Spotted Salamander (Ambystoma maculatum)

Awhile back on 3-18-10, Dr. Boone's Herpetology class went to Indian Run Wild Life Preserve in Reily, Ohio to go Herp hunting. We entered the Preserve after parking near a cemetery off of Highway 732. We walked up a decaying asphalt drive that opened up into a visitors area with gazebos. Past this, we continue through a forest of neatly spaced white pine that had been planted by man decades ago. On the other side of this forest was a pond surrounded on one side by a drift fence that the T.A. Tammy had set up for an experiment. Any Herps who came to the fence were guided along the length of it into small pits full of water. This is one way to keep track of the population that lives in the area. Anyway, after noting the layout of the area in our field books, we all waded into the pond. Others walked around its perimeter to the other side in an attempt to track down an unseen frog making calls. During my jaunt through the water, I found a long string of frog eggs that had been attached to the limb of a tree that had fallen half way into the pond. Others found tadpoles and one rather large dead turtle. Sometime later people started to turn over logs a few feet away from the edge of the pond to find a large number of Spotted Salamanders (Ambystoma maculatum). I didn’t want to miss out on the action, so I waddled out of the pond and began to do the same thing. I turned over one particularly large log to find what was later explained to me to be a male Spotted Salamander with a swollen cloaca full of sperm. It was their mating season at the time, so that didn’t really surprise me at all.

I do not have a picture of the specific specimen that I found, but they all pretty much look the same. Here is a pic of another Spotted Salamander found that day.


The Spotted Salamander can grow between almost five to eight inches long and is usually a dark color. It gets its name from a collection of up to fifty bright yellow spots that cover its body. They often breed early in spring after migrating to woodland ponds. Thus, the area we went to is a prime example of this. They are often found under rocks or boards (in our case logs) in moist environments. The species tends to have four fingers on the front legs and five on the back.

(Jim R. McClanahan)

Mudpuppy (Nectorus maculosus)

On April 22, 2010, Dr. Boone’s Herpetology class once again visited Houston Woods State Park for another round of searching for Herp species native to Butler Country. This time, we went to a rolling stream near the quarry. We began to walk up current turning over heavy rocks and digging through muck along the way. It didn’t take very long for people to find all sorts of squirming things. I, however, didn’t find anything until quite some time later. It was after I hopped up a waterfall to a flat rock shelf covered in a mesh of slimy green grass-like material that I flipped over a rock and saw it. At first, I wasn’t really quite sure what it was. It just looked like a small twig that had been washed downstream and got stuck under the rock. When the swirling mud finally cleared, I saw some appendages. I tried to grab it, but it was so tiny that my meaty hands couldn’t get around it. Another student was able to catch it for me. We called the T.A. Tammy over and attempted to determine what it was, but it was so tiny. It probably wasn’t even an inch and a half long. She thought maybe it was a streamside at first, but then she changed her mind to a Mudpuppy (Nectorus maculosus). When the student sat it down in the water, its external gills fanned out. It was really neat.

The Mudpuppy is an aquatic Salamander that retains its larval characteristics of external gills. This retention of juvenile characteristics is known as Paedomorphosis. The Mudpuppy is usually found under rocks in slow moving streams and lakes. Their diet consists of just about anything that can fit into their mouths, including fish, aquatic insects, crawfish, etc. They are normally a dark or rusty color with indistinct blue spots scattered on the dorsal side of the body.

(Jim R. McClanahan)

Stinky attitude, stinky stink

Our class went out to Hueston Woods State Park on April 22 to a location called the Quarry picnic area where a nice rocky creek flows, providing great habitat for a number of herps. I found this young northern/midland water snake (Nerodia sipedon) about 10 inches in length hanging out under a medium sized rock about 6 or so feet from the water. Water snakes are known for having a really unpleasant disposition and this one was no different. As I tried to grab its head to catch it, it of course tried to bite me, and then continued to try to twist its twisty little mouth around after I caught it trying to bite me. I avoided a bite, but I was promptly defecated on (that yellow paste on my hand in the picture), and probably musked....and that smelled pretty horrible...I don't know exactly how to describe it, but it stinks. Not exactly a dignified way to defend yourself, but effective.

So, water snakes in general enjoy living near water (hence the name) and will dine on tadpoles, frogs, crayfish, small fish and mammals. They are not venomous, but are sometimes mistaken for the venomous eastern massasauga and killed. They breed from April to June and are ovoviparous, meaning the females carry the eggs inside her until they hatch, so she bears live young (how many depends on her size).

