Back to photostream

Terrestrial Juvenile Eastern Red-Eft Newt

Terrestrial Red-Eft Newt Salamander

Avery County, North Carolina Mountains

Accessed via the Blue Ridge Parkway (mp 300ish)

Date taken: May 13, 2016

Website | Facebook | FAA

 

While leading an individual workshop in the mountains of North Carolina my client pointed out this crazy colorful orange newt along the trail. Thanks to his good eyes I sprinted back to the car, grabbed the macro lens and snapped a few photos. Apparently Eastern Newt's are pretty common. They have three distinct stages of life: the aquatic larvae stage, the terrestrial red-eft stage (shown here), and the adult aquatic stage. During their terrestrial stage, they're known to wonder far and wide, boldly during the day, to disperse and populate other bodies of water throughout the area. Their orange coloring is an example of predator adaptation, signaling a warning that their skin contains toxicity.

3,777 views
34 faves
9 comments
Uploaded on May 15, 2016