 26, 2010

This is one of many species I saw during the Plethodontid course taught by Steve Tilley and Ken Kozak.

Aneides aeneus

Wednesday, May 26, 2010

On a wet night in May 2010 a group from a Plethodontid class I was taking decided to see if we could track down a few individuals of this species at a location known to have a small population of individuals in North Carolina. I was the lucky one to spot this adorable juvenile, as well as a female that was protecting a clutch of eggs in a rock crevice.

Plethodon serratus

Friday, May 21, 2010

This is one of many species I saw during the Plethodontid course taught by Steve Tilley and Ken Kozak.

Desmognathus carolinensis

Friday, May 21, 2010

This is one of many species I saw during the Plethodontid course taught by Steve Tilley and Ken Kozak.

Desmognathus aeneus

Friday, May 21, 2010

This is one of many species I saw during the Plethodontid course taught by Steve Tilley and Ken Kozak.

Desmognathus organi

Thursday, May 20, 2010

This is one of many species I saw during the Plethodontid course taught by Steve Tilley and Ken Kozak.

Plethodon montanus

Wednesday, May 19, 2010

This is one of many species I saw during the Plethodontid course taught by Steve Tilley and Ken Kozak.

Plethodon cylindraceus

Wednesday, May 19, 2010

This is one of many species I saw during the Plethodontid course taught by Steve Tilley and Ken Kozak.

Desmognathus monticola

Wednesday, May 19, 2010

This is one of many species I saw during the Plethodontid course taught by Steve Tilley and Ken Kozak.

Plethodon jordani

Tuesday, May 18, 2010

This is one of many species I saw during the Plethodontid course taught by Steve Tilley and Ken Kozak.

Desmognathus wrighti

Tuesday, May 18, 2010

This is one of many species I saw during the Plethodontid course taught by Steve Tilley and Ken Kozak.

Desmognathus santeetlah

Tuesday, May 18, 2010

This is one of many species I saw during the Plethodontid course taught by Steve Tilley and Ken Kozak.

Desmognathus imitator

Tuesday, May 18, 2010

This is one of many species I saw during the Plethodontid course taught by Steve Tilley and Ken Kozak.

Pseudotriton ruber

Monday, May 17, 2010

This is one of many species I saw during the Plethodontid course taught by Steve Tilley and Ken Kozak.

Plethodon shermani

Monday, May 17, 2010

This is one of many species I saw during the Plethodontid course taught by Steve Tilley and Ken Kozak.

Gyrinophilus porphyriticus

Monday, May 17, 2010

This is one of many species I saw during the Plethodontid course taught by Steve Tilley and Ken Kozak.

Plethodon metcalfi

Sunday, May 16, 2010

This is one of many species I saw during the Plethodontid course taught by Steve Tilley and Ken Kozak.

Eurycea wilderae

Saturday, May 15, 2010

This is one of many species I saw during the Plethodontid course taught by Steve Tilley and Ken Kozak.

Desmognathus quadramaculatus

Saturday, May 15, 2010

This is one of many species I saw during the Plethodontid course taught by Steve Tilley and Ken Kozak.

Desmognathus ocoee

Saturday, May 15, 2010

This is one of many species I saw during the Plethodontid course taught by Steve Tilley and Ken Kozak.

Plethodon petraeus

Friday, May 14, 2010

As I continued my trip from Snake Road to North Carolina (where I was to take a class on the evolution and ecology of Plethodontid salamanders), I decided to stop by Pigeon Mountain in Georgia. Amongst some massive boulders I was able to spot a few individuals of this charismatic species, as well as the tail-end of a Eurycea lucifuga.

Eurycea lucifuga

Friday, May 14, 2010

I found this lone individual, a new species for me, alongside several P. petraeus on Pigeon Mountain.

Plethodon albagula

Thursday, May 13, 2010

My first experience with this handsome salamander was on a cool, damp, cloudy day in Missouri. I stopped by a glade on my way to Snake Road and managed to flip several individuals.

Ambystoma laterale

Saturday, April 3, 2010

This is a beautiful species that I occasionally encountered in the woods near my house growing up. More recently I was able to find this little individual during the spring migration.

Ambystoma tigrinum

Thursday, April 9, 2009

While less charismatic than many other salamander species, tiger salamanders are known to many because of their spectacular distribution. They can be found from British Columbia to Mexico City and are recorded as far east as New York. This individual was captured by my brother-in-law and nephew, who promptly took it to me to key out!