Marbled Salamander

When searching through the woods on our last field trip, I commented to my friend that I really wanted to find a marbled salamander (Ambystoma opacum) because it is my favorite and I think one of the prettiest. A few people had caught some marbled salamander larvae but no one had caught an adult yet. We were searching the base of a tree near a stagnant ribbon of water, lifting logs to try and find a skink that we had caught the barest glimpse of. My friend lifted a log underneath the tree and I spotted something black and white that starkly stood out from the red soil underneath. It was indeed a marbled salamander. These are easily identifiable by the black background with white or grey crossbands and spots depending on the gender. Females have a grey foreground, while males have white crossbands. The one I caught was definitely female, about 3 inches long. She was rather docile when held, not really squirming around as much as I would have thought she'd be. Marbled salamanders are rather chunky and are typically found in moist sandy areas. After being handled for a few minutes, she started to feel dry so we kept dribbling water over her while she was in our possession. By the time I took her back to her log, she started emitting a slimy and sticky coating, presumable as a way to keep from drying out. I was happy to have found what I had wished for.

Natural History: Eastern Hognose Snake

On March 26, 2015 our Herpetology class went on a field trip to Dixie Plantation. We had just gotten out of the van and were making our way down a path where we were heading to pick up some traps that were set. I was in the front of crowd when all of a sudden I saw something slithering on the side of the path, towards us. At first I could not tell what it was, but as soon as I yelled to the class that I had found something it was clear that this was a hognose. As soon as I made a nose the Eastern Hognose (Heterodon platirhinos) began displaying defensive behavior, a distinguishing characteristic of the species. It flattened out its head (like a cobra) and began hissing and shaking the tip of its tail. This hognose never resorted to flipping over to play dead (I guess we weren’t scary enough).

The Hognose that we saw in the field was all black, this means that it was in the melanistic "black" phase, but this species can vary in color. The snake was approximately three feet long and had a thick body with keeled scales and an upturned snout. This was an adult snake but I could not tell if it was a male or a female because the snake never flipped over. Usually the males are distinguishable from the females by a bulge near their cloaca and a drastically tapered off tail. These snakes are also rear fanged which allows them to easily puncture their prey. They like to eat things such as toads, frogs, salamanders, small mammals, and birds.

Eastern Hognose snakes are mostly found in the eastern part of the United States (hence the name) and prefer to live in woodlands, coastal areas, or farmlands with sandy soil or fields. During the winters the snakes hibernate by burrowing. When the snakes come out of hibernation, they are diurnal. Hognose snakes become sexually mature at around two years old. They are oviparous and prefer to lay their eggs in the spring. They usually lay about 15-25 eggs in sandy soil, rocks, or logs and the eggs incubate for around 1-2 months.

I was extremely excited to spot this snake slithering down the path. I was surprised that it was so out in the open, but it was perfect for our class to be able to observe its characteristics and behavior. One of our classmates even got to touch the snake while it was displaying its defensive behavior. Our class was hoping that if we watched it perform its defensive behavior for long enough that the snake would resort to playing dead, but in the end it just ended up going back to its normal state and slithering off into the woods.

A salamander the size of a car?

What would you do if you came across a salamander that happens to be the size of your car? Chances are that will not happen although 200 MYA that idea wouldn't be that far fetched. Researchers recently uncovered new fossils of Metoposaur, which was a carnivorous amphibian from the late Triassic Period. 

The researchers discovered a new species M.algarvensis in Southern Portugal. This creature fossils indicated that it could range between 2 -3 meters, which is about 7-9 feet long! It would of lived in lakes or rivers and prey mainly on fish but also have the ability to prey on dinosaurs that came too close. Acting similar to crocdiles. The head is flattened and its eye sit on top of its head. In addition the monster salamander has hundreds of sharp teeth.

