March 24th Salamandering
I visited a wildlife management area in Sussex County to try to find some salamanders. I've been to this location many times in the last few years and had good success, so I thought a relatively warm day toward the end of March could be productive. I arrived a little after 9 a.m. (after a nearly three hour drive) and immediately started looking for salamanders. Water levels were high, but most of the best habitat was still above water. It was a successful trip, with 5 salamander species (99 individuals) seen in a little less than 7 hours.
| Red-backed Salamander | 70 | 59 red-backed, 11 lead-backed |
| Red-spotted Newt | 19 | 11 adults, 8 efts |
| Spotted Salamander | 6 |
| Jefferson Salamander | 2 |
| Four-toed Salamander | 2 |
Other Wildlife: Eastern Garter Snake, Eastern Ribbon Snake, Spring Peeper, Wood Frog, Pileated Woodpecker, Green-winged Teal, Eastern Phoebe, Dark-eyed Junco, Red-tailed Hawk. I found an owl pellet (Long-eared (?) shape and consistency) with a Microtus skull in it.
Four-toed Salamander
Spotted Salamander
Jefferson Salamander
Adult Red-spotted Newt
Red-backed (leadback morph) Salamander
Eastern Garter Snake
Eastern Ribbon Snake
Four-toed Salamander
Spotted Salamander
Red Eft (Red-spotted Newt)
Jefferson Salamander
Pileated Woodpecker
Spotted Salamander
Red Eft (Red-spotted Newt)
Green-winged Teal (bad picture morph)