Rock-Flippin’ for Eurycea bislineata

2008.02.10 – E. bislineata

Originally uploaded by fieldherp

Well truth be told, we were looking for far more than E. bislineata (aka. Northern 2-lined Salamander) but it was all we managed to come up with. However, what we lacked in diversity we made up for in numbers. Jon, Stephanie and I caught a glimpse of 14 of them and managed to capture 8 to photograph before releasing them back into their home. We (or should I say Jon since he was the brawn of the operation) flipped rocks in a rather shallow creek. These little guys seemed to like a particular type of rock and by the end of our venture we could almost pinpoint which rocks would have a salamander below. It was rather fun and each time I set up my camera I would pause to add another one into the crate. They are extremely lively and streamlined and shine brilliantly in the sun. It was a shame that the weather was so overcast! We weren’t expecting to find too much with the prospect of snow and high winds, but it turned out to be a very fruitful adventure for the short amount of time we were out.

A little about E.bislineata: The ground color of the northern two-lined salamander can be yellowish, yellow-orange, greenish, brownish, or copper/bronze. Two dark brown or black lines begin on either side of the body, just behind the eyes and continue onto the tail. These lines break up into dashes and dots about midway or three-fourths of the way down the tail. Along the top of the body there can be dark speckling or mottling which may fuse to form an irregular, third line down the middle of the back. There is also a varying degree of darker mottling along the flanks and there may be 14-16 costal grooves. Sexually active males can be distinguished from females by the presence of enlarged jaw musculature, which gives the male a broader head than females, and a mental gland under the chin. Males in some populations also possess cirri, but they are absent from most. (Quoted from Caudata Culture)

2008.02.10 – E. bislineata

Originally uploaded by fieldherp

The color patterns are better visible in some of my other “wet” photos. The one here shows an excellent example of the range of color one can see in a single habitat area (everything from a brilliant yellow base to a dark rust variant.) I think we had a few males and a few females in the bunch based on their jaw/body. One of the females also appeared to be gravid which is a nice sign. I don’t think I would mind trying to raise a few from larvae if I ever happened to come across any. Of all the plethodontids, these seem particularly interesting/beautiful to me.

Check Here for the rest of the photos.