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Hellbender in the mountains

Neotenic_Jaymes

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Just got back from a herping adventure. Found a bunch of species but this was the best ever. Found 2 juvenile Hellbenders one of them even still had gills both less than 4 inches. Just thought I'd share!
 

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John

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Glad you had so much success Jaymes! Well done.
 

Infamous82

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Absolutely amazing. I would love to get the chance to even see a hellbender in the wild
 

JessKB

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Here's some more photos from our trip. It was so awesome to see a hellbender in the wild!

hellbender in Jayme's hands for size comparison
DSCN0962.jpg

DSCN0971.jpg


Various other sals we found:

Plethodon jordani
DSCN1067.jpg

Desmognathus imitator Yellow version
DSCN1061.jpg

Pseudotriton ruber larvae (didn't even notice his gills at first they were so small)
DSCN1150.jpg

Grey cheeked salamander?
DSCN1106.jpg

desmognathus monticola?
DSCN1135.jpg

juvenile desmognathus ? found an adult one of these also
DSCN1007.jpg

any help on identifications would be appreciated.
 

JessKB

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A few more pics:


adult desmognathus ?
DSCN1019.jpg

desmognathus imitator red version
DSCN1093.jpg

eurycea longicauda metemorph?
DSCN1006.jpg

These beautiful mountain streams were everywhere and they all had plentiful salamanders
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young Ursus americanus sleeping in a tree. Sadly he was trapped there because so many people were parking below him to take pictures. As it was right on the side of the road and traffic wasn't going anywhere, I decided to snap a few, but kept a respectful distance.
DSCN0994.jpg
 

Neotenic_Jaymes

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How amazing I mean that moment would have changed my life forever. Thanks for this thread

My life changed after that moment. Then not long after that my life changed again with another sighting of a larval Hell Bender.
 

jaster

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If you don't mind me asking, what type of habitat did you find the young guys in? I've been helping my friend with his thesis, and over three years of doing surveys have found only a few small guys and larvae. Any tips on where/ how to look would be awesome! Feel free to PM me the details.
 

Jefferson

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On the identification front, if you were in the Balsam Area (NC side of park) when you got the Gray-Cheek, it's a gray cheek. If you were on the border or in Tennessee, it was probably a Southern Appalachian Salamander, gray-cheeks are usually not that dark. The metamorph of the Longicauda looks a lot like a Blue Ridge Two-Liner to me. Great shots.
 

Carvalho

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Dear James and/or anyone who reads this and would be able to help,

Congratulations for the pictures!
I am a new member living in the UK. After some years on the search i finally got a common mudpuppy. Unluckly it has not been eating for six days now...I also noticed that when i got her, she already looked quite slim and lethargic if i compare with the mudpuppies videos from Youtube. Could You,please, help me in giving some important information which i do not obviously possess? We have here high quality water without any chemicals in it, but it is quite hard water since the underground here is pure limestone. Could hard water stop the mudpuppy eating? I have given her axolotls pellets, trout filet, living tadpoles and some other water bugs. She will not eat, at no circunstances. I have also noticed that her movements are rather lethargic and cumbersome. The water is kept at 60 degrees Fahrenheit at maximum, and i also have an powerful air pump running almost all the time. Her skin is vey fine. No hurts, fungi, sweelings or strange colours. She also tends to swim a lot, and frequently reach the water surface. Is she gasping for air when the water is so well oxygenated? I would really appreciate if You could write something as a help and the sooner the better.
Thank You very much for all Your attention and care!

Nelson
 
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