The bones were discovered in location which researchers believe it might be a mass grave as a result of a lake drying up that the creatures inhabited. Similar mass graves have been found in other locations in Africa and in North America. This creatures look like something out of a horror movie, however Metoposaur died out in the late Triassic era.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/videos/d40f91a8a36f78d28e9ff1eb0bd49bcc.htm 

Riverbank Zoo Trip

Hey guys - I recently went on a trip to the Riverbanks Zoo in Columbia SC. Wanted to share some of the pictures I got! It the picture, then following is the name and a quick bit of information.

Snakes

• Thamnophis sirtalis - Eastern Garter Snake
• Super common and harmless

• Pantherophis guttatus - Corn Snake
• Kill their prey by constriction & consuming anything smaller than their own size, including other corn snakes. 

• Crotalus unicolor- Aruba Island Rattlesnake
• Belongs to the family of vipers, Viperidae
• Found only in Aruba, which is off the coast of Venezuela.

• Bitis arietans - Puff Adder
• Extremely venomous and short-tempered snake.
• Found in southern Africa.

• Agkistrodon contortrix - Copperhead

• Agkistrodon piscivorus - Eastern Cottonmouth
• Makes are known to have a "combat dance" that includes coiling, vibrating and opening its mouth to show the white color inside. 

• Morelia viridis - Green Tree Python
• By far my favorite herp at the zoo!
• Exhibit a wide array of colors, with babies often being maroon or yellow

Turtles

• Chelus fimbriatus - Matamata Turtle
• Located in Northern South America in river basins. One of the largest freshwater turtles.
• By far the "oddest" thing I saw at the Zoo - I would encourage everyone to look up pictures of them feeding - its freaky. 

• Chelonoidis nigra - Galapagos Tortoise
• Juveniles, only 4 years old
• Travel at 0.16 miles per hour

• Centrochelys sulcata - African Spurred Tortoise
• One of the largest tortoises.
• Desert swelling tortoise
• Somehow you can order them online - which is disturbing. 

Others

• Tomistoma schleglii - False Gharial
• Crocodile with a very slender snout believed to be an adaptation to catch fish.
• And yes that is a turtle by its snout! (Freshwater)

• Cyclura lewisi - Grand Cayman Blue Iguana
• Can grow up to 5 feet long, and live as long as humans! 
• Largest native land animal to the Grand Cayman, its the most endangered iguana on earth
• Due to habitat destruction
• There are multiple recovery programs for these reptiles however.

• Uroplatus phantasticus - Leaf tailed Gecko
• Found on African Islands
• Favorite food is spiders
• They have scales (which is hard to see)

• Heloderma suspectum - Gila Monster
• One of only two venomous lizards (Mexican beaded lizard)
• When they bite they chew the venom into their prey via their grooved teeth
• Spend most of their lives hidden below the ground

Pristimantis mutabilis: The Shape-Shifting Frog

I came across an article in Sci-News the other day describing a newfound anuran species formally described as Pristimantis mutabilis, or mutable rain frog, by the Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society.  This is the only known amphibian species to have "shape-shifting" capabilities, that is, it has phenotypic plasticity that allows it to change the shape and texture of its skin in minutes to better mimic its surroundings. Herpetologists that have observed this creature believe that this unique ability is an adaptation to better avoid predation from birds, snakes, etc. Pristimantis mutabilis is a member of an especially large genus (over 400 species) that is native across Central and South America, from Honduras to Southern Brazil and Northern Argentina, as well as in the southern Caribbean.  
About the size of a marble, this creature was discovered sitting on a leaf by Katherine and Tim Krynak in 2009. They noticed that this was no ordinary frog when its skin changed shape upon capture. Genetic and morphological analysis confirmed that Pristimantis mutabilis was indeed a new species and it has since been closely studied to further understand its characteristics, behaviors, and evolutionary origins.

"Pristimantis Mutabilis: Scientists Discover Shape-Shifting Frog in Ecuador." Breaking Science News SciNewscom. Sci-News, 24 Mar. 2015. Web. 30 Mar. 2015.

Article Review: Photonic crystals in chameleons.

Have you ever wondered how a chameleon changes colors so rapidly? Cutting edge research reveals how this color changing process actually works. After hearing our fellow classmate talk about chameleon color change, and even hearing about it via social media, I took it into my own hands to read the article that was published in the last few weeks.