(Paula Cimprich, Miami University OH)

Spring Peepers Are In The Air

Peep. Peep. Peep. Spring peepers, Pseudacris crucifer, seem to be everywhere! The herp class went to a small pond in Hueston Woods State Park in Oxford, OH on April 8, 2010. It was a cloudy, windy, rainy, and fairly cool day, with temperatures in the low 50s. As Dr. Boone was explaining to the class how it might be difficult to find herps on this cold and rainy day a spring peeper jumped right under her feet in the grass. This spring peeper was only one of two specimens the class caught at this pond.

Although that day was not the best day for finding reptiles and amphibians, a few weeks prior we went to Rush Run in Summerville, OH and found hundreds of spring peepers. There were two ponds at Rush Run located in the middle of a large field with tall grass nearly completely engulfing the ponds. The grass was so dense that at times it was hard to wade through. However, this site was perfect for finding spring peepers. The peeping of all the spring peepers were nearly deafening.

Spring peepers, Pseudacris crucifer, are small frogs ranging from .75 inches to 1 inch. The are easily distinguished by the dark "X" on their back. P. crucifer begin calling in late February/ early March and continue until late May. While at Rush Run, not only did we hear the high pitched "peeps", but we also witnessed many spring peepers mating! After mating, the female will lay approximately 900 eggs in the egg clutch.

From my experiences, spring peepers are one of the easiest frogs to find and catch in Butler County, OH. To find them, go out to ponds without fish and listen for the "peep" that gives them their name.

Posted by Tim Hake. Picture courtesy of Boone, MD (2010).

Eurycea longicauda April 4th 2010

Longtail salamander (E. longicauda) was found under a rock near a stream at Hueston Woods State Park on April 4th, 2010 at ~14:15. Species is easily identified by 1. a tail that's as long as its body and 2. the vertical bands that are on its tail. The species can normally range in color from orange to ground color, with this specimin being of the brighter variation. As usual with all the brook salamanders (genus Eurycea), this species lives near streams south to TN, north to NY, east to the Atlantic Ocean and west to the Mississippi River. Source: Peterson Field Guide to Reptiles and Amphibians of Eastern/Central North America 3 ed.

Posted by Tyler Eaton, Photo by Tammy McPeek.

B. americanus

This American toad (Bufo americanus) was found in a streem at Hueston Woods State Park in Butler County, Ohio on April 23, 2010 at ~15:00. The toad was found on the river bank just sitting on a rock. It was captured, and the warts on its thigh were used to distinguish it from the Fowler's toad (B. woodhousii). The specimin was approx. 4.0 cm snout to vent and 8.0 cm snout to toes. According to Peterson's Field Guide to Reptiles and Amphibians of Easter/Central North America, this toad is just on the lower size of average (given 2-3 in). Based on this data it is hypothesized that the toad was male, as females tend to be larger. This toad's rusty red/brown color made it stand out well against the rocks.

It was not surprizing to find this toad in this location as American toads are widespread throughout the eastern and midwestern United States. They prefer habitats where there are hiding spots avaliable, temporary or permenant water, and plenty of instects for food. This location met all of those qualifications.

Posted by Tyler Eaton. Photo by Tammy McPeek.

Tadpoles soon to come

I was walking in the Silvoor Biological Sanctuary behind Peffer Park this on Saturday and I stopped by the concrete waterfall. Last year I saw some sort of garter snake basking there and was hoping I would get lucky and see another one. Instead I found some sort of amphibian eggs. They were in long strings with black eggs and were wrapped around a stick or stuck to the mud on the bottom of the creek. I did a little research and think that they are American toad eggs (Bufo americanus), but I didn't have a camera, so not positive.

American toad are found throughout North America. It is one of the most common frogs in Ohio and can be found everywhere. They can and will live almost everywhere. American toads will live in agricultural and woodland areas. They will even hang out in backyards and near homes. Males begin calling in March and continue till May. The male stakes out a territory and attract females by calling. The females lay rows of eggs. These eggs hatch relatively quickly; from 2 to 12 days. The tadpoles go through metamorphosis in about seven weeks. The toads reach sexual maturity at 2 years. These toads eat insects and catch them using their tongue and are important in controlling insect populations.

Image from http://www.cedarbog.org/images/amphibians/American%20Toad%20eggs.jpg

(Posted by Madeleine Burnett)