Incredible narrative! I especially love your description of finding Inyo Mountains salamanders - they have always intrigued me!
-Ananth
Search found 47 matches
- December 30th, 2018, 6:29 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: California Waters: Part 5 with Giant Garters, Oregon Spotted Frogs, and the future of California's herps
- Replies: 12
- Views: 27847
- December 30th, 2018, 6:15 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Favorites of 2018
- Replies: 1
- Views: 1787
Re: Favorites of 2018
Incredible finds and incredible memories! Can't wait to get out in the field with you in Georgia this spring!
-Ananth
-Ananth
- November 28th, 2018, 8:09 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Smoky Mountains Salamanders ID Help
- Replies: 4
- Views: 7876
Re: Smoky Mountains Salamanders ID Help
I would call salamanders 2 (photos 3 and 4) and 3 (first 2 photos) santeetlah dusky salamanders. They have slightly greenish-brown hue and a lot of white flecking which is something I've seen a lot in santeetlah dusky salamanders in the park. Their heads also seem too pointy to me to be black-bellie...
- October 23rd, 2018, 6:55 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Quick trip to the Smokys
- Replies: 6
- Views: 14348
Re: Quick trip to the Smokys
On second thought, Jefferson could well be right about the second dusky. That's a color pattern I've seen in both ocoee and spotted dusky salamanders, so it depends on how keeled the tail was (which is hard to tell from the photo). If you saw it above 3,000 feet in elevation I'd say ocoee, and if yo...
- October 7th, 2018, 7:44 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Quick trip to the Smokys
- Replies: 6
- Views: 14348
Re: Quick trip to the Smokys
I'm pretty sure both of the first two Desmognathus you posted are spotted dusky salamanders. Were they found on the Tennessee side of the park?
Nice finds! The smokies are truly a special place to herp!
-Ananth
Nice finds! The smokies are truly a special place to herp!
-Ananth
- June 26th, 2018, 6:36 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Early Summer Herping - Ontario, Appalachians, Illinois
- Replies: 5
- Views: 9053
Re: Early Summer Herping - Ontario, Appalachians, Illinois
Thanks so much guys! Justin, I'll definitely shoot you a PM if I'm ever in the Peoria area.
-Ananth
-Ananth
- June 24th, 2018, 5:10 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Early Summer Herping - Ontario, Appalachians, Illinois
- Replies: 5
- Views: 9053
Early Summer Herping - Ontario, Appalachians, Illinois
Hey guys, College has kept me busy, and I've had very little time to herp this past year, but by mid-May I had finished my finals and since then I've had more than my share of outdoors time. In this long post I'll do my best to describe the herping adventures I've had the pleasure to experience sinc...
- February 22nd, 2017, 4:42 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Costa Rica herping question
- Replies: 1
- Views: 1361
Costa Rica herping question
Hey guys, This summer my parents and I are thinking of spending 2-3 week in June herping in Costa Rica. I am super excited, but we have hardly planned at all, and we aren't sure what to do, so I thought I'd ask you all for advice. Firstly, what are some good areas in Costa Rica for herping? We are m...
- December 25th, 2016, 8:06 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: 2016 Review Part 2: Summer (India, Colorado, Kentucky)
- Replies: 2
- Views: 2150
2016 Review Part 2: Summer (India, Colorado, Kentucky)
Here is part 2 of my end-of-the-year posts. You can find part 1 here: (http://www.fieldherpforum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=23999). This one is gonna have more scenery and bird pictures than herp pictures really, but bear with me. Right after summer break began, my family and I travelled to I...
- December 22nd, 2016, 6:45 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Field Guide Books for India
- Replies: 2
- Views: 1509
Re: Field Guide Books for India
There are a several good herp books for India. "Snakes of India", by Romulus Whitaker and Ashok Captain is fantastic. "The Book of Indian Reptiles and Amphibians" by J. C. Daniel is the best I know of for all herps. As for birds, one I really like is "Birds of India" by...
- December 21st, 2016, 6:59 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: 2016 Review Part 1: January-May
- Replies: 0
- Views: 2712
2016 Review Part 1: January-May
Hey guys, Evidently I haven't posted much this past year, and since I finally have free time, I decided to do an end-of-year post. In the next couple days I'll post my finds from summer and fall, but for now here's late winter and spring. During winter in central Kentucky, there are still several in...
- December 21st, 2016, 5:03 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Everglades Herping Questions
- Replies: 9
- Views: 8992
Re: Everglades Herping Questions
Great guys, thanks for the help! Unfortunately I will be there from December 28-30, which is right around the new moon, but there isn't much I can do about that. I'll let you all know how I do.