I have always assumed that chameleons only change color in order to camouflage with their surroundings, in hopes of avoiding predation. However, this article revealed another reason for their spectacular color changing ability, which is to improve the resistance to variable sunlight exposure. Unlike most lizards, the skin of a chameleon has two thick layers of iridophore cells. Each of these layers consists of guanine crystals of different shapes, sizes, and organization. The upper layer of cells is referred to as the S-iridophore layer and has small, close packed crystals. However, the lower, more flat and disorganized crystal layers of cells are of particular interest, and are known as D-iridophores. Research reveals that this larger D-iridophore layer that is extremely thick compared to iridophores observed in other lizards, can actually reflect a large portion of direct and indirect sunlight, even in the near-infrared range.  This is important because many chameleons occupy environments that are dry/arid, and exposed to intense sunlight. According to this particular study, the D-iridophores cause a 45% decrease in sunlight absorption. Considering the environment that many chameleons live in, this ability of D-iridophores to provide a means for thermal protection is likely highly advantageous for chameleon's survival.

S-iridophores, rather than D-iridophores, are thought to aid in the rapid color change that occurs during courtship, and male-male interactions. Chameleons actively change their guanine crystal spacing in the S-iridophore layer. For example, by increasing the distance between crystals, S-iridophores can shift their selective reflectability from blue to red wavelengths, which in response causes a shift from green to yellowish orange skin color. I find it very interesting that chameleons have the ability to both camoflauge, and also protect themselves from intense radiation with the same kind of cells. I look forward to hearing further research on this topic, and recommend that everyone reads this article if they get the chance. 

Marel, D., Milinkovitch, M., Saenko, S., and Teyssier J. (2015). Photonic crystals cause active colour change in chameleons. Nature Communications

http://www.nature.com/ncomms/2015/150302/ncomms7368/full/ncomms7368.html

Natural History of Micrurus Fulvius fulvius - Eastern Coral Snake

Micrurus Fulvius fulvius - Eastern Coral Snake

While I was on a hitching trail over spring break I was lucky enough to discover an Eastern Coral snake. I was at Harbison State Forest which is located in Columbia SC, near the Broad River. The forest encompasses over 2,000 acres and is one of the largest public green spaces near a metropolitan area in the U.S.  

The eastern coral snake belongs to the Family Elapidae which consist of coral snakes. These snakes are dangerously venomous and we only have one local species in the area, that being the eastern coral. The family is separated into Old World coral snakes (found in Asia) and New World coral snakes (found in the Americas). The eastern coral snake ranging from North Carolina to Florida and sometimes in Texas.

These snakes are typically small and slender with adults ranging from 20-30 inches, and at hatching they are 7-9 inches. They are vibrantly colored with red and yellow rings touching. The end of the snout is black, and the red rings are typically spotted with black. Their pattern is considered to be the brightest of North American coral snakes. They have rounded noses that are blunt and that look similar to their tails. When provoked they have been observed making a popping noise. This noise comes from expelling air from their cloaca as an attempt to startle the threat. This behavior is also been observed in hook-nosed snakes and referred to “Microfarts”.

Eastern coral snakes have a small mouth and short fangs without the ability to contract its fangs into its mouth. Therefore the fangs are weak. However their venom is highly toxic, deaths are rare due to the development of an antivenin. Due to their fangs being in a fixed position, they deliver the position through a chewing motion. The venom will cause rapid paralysis and respiratory failure but can take many hours for the symptoms to be noticed in humans.

Unlike other venomous snakes, eastern coral snakes lay eggs. They typically lay 6-7 eggs in the summer and hatch in the fall. They are usually secretive and prowl in the early morning. They primarily hunt slender lizards and small smooth scaled snakes.

