Full circle

Following my jaunt to Will and Kankakee Counties earlier this month, the weather took a turn for the worse and I wasn't sure there would be any field herping left this year.  Temperatures reached record lows, with wind chills dipping to well below zero on some days.  Mind you, this was EARLY November - almost a full month and a half before winter solstice.  I crossed my arms and snarled like a madman.  Yes, nature will do as she pleases, but that doesn't mean I have to like it.

As luck would have it, I was able to secure a little bit of field time in mid-month.  And by little, I mean two very brief stints in between errands.  I was able to conjure up two blue-spotted salamanders (Ambystoma laterale), one on each walk (November 8 and 15).  And since I cannot ever talk about blue-spotted salamanders too much, I'd like to expound a bit on this amazing little amphibian.

First off, these guys are extremely cold-hearty.  Very often, a salamander, black with blue spots throughout, is the first herptile to be found in the spring (as was the case this year).  Other local herps are early risers - chorus frogs, spring peepers, etc.  But in my time, I've found that the zealous blue-spotted salamander has them beat by as much as several weeks.  I have flipped logs in early March - logs that were fused to the ground by frost - and found blue-spotteds, chilled to the bone and lethargic, but invested in waiting for the first heavy spring rains to lull them away from their decomposing abodes.  In the fall, they again can be found underneath logs, milking every last tolerable day.  As most or all of their kin are settled in deep underground, ready to turn off for the brutal cold season, the hearty blue-spotted wouldn't think twice about snatching an equally cold-tolerant centipede foolish enough to scamper by.

But it's not just cold weather the blue-spotted salamander is adapted to.  More than any other ambystomid in the area (in my studies), the blue-spotted salamander is easily procured during the summer months as well.  Tiger salamanders (Ambystoma tigrinum) can also easily be found during the warm months, whereas spotted salamanders (Ambystoma maculatum) generally avoid heat and dry weather and will disappear into the nether regions of the woodlands they live in once conditions become unfavorable.  I have found blue-spotted salamanders in almost every month of the year, even in July and August, where Chicago weather can peak at or above 100 degrees.  As temperatures approach 80s or higher, the blue-spotted salamanders will often burrow down under leaves or logs, but can still be found under really big logs that are able to maintain a reasonably-cool microclimate.

The heartiness of the blue spotted salamander intrigues me but does not surprise me.  This species' southern terminus appears to be the Great Lakes region (things get kind of confusing and long-winded south of here; the Tremblay's salamander (Ambystoma tremblayi), Silvery salamander (Ambystoma platineum), and Jefferson's salamander (Ambystoma jeffersonianum) replace it in a crazy soap opera kind of way - trust me, it's worth its own post).  As this animal extends far North as northern Quebec and Newfoundland, it has to contend with even colder and longer-lasting winters.  The ones here have it easy, so to speak.

Here is a vernal pool in extreme northern Cook County that supports a cacophonous population of Western chorus frogs (Pseudacris triseriata) during the early spring. It is difficult to access any time of the year due to invasive thorny plants that grow all around its perimeter.  You can see that the water is frozen by this time of year already.  I focused on looking for blue-spotted salamanders in the vicinity of this pool.

A bend of the Middle Fork of the North Branch of the Chicago River, sporting surface ice.

And sure enough, there's a blue-spotted salamander.  Found under a log surrounded by patches of ice and snow, this salamander was joined by an array of invertebrates - numerous woodlice, a big hornet that was alive but barely twitched, beetles, earthworms, and slugs.  Some of these animals can be seen in the photo.  Note - the temperature was in the upper 20s Farenheit.

Details of a beautiful paper wasp nest also found nearby.

It ain't over til it's over.

There was no lack of excitement during the month of October.  With the weather fluctuating wildly day to day, it was difficult to plan any surveys/outings.  And then of course my decision to leave the nature museum for a position at the Grove in Glenview.  While I loved being at the nature museum, the Grove offered additional opportunities to help people connect with nature.  The backdrop is noticeable less urban and the clientele is slightly less diverse, but I'm able to be much more involved with program development, and that matters a lot to me.  I'm still on call at the nature museum, though - I do plan on working all pertinent special events, including Tea with the Turtles, Bugapalooza, and Supper with the Snakes.

With what few opportunities I've had to field herp, I have found some common urban species, but nothing groundbreaking.  I thought I'd share a few photos from the past month.

Following this year's North American Reptile Breeder's Conference (NARBC) in Tinley Park, I headed north to Bachelor's Grove Cemetery to take notes on tree species for a friend's research project.  While there, I noticed some of the resident bullfrogs (Lithobates catesbeianus) peeking out through the mat of algae and duckweed.  Funny, but I was only aiming at one frog but I got three in the photo.

 The well-traveled Patrick monument 

 A quick stroll through the local urban forest preserve I refer to as "The Trestle".  Here is a cool jumping spider.

 A praying (preying?) mantis.

 Young adult plains garter snake (Thamnophis radix).

 Wary deer.

Peak maple.

 Aimee and Cassius were enjoying the fall weather as well.

We also took a walk along the Des Plaines River near Park Ridge for a leaf walk with my nephews Mason and Luke.

Halloween may not have been very scary but the weather was - temperatures in the 30s with snow and wind.  Miserable trick-or-treating conditions.  The cold continued for several days.  Today, it warmed up to about 60 degrees for just long enough to get out to look for Southern two-lined salamanders (Eurycea cirrigera) where they occur in Northeastern Illinois.  This species is considered common throughout most of its core range (eastern states), but there exists one interesting relict population about an hour south of Chicago.  Cut off from its core population by several hundred miles, and encompassing one small segment of preserve in Will and Kankakee Counties, this population thrives within the rocky stream beds and seeps in the woods.  I traveled down there with herpetologist Tom Anton.  Following breakfast in a small town diner, we drove about fifteen minutes from the town to find the salamanders throughout this fragmented habitat.  It was great to see numerous larval forms as well as adults of the species, as well as a good supply of copepods and amphipods (scuds), upon which they feed.  I also found a chunky male green frog, but tricky circumstances dictated my inability to photograph it.

Here is a larval two-lined salamander.  

 This is typical habitat for the two-lined salamanders.

 They hide underneath rocks and detritus.  This is what they typically look like when flipped.

 Tom holding a large adult.

 These salamanders are very fast-moving, much like other members of its genus.  I have a ton of respect for people who can photograph them.  They never sit still long enough for a good photo.  This one isn't as sharp as I'd have liked it to have been because the animal was on the move.

 Tom looking for salamanders.

 I couldn't help but notice all of these funky-looking (and smelling) fruits lying around everywhere.  I had never seen anything like these before.  Tom said they were osage oranges and that they are not native.  And no, they are not edible (I asked); though they are not poisonous, they are very hard and dense.  And they probably taste as funky as they smell and look.  Really cool either way!

Were these salamanders the last herps of the year?  Time will tell!