-Ananth
-Ananth
- December 12th, 2016, 5:22 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Everglades Herping Questions
- Replies: 9
- Views: 8992
Everglades Herping Questions
Hey guys, So this winter break my family and I will be spending a week in south Florida (Yay!) to see the Everglades. I anticipate spending most of the daytime hours birdwatching with my grandparents and aunt, but I think I can do some road cruising, and possibly squeeze in a bit of dedicated daytim...
- July 27th, 2016, 11:02 am
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Smokies trip and questions
- Replies: 5
- Views: 2794
Re: Smokies trip and questions
Nice finds. Looks like you are right about the black-bellied and two-lined salamanders. I would call your red-cheeked individual a red-cheeked salamander and not an imitator, but I'm not totally sure. Do you have any other photos of it? Could you describe the habitat it was found in? Your skink migh...
- July 11th, 2016, 7:29 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Need a frog I.D.
- Replies: 12
- Views: 4948
Re: Need a frog I.D.
I would call this a squirrel treefrog. I've never seen a peeper with the more or less random dark blotches on the back which you can see in the first photo, and I've seen many squirrel treefrogs like this in North Carolina and Florida.
-Ananth
-Ananth
- July 4th, 2016, 8:47 am
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Looking back on a May day in EKY
- Replies: 4
- Views: 3043
Re: Looking back on a May day in EKY
Thanks guys! I'm certainly very lucky to live so close to salamander paradise (the Appalachans). If I can find the time I will be posting more Kentucky finds soon (as usual mostly salamanders).
-Ananth
-Ananth
- June 29th, 2016, 8:01 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Looking back on a May day in EKY
- Replies: 4
- Views: 3043
Looking back on a May day in EKY
Hey guys, It's been a while since I posted on here, and I haven't gone through my recent photos yet, so I thought I would post some stuff from earlier this year. Specifically, this is an account of a beautiful day I spent in Eastern Kentucky herping with my friend Kevin Hucheson (another forum membe...
- March 20th, 2016, 6:35 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Arkansas Herping Trip
- Replies: 2
- Views: 2723
Arkansas Herping Trip
Hey south central herpers, My name is Ananth; I am a high-school age herper from Lexington, Kentucky. The week after next week (March 26 - April 3) is our spring break, so my dad, my friend Kevin Hutcheson (another forum member), his dad, and I are planning to spend 8 or 9 days in Arkansas. We will ...
- January 22nd, 2016, 1:40 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: End of Year Post (long)
- Replies: 5
- Views: 4606
Re: End of Year Post (long)
Thanks guys for the positive comments! Berkeley - I thought that turtle looked pretty strange! How can you tell that it is a river cooter and not, for example, a florida cooter? It was found in a large lake with a rather small creek draining from it, so I'm surprised a river cooter would show up the...
- January 22nd, 2016, 1:30 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Post your 1 best photo from 2015!
- Replies: 61
- Views: 49380
Re: Post your 1 best photo from 2015!
Wow, all of these photos are incredible! Mine can't compare to any of these but here it is anyway - a pygmy salamander from the spruce-fir forests of the Great Smoky Mountains:
Southern pygmy salamander by aneidesaeneus, on Flickr
Southern pygmy salamander by aneidesaeneus, on Flickr
- January 22nd, 2016, 1:14 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Dangerfield Herps
- Replies: 21
- Views: 14750
Re: Dangerfield Herps
This is one the best thread idea I've seen in a while! I think the herp I see the most of is the red-spotted newt: http://i1380.photobucket.com/albums/ah192/ananthmur/DSCF0364_RedSpotted_zpsmru4tirg.jpg Seal salamander: https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5682/23774277790_81f61227b1_b.jpg Seal salamander...
- January 1st, 2016, 6:01 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: We're Not Out of The Woods Yet (TX,LA,MS,AL,FL): 2015 EOY
- Replies: 34
- Views: 31893
Re: We're Not Out of The Woods Yet (TX,LA,MS,AL,FL): 2015 EO
Amazing finds - those mexican milks are gorgeous!
-Ananth
-Ananth
- January 1st, 2016, 5:57 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: End of Year Post (long)
- Replies: 5
- Views: 4606
End of Year Post (long)
This year was my most successful year of herping to date, so I thought I should share some of the herps I was lucky enough to see (along with my parents, my friend Kevin Hutcheson, and his dad Bruce). Most of our finds were made in Kentucky, but we also took several trips to nearby states, and a mon...
- January 1st, 2016, 5:56 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Ignore this please
- Replies: 0
- Views: 2814
Ignore this please
Sorry, I accidentally posted twice. You can ignore this thread.
- December 22nd, 2015, 5:55 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: All them salamanders of 2015
- Replies: 19
- Views: 10868
Re: All them salamanders of 2015
Absolutely phenomenal finds and photos!