There are many snakes that attempt to mimic the coral snakes pattern due to their reputation. Scarlet king snakes (Lampropeltis triangulum) and Scarlet snake (Cemophora coccinea) look similar in their pattern although red and yellow are separated by black rings, and in the Scarlet snake the belly is white and unpatterned. In addition their snouts are not black but rather red.  One way to remember this is a simple rhyme that goes “Red and yellow, can kill a fellow; Red and black, friend of Jack.

I found this little guy hiding under some leaves deep in the forest about a mile and half off a trail. I was super exciting to see him and it was an awesome feeling to be able to identify him on the spot. I tried not to get too close so I am unsure of the sex or precise size. I would guess that “he” was an adult being about 23 inches. It was early morning when I discovered him so I assume he was on the prowl hunting for some yummy lizards to eat.

Natural History: Yellow Rat Snake (Pantherophis Spilotes pullatus)

Yellow Rat snakes are slender constrictors and have an average length of 36-48 inches. Their coloration varies by region. Yellow Rat snakes in Florida are a much brighter yellow/orange with thin dark stripes while the ones found in the Carolinas has a duller yellow coloration accompanied with the thin dark stripes. Oviparity is seen in Yellow Rat snakes with breeding occurring from March to May and clutch sizes ranging from 6-30 eggs. Hatchlings typically eat lizards and small mice, while the adults tend to eat rodents and birds. This species can be found in a variety of habitats, many of which being pine forests with water nearby. While they are typically terrestrial, they can be found in arboreal habitats.  They range through the eastern coast of the Carolinas and all the way through Florida.

I was, ironically, on my way to my Herpetology class when I spotted the Yellow Rat snake outside a building in the grass. I would not have noticed it had it not been for the two male college students standing on the side walk adjacent to the snake. I had been biking by and had to stop my bike and back track. The two males were throwing sticks at the snake in hopes of making it move and I was worried they were going to scare it away before I got a good look at it. Luckily, I was able to make it in time to snap some pictures before I had to run to class. At the time, I had not learned all of the species and could not identify the snake without the help of my field guide, which, of course, I didn’t have with me that day. Fortunately, I was able to use someone else’s when I arrived at class and compared it to the pictures I had taken and determined that it was a Yellow Rat snake. 

Natural History: The Cottonmouth Snake

The cottonmouth snake or scientifically known as Agkistrodon piscivorus is a venomous snake that belongs in the family Crotalidae. The venom in these snakes are hemotoxic and destroys blood cells and their ability to clot. Cottonmouths can be distinguished from other snakes by their pits located between their nose and eyes, their vertical pupils, broad head, and hinged fangs in the front of their mouths. 

The pictures above were taken on our field trip to Caw Caw County Park. I have never seen one so close up, and immediately I was enamored by them. These snakes are found in the Southeastern part of the United States and there are three subspecies: the eastern, Florida, and western cottonmouths. They are semi-aquatic snakes and tend to inhabit brackish waters, swamps, marshes, and streams. They are more active at night and tend to bask during the day, which is shown in the above pictures. Their diet includes a variety of warm and cold blooded prey including other water snakes, fish, frogs, birds, etc. The pit in between their eyes and nostrils is used for heat-sensing and they can accurately strike a prey. The females are oviparous and they breed during the spring. The males will nudge the females back and sides until she is ready to engage in copulation. Females can have up to twelve young at a time. The young can be recognized by being brightly colored and a bright yellow tail. 

When we saw these snakes in the field, I was immediately drawn to them. Snakes in general are very cool, however these snakes are very distinct and I felt very lucky to see them that day. From the pictures, I can't really tell the sex of the snakes but they do seem to be adults. The snakes appear to be fully grown, and though they are curled up in the pictures, they can be anywhere between 30-48 inches long. The young are brightly colored with yellow tails but the snakes above are darker with no yellow tail. The snakes in the picture are basking but they did remain close to the water. The fact that they remain close to the water even while basking shows the habitat of these snakes. They are aquatic and prefer areas where there are lakes and ponds, such as this one but also need some sort of terrestrial area for basking, which is near the water. While venturing the area, we found many animals including anoles, leopard frogs, salamanders, amphuimas that can be potential prey for the cottonmouth. 

