M
mark
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Sorry for all my previous attempts, hopefully this works and hopefully it will prove to be worth the wait.
The week of 9/12 - 9/17 saw Mike Graziano and myself driving another several hundred miles in search of some truly incredible caudates. This time the destination was Eastern Tennessee, particularly the Great Smoky Mountains. We arrived late evening on the 17th and immediately entered the Park. Upon searching for only a few minutes we found at least five of the target species we had journeyed so far to see. Indeed the rest of the trip turned out to be as fantastic as these first few minutes, resulting in several 'lifers' for the both of us, but more importantly, some absolutely amazing animals.
The trip yielded a total of 21 species of caudates as well as a few other herps and based on a rough tally, approximately 1,000 individual salamanders.
But without further ado, here are the photos.
As they were by far the most numerous of the salamanders we found I think it is only right to start with the duskies.
Desmognathus imitator
Apparently individuals lacking the orange cheek patches such as this one make up greater than 80% of the population.
We found hundreds of the following three species and at times proved quite difficult to differentiate.
Desmognathus ocoee (an exceptionally colorful individual)
Desmognathus conanti
Desmognathus santeetlah
Desmognathus wrighti (showing the telltale herringbone pattern)
A more colorful individual
This image shows an adult Desmognathus wrighti in hand in order to demonstrate size - they truly are deserving of their common name; the Pygmy Salamander!
Please forgive the quality of the last three pics, the animals were just so small it was hard enough to try and focus on them.
The following three species are the more aquatic members of the genus Desmognathus.
Desmognathus monticola
The following was a species I had long wanted to see and it was well worth the wait.
Desmognathus marmoratus
A younger individual
A larva
The following is probably one of the most impressive salamanders I have seen in my life.
Desmognathus quadramaculatus
While searching we would often observe these guys spying on our actions.
Well, that concludes this portion of my post, sorry for those using dial-up.
Oh, and don't think you've seen the last of the duskies just yet.
The week of 9/12 - 9/17 saw Mike Graziano and myself driving another several hundred miles in search of some truly incredible caudates. This time the destination was Eastern Tennessee, particularly the Great Smoky Mountains. We arrived late evening on the 17th and immediately entered the Park. Upon searching for only a few minutes we found at least five of the target species we had journeyed so far to see. Indeed the rest of the trip turned out to be as fantastic as these first few minutes, resulting in several 'lifers' for the both of us, but more importantly, some absolutely amazing animals.
The trip yielded a total of 21 species of caudates as well as a few other herps and based on a rough tally, approximately 1,000 individual salamanders.
But without further ado, here are the photos.
As they were by far the most numerous of the salamanders we found I think it is only right to start with the duskies.
Desmognathus imitator
Apparently individuals lacking the orange cheek patches such as this one make up greater than 80% of the population.
We found hundreds of the following three species and at times proved quite difficult to differentiate.
Desmognathus ocoee (an exceptionally colorful individual)
Desmognathus conanti
Desmognathus santeetlah
Desmognathus wrighti (showing the telltale herringbone pattern)
A more colorful individual
This image shows an adult Desmognathus wrighti in hand in order to demonstrate size - they truly are deserving of their common name; the Pygmy Salamander!
Please forgive the quality of the last three pics, the animals were just so small it was hard enough to try and focus on them.
The following three species are the more aquatic members of the genus Desmognathus.
Desmognathus monticola
The following was a species I had long wanted to see and it was well worth the wait.
Desmognathus marmoratus
A younger individual
A larva
The following is probably one of the most impressive salamanders I have seen in my life.
Desmognathus quadramaculatus
While searching we would often observe these guys spying on our actions.
Well, that concludes this portion of my post, sorry for those using dial-up.
Oh, and don't think you've seen the last of the duskies just yet.
thanks.