-Ananth
-Ananth
- August 22nd, 2015, 3:44 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: April and May (again loooooong)
- Replies: 7
- Views: 2445
Re: April and May (again loooooong)
Thanks guys for all the comments! Jack - thanks for the sandpiper ID. How do you tell the difference between solitary and spotted sandpipers? Simus - As kevin said, thanks for the information. We went to a different part of the gorge recently, and found about 5 toads, both american and fowler's. -An...
- August 14th, 2015, 6:52 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: April and May (again loooooong)
- Replies: 7
- Views: 2445
April and May (again loooooong)
Hey guys, Since I suddenly have free time I can finally post my photos from late spring. We were very fortunate, and were able to take quite a few trips this spring, and also had great sucess in Kentucky. Enjoy! I'll begin with some cool finds from Lexington its self. My good friend Kevin has been g...
- August 6th, 2015, 12:42 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: January through March (Looooooong)
- Replies: 3
- Views: 2108
January through March (Looooooong)
Hey guys, I know it's quite late in the year for me to post early spring stuff, but I only just got around to going back through my photos, so here it is. During this period, in addition to local herping in central Kentucky, we attended the Conecuh indigo snake hunt, and took a trip to the coastal p...
- July 21st, 2015, 5:19 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Family trip out to Cape Hatteras
- Replies: 4
- Views: 1946
Re: Family trip out to Cape Hatteras
Hey Kevin,
Glad to see you're on the forum now! Nice photos, and of course nice finds (as always, you did well with turtles). Hopefully I can see an eastern mud at that spot on our next Blue Ridge trip.
-Ananth.
Glad to see you're on the forum now! Nice photos, and of course nice finds (as always, you did well with turtles). Hopefully I can see an eastern mud at that spot on our next Blue Ridge trip.
-Ananth.
- July 9th, 2015, 6:55 am
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Epic Blue Ridge Trip (long, photo heavy)
- Replies: 11
- Views: 6455
Re: Epic Blue Ridge Trip (long, photo heavy)
Thanks for the comments everyone, and sorry I could not reply earlier (I have had very limited internet access lately). The PACE competition was certainly a unique opportunity for me, as was the trip it's self, of course. Captain jack - I'd say less than 2 percent of the salamanders we found were no...
- June 19th, 2015, 9:01 am
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Epic Blue Ridge Trip (long, photo heavy)
- Replies: 11
- Views: 6455
Epic Blue Ridge Trip (long, photo heavy)
Hey guys, I recently got back from a week-long herping trip through the blue ridge of Virginia and North Carolina, taken with my parents, a non-herping friend, and Kevin Hucheson (a fellow herper). The opportunity to take this trip came because I competed in the PACE national academic team competito...
- June 15th, 2015, 5:16 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Caudates of Carolina (and other states)
- Replies: 7
- Views: 2979
Re: Caudates of Carolina (and other states)
Sounds like you guys had an amazing trip! I really love your ocoee salamanders - what mountain range does the red-legged ocoee color morph occur in? Does it co-occur with the red-legged salamander? Of course your pigmy, jordan's, and spring salamanders are also really cool. I have never seen a red-l...
- March 13th, 2015, 2:01 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Blue salamanders of Kentucky keep on shinin'
- Replies: 4
- Views: 1514
Re: Blue salamanders of Kentucky keep on shinin'
Nice finds! I actually found a couple of streamside and zigzag salamanders yesterday near Lexington, among other things.
-Ananth.
-Ananth.
- March 10th, 2015, 3:45 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: 2015 Eastern Indigo Snake Search - Conecuh Naitonal Forest
- Replies: 64
- Views: 21592
Re: 2015 Eastern Indigo Snake Search - Conecuh Naitonal Fore
Jake, I am sorry for mistakenly blaming you. I had not realized that you guys had been the ones to go there, or that you had not searched extensively. I had only known that someone had herped there the day before I did, and so I wrongly assumed that it was someone in our group who had caused the dam...
- March 8th, 2015, 2:20 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: 2015 Eastern Indigo Snake Search - Conecuh Naitonal Forest
- Replies: 64
- Views: 21592
Re: 2015 Eastern Indigo Snake Search - Conecuh Naitonal Fore
Nice photo Nick! Unfortunately, I'm pretty sure the log flippers were from our group. In the afternoon, we all went to a large site and split up, and a small group of people went to that wetland, where they found a mole salamander and several chamberlain's dwarf salamanders. I had really wanted to s...
