I slept way too late and we almost missed our short window, but it was in the low 60s and sunny so we decided to go check our local dens to see if the snakes were back for the Winter. We got there a bit before 2 PM and knew we only had an hour or so.
The recent rains made us think about salamanders, too. It wasn't long before we were finding Redbacks.
A four pack of varying colors!
This has got to be right up there as the most beautiful Leadback I've ever seen. Gold flecks down the back, spotted sides and legs... just a stunner.
The dens were quiet because we'd arrived a bit too late. The sun wasn't hitting just right. Still, I managed to startle a small and beautiful Garter who posed for a moment before taking off.
We went for a while without seeing anything. We checked dens and flipped logs. I was still holding out hope for a Blue-spotted Salamander, a species we usually have good luck with but had come up short this (horrible) year.
I was flipping stones in a section where we've seen plenty of salamanders in the past, but we saw nothing. I was stepping towards another rock when I had to twist myself and sidestep rapidly... I almost stepped on this Garter that was laying there!
I picked it up to make sure it was OK. It was cold, but warmed up rapidly. She musked me, slid to the ground and flattened out and started striking. Feisty feisty feisty! We watched her as she went on her way, slithering under a rock.
Before leaving that area, I flipped a 6-pack of Redbacks with some worms on the side. I told you this was a good salamander spot.
We walked back to the car via the cemetery road. We'd hoped we would see the Racer in her box again, but all of that had been moved. I flipped a few rocks along the way. One rock gave us our First of Year Blue-spotted!
It's about time! We usually get these guys in March!
That's a pretty decent way to end October.
No comments:
Post a Comment