Non-herp animal encounters

Northern Saw-whet Owl (Aegolius acadicus)

My friend Lori set up an opportunity to capture and band these fantastic little owls while we were up in Virginia. I had assisted in this (mostly as a tourist) in Indiana one year, but this was my first time removing the owls from the nets and banding and measuring them myself.



American Robin (Turdus migratorius)

This robin just looked stuffed beneath an American persimmon (Diospyros virginiana) tree that had dropped a lot of ripe fruit. I partook of some of the fruit and then photographed this bird that may have been too full to be very concerned with my proximity!



Virginia Opossum (Didelphis virginiana)

Even though these animals look like oversized rats, I really enjoy seeing them. Interestingly, they are the only marsupial that occurs in the U.S.





Unknown fungus. I just liked how these looked.

Amorous feral hogs and some nice birds

I recently witnessed some wild boar (Sus scrofa) behavior that I hadn't seen before. I wonder what they could be up to...




Sarah and I went to Fort Pickens with our friend Don Ware to try to see the third Green-tailed Towhee ever to be reported in Florida. After a couple hours of patient waiting, this striking little bird tentatively emerged from the brush.


Green-tailed Towhee (Pipilo chlorurus)

Along with the towhee, we enjoyed seeing some other birds in the area.


White-winged Dove (Zenaida asiatica)



Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias)

2009 October herping trip

My coworker and friend Brandon and I recently drove to Blacksburg, VA for our annual "Big Meeting" of Jeff Walters' various employees, grad students, and post-docs. As I've done in past years, I augmented the trip to and from Blacksburg and did some herping/hiking and visited family. I'll cover some of the highlights in the brief (ha ha) series of photos below.

These next four photos are of my favorite salamander of the trip.


Green Salamander (Aneides aeneus)







Green Salamander in damp rock crevice where it spends much of it's time.



Pigeon Mountain Salamander (Plethodon petraeus) in deep crevice, similar to Green Salamander behavior



Pigeon Mountain Salamander out on the prowl



Northern Slimy Salamander (Plethodon glutinosus)



This Allegheny Woodrat (Neotoma magister) was an amusing addition to our experience. It was constantly scampering past us, to and fro, as it gathered acorns to store for the winter. You can only see it's little snout with an acorn sticking out from under the log.



I wasn't expecting to find scorpions under logs at high elevations in Northern Georgia, so this made a good consolation prize in the absence of the salamanders I was hoping to find at this location. If anyone knows what scorpion species occurs in Chattooga County, GA, I'd be interested to know.



Adult Northern Red Salamander (Pseudotriton ruber ruber)



Showy Gentian (Gentiana decora)



Blue Ridge Two-lined Salamander (Eurycea wilderae)





Southern Appalachian Salamander? (Plethodon teyahalee)



Peaks of Otter Salamander (Plethodon hubrichti)



Dixie Caverns variant of Wehrle's Salamander (Plethodon wehrlei)



I'll only say we were driving in the correct lane...



I appreciated the similar growth forms of this Lycopodiella and Selaginella.



A curious White-footed Mouse (Peromyscus leucopus)



Valley and Ridge Salamander (Plethodon hoffmani)



Many-lined Salamander (Stereochilus marginatus)



Flash photo of Many-lined Salamander to show the thin lateral streaks for which this animal is named



Southern Dusky Salamander (Desmognathus auriculatus) This species has experienced one of the steepest declines of any amphibian species in North America in recent decades, and for reasons unknown in some areas that still have pristine habitat. I was glad to at least see a few individuals where we found this one.



Atlantic Coast Slimy Salamander (Plethodon chlorobryonis)



Chamberlain's Dwarf Salamander (Eurycea chamberlaini)



Carpenter Frog (Lithobates virgatipes)
This species of frog is one of the most closely related to Florida Bog Frogs, which we work with on Eglin.


On our way back to Florida, our friend Kevin was generous with his time, and took us out to see some of the areas where he works. There were many neat things to see, but my favorite was seeing Venus Flytraps (Dionaea muscipula) growing as a wild native plant instead of in little pots. Despite the approaching dormant season, many of them were looking quite attractive.




Venus Flytrap and Sundew (Drosera sp.); two carnivorous plants growing side by side.






Does "PHROG" = FROG? If so, I think we spotted some more amphibian lovers.



Among all the local food signs, this one seemed to boast some pretty exotic flavors...



Eastern Box Turtle (Terrapene carolina)



Gopher Tortoise (Gopherus polyphemus)



I just liked this shroom



Forked Bluecurls (Trichostema dichotomum)

Catching up with some half year highlights

Here are some memorable (for me) little gems from my past few months.



My friend Kirk spotted one of these Okefenokee Zale Moth larvae (Zale perculta) while we were out looking for other things. It turned out to represent a ~100 mile extension to their previously known range. They feed exclusively on Climbing Fetterbush (Pieris phyllyreifolia), which is a pretty neat plant that you can learn more about HERE.



This Portuguese Man-O-War (Physalia physalis) is doomed to be churned in the surf and washed up on the beach. They float at the surface, have no ability to propel themselves, and are completely at the mercy of where the wind and surface currents direct them.



I was fortunate to be involved in the capture of this Black-banded Sunfish (Enneacanthus chaetodon) while seining for Greater Sirens (Siren lacertina). This beautiful little species hadn't been documented in Florida for many years, and my friend John recognized it for the special find it was.



While following a group of Red-cockaded Woodpeckers (Picoides borealis), I flushed up this young Red-shouldered Hawk (Buteo lineatus) which had just caught a Southern Black Racer (Coluber constrictor priapus). I took this low quality photo through a scope mounted on a gun stock, so the quality isn't very good, but I still like it.



This Oldfield Mouse (Peromyscus polionotus) was caught in a funnel trap set out to sample herps. I rarely see more than a glimpse of small mammals unless they're being trapped for, so this was a treat to see.



I happened upon this domesticated Muscovy Duck hen tending her recently hatched young back in a swampy area while looking for sirens. I'm including this photo for my mother, who has a special place in her heart for domesticated waterfowl. Also, the cute factor is admittedly pretty high.