Dicamptodon tenebrosus and Ascaphus truei field herping

Hi guys!

So today I went herping and hiking on a mountain that I have had good success with Ascaphus truei in the past. Initially I was only looking for A. truei but I knew I could find some Dicamptodon tenebrosus too.
The first stream I came to I didn't look for anything because it was pretty low and I wanted to look in streams further down the trail. The next stream I have to I decided to do a bit of searching in, and I was able to come up with the first herp of the day, a A. truei tadpole. Not too big, probably about and inch long.

This photo picture shows the characteristic tail "spot" that occurs on the tadpoles of this species.


Next I came to a small, almost dried up stream, but decided to do a bit of searching in it. And, low and behold, I found three larvae D. tenebrosus, what luck eh?

Next I came to the spot that I was really after, a nice large waterfall ( or slide ), but it was almost dried up and didn't look promising at all. So I went up the hill, only to discover that the part of the waterfall that was actually visible is probably less than a eighth of the whole length of it, so I stopped going up it. It was basically dry anyway so I knew there probably wouldn't be anything in it. But I did come across a cool slope that was completely covered in moss.

Then I go back down to the trail, and start heading back. Upon coming to the second stream ( the one I found the first tadpole in ) I decided to go up it a bit and do a bit more searching. But no luck. I did however, find a few Mountain Beaver holes.

Then, I continue to the first stream, where I decide to do some searching down hill a bit. And viola! I find another A. truei tadpole. This time I decide to photograph it in a clear container so that I can get a shot of the bottom so that you can see the mouth.
Its really pretty crazy how small their eyes are, I mean really, they are smaller than a pin head, and on the first tadpole a found I didn't even see the eyes at first.

Again, the characteristic tail spot.

Here is the shot of the mouth of this little beastie. You can see how the teeth are perfect for clinging to rocks and scraping off their food.

This next picture shows that they like to stick to stuff...a lot. When to lift a rock that they are on they usually just stay suctioned to it, until to get them off. And, when you try and pic them up, they will often stick to you! It doesn't feel like much, just a very light suction. Oh and this is in stream number five, even though its at the bottom at the mountain its the last one a searched in.

This next picture shows how they can vary in color. The three at the top of the picture are more brown, while the one in the bottom of the picture is a more black color.

And then! The best part of the trip! I was looking in stream number five, and had found four A. truei tadpoles, and the D. tenebrosus larva, and I was loosing hope of finding a adult A. truei ( what I really wanted to find ) and I saw a large rock that was partially in the stream. I though, "why not, last rock of the day, I might as well see if I can find one", so I flipped it. While I was watching the water, waiting for the silt to wash away, I noticed a movement in the mud that had been displaced. Then I saw the tail, a unmistakable thing, and then, all of a sudden, a large larva d. tenebrosus swam right into my net! But it wasn't the one that I had seen moving in the mud! There were two! So, being as careful as I could not to let the larva in the net escape, I tried to get the other one in the net, and with a nudge of the tail it did just that.
But then I noticed that it wasn't a larva! It was a young ( or very small ) terrestrial D. tenebrosus! I got some photos of the larva, but wasn't too concerned about it as I was more focused on the terrestrial one. I let the larva go, and then proceeded to take a few shots of the terrestrial one.
You may notice that it has a scratch on it behind it head, and that PO's me I assure you. I think it was from my net. My net broke a while back and so I fixed it with wire. I thought that all the sharp parts were not exposed to the inside, but I guess I was wrong. That net is going to get snapped and thrown in the trash.
Here's the pictures.












Oh and I forgot to show you this D. tenebrosus larva I found in stream five.



I wonder why the D. tenebrosus eyes always glow blue in the photo? I will have to research that.

I hope you enjoyed! -Seth

Great finds! Those tenebrosus are huge!
As for the eyeshine, I would guess it's something similar to tapetum lucidum which is the eye tissue that makes the eyes of many animals glow when using flash An example would be if you've ever shined a flashlight at a cat or racoon at night and it looks like their eyes are glowing. It allows for better night vision, which I would assume would be advantageous for the salamander being a nocturnal animal

The Dicamptodon tenebrosus may look huge, but they were only five inches or so. The real big one's get to about 12 inches.
I don't think it's the same as the thing you see in cats or raccoons, it's blue for one, and this is the only species of amphibian I have noticed it in.

I few more thing's I forgot to add in the first post.

1. Is the weather. It has been hot the last week or so ( getting into the 90's ), but it was about 70 yesterday. It was overcast, and a little humid. I think that either the terrestrial one was retreating to the stream to get cool, or because it had just morphed.

2. Is that some may think that they were breeding, but I doubt this. it is too late in the year and I don't think that either of them are adult's.

3. I tried to determine the gender of the terrestrial tenebrosus and I think I was a female.

4. Oh and remember that net that scratched it? Lets just say justice has been served.....