- March 4th, 2015, 5:36 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: 2015 Eastern Indigo Snake Search - Conecuh Naitonal Forest
- Replies: 64
- Views: 21592
Re: 2015 Eastern Indigo Snake Search - Conecuh Naitonal Fore
I'd also like to thank everyone who helped out during the weekend! Here are some pictures I took: The indigo: http://i1380.photobucket.com/albums/ah192/ananthmur/P1000492_Indigo_zps2uoiklfw.jpg Racer: http://i1380.photobucket.com/albums/ah192/ananthmur/P1000509_Racer_zpsomtmgn8t.jpg Spring peeper fo...
- February 21st, 2015, 6:52 am
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: 2015 Eastern Indigo Snake Search - Conecuh Naitonal Forest
- Replies: 64
- Views: 21592
Re: 2015 Eastern Indigo Snake Search - Conecuh Naitonal Fore
Since I am a newbie here, I'm not really sure how this outing works. Will there be a time and place where everyone meets to go out and search for indigoes?
Thanks, Ananth.
Thanks, Ananth.
- January 24th, 2015, 12:00 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: 2015 Spring Trip?
- Replies: 11
- Views: 3697
Re: 2015 Spring Trip?
Sounds great! Also note that only about an hour west of there, you can find crevice salamanders and green salamanders, among other things.
-Ananth.
-Ananth.
- January 21st, 2015, 4:17 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Intorduction and End of the Year Post 2014
- Replies: 17
- Views: 5155
Re: Intorduction and End of the Year Post 2014
That longtail was pretty wierd - the spots seemed more large and random than usual. Thanks for the information about your boards! I would never have expected them to prefer being between boards. That makes me want to lay out boards somewhere moist in Kentucky and see if it holds true. Out of curiosi...
- January 18th, 2015, 12:36 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Intorduction and End of the Year Post 2014
- Replies: 17
- Views: 5155
Re: Intorduction and End of the Year Post 2014
Thanks for the input - I guess those were probably slug eggs then. I had assumed that they were salamander eggs because I have seen redback salamanders and other plethodontids (such as the weller's salamander) guarding egg clumps that are pretty similar to those, even though these eggs were unguarde...
- January 15th, 2015, 4:07 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: 2015 Eastern Indigo Snake Search - Conecuh Naitonal Forest
- Replies: 64
- Views: 21592
Re: 2015 Eastern Indigo Snake Search - Conecuh Naitonal Fore
My parents, a friend of mine, and I will be there!
-Ananth.
-Ananth.
- January 13th, 2015, 3:16 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: 2015 Spring Trip?
- Replies: 11
- Views: 3697
Re: 2015 Spring Trip?
Out of curiosity, what made you decide on the South Mountains, rather than somewhere a little further west (I don't mean to disagree with you choice, I'm sure you have a perfectly good reason)?
-Ananth.
-Ananth.
- January 13th, 2015, 2:59 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Intorduction and End of the Year Post 2014
- Replies: 17
- Views: 5155
Re: Intorduction and End of the Year Post 2014
Thanks guys - I certainly did have an awesome year (the best yet by far). My parents are very considerate to take me to all of the herping spots. This year I am hoping to to attend more group trips, such as the conecuh indigo search, and the spring trip.
-Ananth.
-Ananth.
- January 12th, 2015, 4:10 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Intorduction and End of the Year Post 2014
- Replies: 17
- Views: 5155
Re: Intorduction and End of the Year Post 2014
Thanks for the comments everyone. That first longtail was from the pallisades in northern madison county. It looks a bit like a cave from the picture, but there was a distinct pattern of spots on the tail in real life, so I'm pretty confident it's a longtail.
-Ananth.
-Ananth.
- January 11th, 2015, 3:43 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Theme 4 - First/early herp related pictures that you took
- Replies: 22
- Views: 6507
Re: Theme 4 - First/early herp related pictures that you too
I believe someone asked for really bad photos, so I'll contribute one. This is not my first ever photo, but it is certainly one of my worst. I think water got into the lens or something. http://i1380.photobucket.com/albums/ah192/ananthmur/DSCF4478_Hognosesm_zpsea9b0546.jpg Eastern hognose snake. And...
- January 11th, 2015, 3:19 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: 2015 Spring Trip?
- Replies: 11
- Views: 3697
Re: 2015 Spring Trip?
My parents and I might come, depending on the date.
-Ananth.
-Ananth.
- January 11th, 2015, 2:59 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Intorduction and End of the Year Post 2014
- Replies: 17
- Views: 5155
Intorduction and End of the Year Post 2014
Hello everyone, My name is Ananth Miller-Murthy. I am a high school kid from Lexington, Kentucky, and I have been interested in herping for the past 10 years or so. I have read posts on this forum for a while, so I have finally decided to post. This is basically a summary of my year (I omitted some ...