My experience about the trip was truly memorable. I have never been to Caw Caw so it was particularly interesting for me to see the amphibians and reptiles we were studying in lab, except these were live and made the trip even more worthwhile. I particularly enjoyed collecting the traps and finding what was inside them. I have never done something like that in the field before and I would definitely do it again. Overall, I loved going out there and finding frogs, lizards, salamanders, amphuimas, tadpoles, etc but the snakes were definitely a highlight for me. 

Article Review: Copper Toxicity

A recent study ( Santos et al. 2013) published in the journal of Environmental Toxicity Chemistry revealed that low concentrations of NaCl exposure to Pelophylax Perezi), or Perez’s frog embryos lead to a protective trait on additional effects of copper toxicity. Additionally, it was observed that exposure to NaCl in tadpoles resulted in a more lethal copper toxicity. This new and innovative research shows that salinity can have a beneficial effect on other lethal chemicals exposure during the life stages. This is extremely important with the ever increasing salinity in the breeding habitats for amphibians, having resulted from agricultural runoff and other anthropocentric actions. As we continue to advance our technological innovations that allow society to continue to flourish, we continually add to the damaging effects of our actions to the environment. IF unregulated, human actions will significantly (and have already significantly) effected the reproductive habits and habitats of amphibians.

Article Citation: BÁRBARA SANTOS,RUI RIBEIRO, INÊS DOMINGUES, RUTH PEREIRA, AMADEU M.V.M. SOARES, and ISABEL LOPES. 2013.  Environmental Toxicity and Chemistry 32(8) 1864-1872.

Running Toads of Spain

Last semester, I had the opportunity to study abroad in Spain. This was a great experience in many ways, and as I was enrolled in a class on the natural history of Spain, I was able to become very familiar with the herps of the Iberian peninsula. There are surprisingly few amphibians there, mostly because of the arid climate, but on one field trip I was able to identify the toad Epidalea calamita (formerly Bufo calamita).

Photo: Wikipedia commons

This particular specimen (which I do not have a picture of, unfortunately) was about 2 inches long and was found hiding under a rotting log on the shore of a new reservoir. We were not able to determine the sex. This toad is commonly called the Natterjack toad in English and "el sapo corredor" in Spanish. The Spanish name translates literally to "the runner toad", which gives away the toad's most unique feature: because of its proportionally short legs, it has a running gait instead of hopping like a typical frog. After a few seconds of prompting, our specimen ran further under the log and away from us.

Natterjack toads usually prefer sandy, moist environments and are found all over western Europe, including the British Isles. They breed over a 3-month period from April to July and reproduce by spawning in small, shallow pools. Because of the arid climate in southern Europe, they tend to lose lots of tadpoles when the pools dry out. They are nocturnal and feed mostly on small insects, worms, and other small reptiles or amphibians. They are very efficient at traveling large distances despite their tiny limbs, making them good at finding mates and invading new areas.

The Natterjack toad was one of the only amphibians we found in Spain in our natural history class. I was very excited when we found it, and the running gait is a unique trait that I found very interesting. I do not recommend traveling to Spain just to see the toad, but if you happen to be there, flipping over a log in a wet, sandy area can't hurt.

Natural History: American Alligator

The Monday after our first field trip to Caw Caw, I got to revisit the site with my plant class. And in addition to seeing various plants, the warmer weather made up for the absence of a "gator" in the previous trip. There I encountered the first Crocodilian I've ever seen in the wild! (speaks someone from a metropolitan city...) In stead of being scared to death like I imagined I'd do, I was actually super excited and took as many pictures as I could when the professor urged us to hurry up and walk around it.

I so wished I could take a picture with both me and the alligator in it; my friends would think it's so cool!

