Signal Knob - Flora and Fauna

In the first post, I mentioned the black rat snake we saw on the trail, after the church group breathlessly warned us about it as they moved quickly back to the trailhead. That wasn't the only snake we saw, although the second one was a juvenile. It was brown colored, about a foot long, and I couldn't make out markings - unidentified.

There were toads all over the place, but they were not the most remarkable amphibians on this route. These little orange salamanders were all over the place a one point in the trail. They were out in the open and more than 100 feet from a stream nearby. As I subsequently learned, this is a juvenile stage for this species, when they are terrestial - more at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eastern_newt, where there are more pictures.

The salamanders are called red efts at this stage. That wikipedia article reports the lifespan of a salamanders as 15 years - I did not know that. And no luck for us spotting any adults.

A final note, these wild azaleas were at their peak during our hike. From time to time, a flash of color was visible in the peripheral view - these pink flowers. The rain that day did its damage, and with the days warming every day it won't be long until there aren't any left. Bob at the Old Rag blog - check my blog roll - has more photos.

I've heard back from Chris, Tom and Andy. All agreed that we had a good day despite the unexpected difficulty - and we're all looking forward to next time.