Interesting animal species

imported
#1

What are some interesting animal species that you all have seen on the trail and where did you see them? Any cool frog, toad, or salamander species that you have seen? What about some less common snake species (i.e. the scarlet or corn snake)? Any particular spots on the trail where there is a lot of biodiversity? I know there is a species of salamander called the pygmy salamander that only inhabits the smoky mountain area, but I have not seen it yet. I have seen a few big rat snakes, but have yet to see a copperhead or rattler. Where on the trail are these snakes most commonly seen? Has anyone seen a coyote?

Demon Deac

#2

I think I may have seen a fox this morning, crossing the trail about 50 feet ahead of me. It was bigger than a cat, the color of a golden retriever, and fast! I tried to sneak up to where I saw it (hard with all the leaves crunching), and peeked through the brush, but it was gone.

Another critter I’ve seen several times is a small snake. It’s solid black, with a thin yellow band around it’s neck. The two I’ve seen were baby-size, so don’t know how big it might get. What is it?

Jonna

#3

The snake you describe is a Ringneck snake. Very original name… My guide says they can grow to be 10-30 inches long as adults.

I saw quite a few on the Trail last year, and they were all tiny pencil-thin things about 7-8 inches long. Timid, too.

Chipper

#4

We saw, and couldn’t identify, a half dozen scale covered dino-lizards, each about a foot long tip to tail. We went to the library in Waynesboro and couldn’t find any of them.

Bushwhacky

#5

Jonna, where on the trail did you see the fox and the Ringneck snake? According to my reptiles and amphibians book, there are actually several different subspecies of ringnecks: some have orange rings and some have yellow. And they have brightly colored bellies.

Chipper, do you remember where exactly you saw the ringnecks? Did you see any of the orange colored ring morph?

Demon Deac

#6

Bushwacky, do can you describe the color of the lizard to me if you can remember it? I have a book right here and I could look it up.

Demon Deac

#7

Sure, one that stood out was almost a checker board of sparlky silver and black/charcoal squares on the lower half, like art glitter in size. Lighter gray on the top half. Gill flaps as I recall. The other was all light gray with one accenting darker gray stripe right down the center of the back about a 1/4 inch wide.

Mr. Bushwhack

#8

I heard a bunch of coyotes in Maine last year and actually saw one on the Long Trail, just north of Sherburne Pass. It was about 30 feet away but took off as soon as it saw me.

Wedding Singer

#9

Jeff and I saw them quite a few times, but we can’t remember exactly where. I think it was in northern PA, but could possibly have been on the NJ/NY stretch. They seemed to be in rocky areas. I know we saw them before we came home on a short off-Trail vacation from Pawling, NY on our NOBO hike. While we were home, I saw a ringneck on a trail near our house (in Central NY) for the first time in my life! It was a nice surprise, especially since I’ve lived here for over 25 years and had never seen one previously.

I have a vague memory of orange-ringed ones, but don’t quote me on that. Usually we took photos of every new critter (digital, so we’d have the date and could compare it to our journals), but we were never able to get one of the ringnecks because they so timid and “ran” away quickly. They were so small they usually darted down into the trailside rocks. By the time we had the camera out of our pocket, they were gone. Sorry.

Chipper

#10

Demon, the fox I saw was not on the AT, but on the Pine Mtn. trail southwest of Atlanta. The first time I saw a ringneck snake (thank you for the I.D.!)was on a short local trail, and the second one I saw was in my garage. I swept him (or her) out to the grass as gently as I could.

Jonna

#11

I’ve seen mountain lions, moose, and wolves, but my favorite trail critters are the little flying squirrels.
I’m easily amused :O)

TJ aka Teej

#12

On a mountaintop in Maine, I swear I saw a domestic cat. Do domestic cats ever run wild?

I once ran into a snake eating a frog. I was trying to really cruise through the hundred-mile wilderness at the time, but that was a full stop for an hour to watch the battle royal.