 



This species of alligator, the only species around here, is the American alligator (Alligator mississippiensis). It is one of the 8 species of alligators that exist. Alligator mississippiensis is naturally distributed only in the United States, and only in the south eastern United States--in Alabama, Arkansas, North & South Carolina, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma, and Texas. So you'd think people would not want to eat them, but apparent that's not true... Anyways, here's a distribution map:

Their habitats are primarily fresh water swamps and marshes, but also inland waters--rivers, lakes, and small bodies of waters. They can occasionally can also be found in brackish water, but alligators can only tolerate salinity for a short duration. Unlike crocodiles, alligators lack buccal salt-secreting glands. This one I saw, like a typical alligator, was on the fresh water side of the old rice bed.

 



The alligator was rather small, about a meter long if I have to make an estimation, but certainly not the size of a baby. Young alligators have bright yellow crossbands which darkens as the animals age. They reach maturity at around 1.8m. I can't see any bright yellow on this one, so I think it's an adolescent transforming into an adult.

What do they eat? This is another to-my-surprise moment. My impression of crocodilian diet comes from watching crocodiles taking on antelopes and zebras during the migration in Africa, but there aren't many of those here. Juvenile alligators eat a combination of small invertebrates-- like insects (!), and small fish and frogs. Even adults would eat fish, turtles and other reptiles, birds (!) in addition to larger preys. Their feeding activity is dependent on water temperature. If the water temperature is below 20 to 23°C (68 to 73°F), they stop foraging.

The one I saw did not move once since I saw he/ she, just basking in the sun to get energy. Apparently, the only other way to tell their sexes besides size is by messing with their cloaca, which I happily stayed away from. But you can learn more here: http://crocodilian.com/crocfaq/faq-8.html#9.1

Herps in Art: The Pacific Tree Frog (Pseudacris regilla)

At first glance, the Pacific Tree Frog (Pseudacris regilla) catches the eye with its vibrantly bright hues of green. If you are not keen on details, it would be very easy to miss this amphibian that seemlessly blends in with its arboreal environment. It's much like a really intense game of "I Spy" -- the frog edition.


Let me introduce you to an artist who knows what it means to capture beauty that is skin deep. Brandon Ballengée is an artist, biologist and environmental activist who effortlessly marries science and art into a visual euphoria. He creates "reliquaries" of amphibians. That's right. Mr. Ballengée essentially collects the remains of amphibians (mostly Californian frogs) and somehow preserves them for his artistic renditions. According to his personal site, this intricate process includes collecting permanently deformed frogs found in nature, followed by "clearing and staining" and re-scaling their actual sizes into smaller portraits. This is not meant to be a cut-and-dry replication of the frogs. Rather, it removes some visual elements of the frogs (i.e. large size and some colors) that may "frighten" the viewers into perceiving these creatures as monsters. And he achieves this, hands down. Here is one of his reliquary works on Pseudacris regilla. This one is entitled Phaethon.

Stained reliquary: Phaethon

For starters, the name of this piece is very fitting for the image. Phaethon means "Shining One," and in Greek mythology, he was the young son of the Sun god, Helios. The story goes that young Phaethon begged his father to ride the sun-chariot, and when he finally did, his inexperience led him to lose control of the chariot -- setting aflame the Earth and all the plains of Africa to desert (http://www.theoi.com). In this image, the intensely bright yellow colour down the spine of the frog stirs that image of the bright yellow sun-chariot and the beautiful yet dangerous chaos that became of it. Ballengée also makes this relic of Pseudacris regilla appear to be glowing and levitating, like a celestial body. Like a harmless and docile being, as innocent as a newborn baby. This portrayal of the frog incites a feeling of comfort and trust. I could not help but feel an enormous amount of compassion for this cute "little" frog. It's almost interesting how there is an opposition between name and image as well. Dangerous yet beautiful. Mischievous yet innocent. I believe that this is Ballengée's aim, not just in this piece of art, but also in his other renditions of amphibians. Sometimes people are quick to run away from amphibians or characterise all of them as beasts and monsters that only seek to make our lives more difficult or uncomfortable. However, that is not always the case. We co-exist with these animals, and they need the same amount of love that we too are seeking. For more of these images, check out Ballengée's website: http://brandonballengee.com/projects/reliquaries/.