Local Wildlife of NYS

[Ripa]

Hi. I'm a poor college student, but I still make attempts to hike with a crummy iPhone 4S, because I can't afford too great of a camera at the moment- maybe for my next birthday!

But anyways, here I go.




This hen was about 15 or so feet away from me- not very skittish compared to other turkeys I've seen. Hung around the school building for a good while.

Possibly a groundhog burrow

Lead-back morph of Plethodon cinereus

 

[Ripa]

Deer scat

And here's one of four whitetail deer in a small foraging group. The others were a bit more difficult to capture as they were hiding behind a bunch of foliage. The width dimension is different because my phone ran out of battery so I took a pic using my friend's phone, instead (not an iPhone).

Sorry that these weren't the greatest quality. I will strive to get better (and hopefully get better gear over time). I just wanted to share my first successful field run in 2015.

 

[Ripa]

I'm on an extensive hunt for a yellow spotted salamander and Narceus americanus. I found the millipede 6 months ago but left it be at the time- now that my interest in myriapods has increased substantially, I aim to capture one on my own accord. Still no luck aside from a small dead baby I found (could determine the species via the red legs and reddish banding).


Some kind of carabid or lucanid? Much obliged if someone could help identify.




No end to the red-backs, but not a single yellow-spotted to be found. Must've have come across a good 20 or so from an hour hike alone.

 

[Ripa]

A good sized Limax maximus, also very shy!

Some kind of millipede with a spine on the end of its telson. Not all that large- maybe 1.5- 2 inches long. Identify?

These deer are getting progressively easier to track. Or maybe it's just from human acclimatization :sarcasm:

 

[oldmanofthesea]

Looks like a successful outing. Thanx for the post. ron

 

[Ripa]

Looks like a successful outing. Thanx for the post. ron

Thanks! I hope there is more to come as the weather warms a bit!

 

[Venom]

I live at the upper end of the Hudson Valley region, and I know some great spots for finding HORDES of 4+ inch-long Narceus americanus millipedes, if you want to know.

The Catskills are also great for finding red efts (salamanders), which from what I've read are very toxic.

 

[Ripa]

I live at the upper end of the Hudson Valley region, and I know some great spots for finding HORDES of 4+ inch-long Narceus americanus millipedes, if you want to know.

The Catskills are also great for finding red efts (salamanders), which from what I've read are very toxic.

Ooooh, wow.... that would be awesome to come across such a heaven.... I'm wondering if it's because the area I've been searching in is a relatively small patch of woods, where it would be less supportive of a large millipede species. However, I did find a dying baby one at one point. Also trying to figure out what the orange and brown-black polydesmids I saw 6 months ago were. They were of medium size and somewhat girthy- around 1- 2 inches long....

 

[Venom]

This is not the largest specimen, and you can get handfuls of them this size or better in a few minutes of searching. There are also a surprising number of these: http://mrhyker.tripod.com/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/millepede.jpg (common name "almond millipede," maybe Sigmoria sp.? ) Apparently I have found millipede heaven! Let me know if you want the location. I will PM you directions.

Edit. The habitat is a shady deciduous forest on the lower portion of a small mountain. The topography sends shallow streams and seeps down the mountainside through the abundant leaf litter. The mountainside I use faces north, and receives very dappled sunlight. There is a large quantity of deadfall lumber as well--also milli food. The highest concentration of Narceus was at a spot where there is a (very splashy!!!) waterfall that keeps the surrounding leaf litter perpetually soggy. Although most of this part of the forest is moist, and there are multiple streams running through it, this was the wettest area. The last time I was there I could stand in one spot near the waterfall and count a couple dozen large millipedes of 3 to 5 inches without moving from where I was standing.

 

[Ripa]

This is not the largest specimen, and you can get handfuls of them this size or better in a few minutes of searching. There are also a surprising number of these: http://mrhyker.tripod.com/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/millepede.jpg (common name "almond millipede," maybe Sigmoria sp.? ) Apparently I have found millipede heaven! Let me know if you want the location. I will PM you directions.

Edit. The habitat is a shady deciduous forest on the lower portion of a small mountain. The topography sends shallow streams and seeps down the mountainside through the abundant leaf litter. The mountainside I use faces north, and receives very dappled sunlight. There is a large quantity of deadfall lumber as well--also milli food. The highest concentration of Narceus was at a spot where there is a (very splashy!!!) waterfall that keeps the surrounding leaf litter perpetually soggy. Although most of this part of the forest is moist, and there are multiple streams running through it, this was the wettest area. The last time I was there I could stand in one spot near the waterfall and count a couple dozen large millipedes of 3 to 5 inches without moving from where I was standing.

View attachment 136210

If you can, it would be much appreciated, although, were I to consider collecting in that area, it would probably be over the summer, as I'm a bit preoccupied with finals ATM haha. I'm still trying to determine what species of tree (dead) these guys prefer most, because where I search there's loads of fallen trees and rotting wood, and not a single one to be found. I even go the extra mile of flipping over logs lol