TJ, where have you seen mountain lions? I’ve heard some people say that they definitely exist on the east coast, other people say “no way”, and others say there are a few, but that they are probably released exotic pets rather than a stable population.

Eric

#13

Bushwhack - the lizard I saw most frequently on our thru-hike was the eastern fence lizard. They climbed on trees & logs and zipped through the leaves, often on sunny days.
look here:
http://www.eoni.com/~neener/fence.html

The fence lizard moved really fast and the males had shiny blue under their chin and bellies.

Also, we saw many five lined skink (usually sunning on rocks), the males of which had orange heads and juveniles had bright blue tails.

Good pictures of skinks here:
http://www.fcps.k12.va.us/StratfordLandingES/Ecology/mpages/five-lined_skink.htm

As far as other reptilian critters we saw:
Rattlesnakes (in PA mostly), copperheads, Eastern Box Turtles, Red backed salamanders, red efts (eastern newt juveniles - hundreds emerged after rain), green snake (not sure if rough or smooth) black (rat) snakes, eastern ribbon snakes, garter snakes, milk snake and maybe a worm snake. With any kinds of critters we either tried to hike near experts or draw sketches and then check field guides in libraries. You can also search www.enature.com

jitterbug

#14

Bushwack, I think the second lizard you described (the one with the dark gray stripe down the middle) is the same species that Jitterbug saw - the eastern fence lizard (also known as the northern prairie lizard).

How about bobcats, has anyone seen them on the trail?

Demon Deac

#15

Teej,
I saw a couple “flying squirrels” or fishers as I like to call them at the end of my trip. I saw one very acrobatic guy who was swinging from branch to branch right before Hurd Brook lean-to. He was a bit agressive. Looked like an anorexic cat/monkey. Then saw another one 2 days later coming down Katahdin.
Anyone know what those little lizards are? I saw a ton of them right around the Catawba area.

A-Train

#16

A bunch of us heard some coyotes howling near Wilson Creek in the Mt. Rogers area of Va a few years ago…I had a black snake hanging from the rafters at the Lost Mt. shelter fall into my soup…saw some wild pigs near Wayah Bald last summer…and have seen a bunch of Wild Turkeys (or was that I drank some Wild Turkey)…anyways there are plenty of critters on the trail like deer and such…the diiferent array of flowers and plants have always amazed me…especially sometime when I’m kinda down from walking too far and I come across these beautiful flowers…it’s a pickmeup for sure.

Doc Bobcat

#17

That’s one of them. Cool little critter. http://www.duke.edu/~cwcook/pix/efl.html

Bushwhack

#18

Approximately 4-5 years ago, a pair of monkeys were reported missing from their owner, who lived near the Tennessee/North Carolina border. The pair were not found, and some people have spotted them, or have heard odd cries from unknown animals in the Smoky Mountain region.

Anyone seen the monkeys?

godzilla

#19

Fisher, bobcat, moose, coyote, turkey, spruce grouse, ringneck snake (yellow ring), RATTLESNAKE, bear, chipmunks, squirrels, deer, pine marten, beaver, otter. We were in NY or NJ and a hiker swears they saw an eastern mountain lion. Running after a deer. A black bear run down a deer in NJ ('02). Pig Chicken filmed part of it on his VHS camera.

Papa Smurf

#20

My sister saw a bobcat in Beartown State forest in Mass. I saw a copperhead just south of Port Clinton, near the Thelma Marks Shelter. There are lots of rattlers in New Jersey along the Kitatinny Ridge. Kestrels in New Hampshire. A red fox in New York Fort Hill (?). I saw some blue herons in New Jersey, but that was about six miles south of the AT. The only bear I’ve seen so far was near the Kennebec River in Maine (the ones in the Trailside Zoon at Ber Mountain don’t count.) I worked hard to avoid the copperheads at Manassas Gap Shelter, Va. Turkey in New York near Wildcat Rocks. Ruffed grouse in New Hampshire (danged thing scared the heck out of me! They make bizarre noises when they’re nesting!) :smokin

Harry Dolphin