The state of Maine is stunning in it's natural beauty, laidback residents and diverse fauna. It is also the state where my birth certificate resides. Most of my family also still reside there, including my father. I moved away with my mother to Maryland when I was 10, but still was able to spend my summers with my father. Most of my days were filled with being outdoors chasing around animals, since he lived in a rural area with not much else to do. The herps in the area were my biggest interest, and there were plenty to see. Even though it's a boreal land, the herps are plentiful.
I'd like to share these awesome critters with you. All of the herps here are from my family's property or very close proximity (all in Somerset County).
First some amphibians:
Wood Frog (Lithobates sylvaticus). A common sight on the pinewood forest floor.
Lithobates sylvaticus by Jake M. Scott, on Flickr
Rana sylvatica or Lithobates sylvaticus by Jake M. Scott, on Flickr
Mink Frog (Lithobates septentrionalis). Not just a clever name; although I've never smelled a mink, I hear they stink pretty awful, and so does this frog when it is agitated. They can be heard calling in beaver dammed ponds and in bogs. They are a fairly small ranid that can be heard calling throughout summer from dawn till dusk.
Lithobates septentrionalis by Jake M. Scott, on Flickr
Rana septentrionalis by Jake M. Scott, on Flickr
Green Frog (Lithobates clamitans melanota). By far the most commonly encountered frog. Not usually found far from water, these frogs are found side-by-side with Mink Frogs and they sometimes hybridize.
Rana [Lithobates] clamitans melanota by Jake M. Scott, on Flickr
American Bullfrog (Lithobates catesbeianus). Common and impressive, these frogs can be found in most bodies of water, even at the edges of large lakes.
Rana catesbeiana or Lithobates catesbeianus by Jake M. Scott, on Flickr
Gray Treefrog (Hyla versicolor). These frogs will call at almost anytime, day or night. On raining evenings in the summer their choruses can be deafening. As a kid I remember finding these frogs and thinking how weird it was that we a treefrog in Maine, something I always associated with the tropics. To this day their calls are among my favorite.
Hyla versicolor by Jake M. Scott, on Flickr
Hyla versicolor by Jake M. Scott, on Flickr
I haven't seen a Northern Leopard Frog (Lithobates pipiens) in Maine in at least 15 years. They are one the many species that have disappeared from their normal range.
Pickerel Frog (Lithobates palustris) are the closest I can find. Maine enjoys a wet topography, moss covers everything and that allows many amphibians to venture into the woodlands. This frog was found high up on a hill at my great grandparents old farm. No permanent water is in close proximity.
Lithobates palustris by Jake M. Scott, on Flickr
American Toad (Bufo americanus).
Bufo americanus by Jake M. Scott, on Flickr
Blue Spotted Salamander (Ambystoma laterale). Although technically these salamanders are within the hybrid zone with the Jefferson Salamander (A. jeffersonianum), I always believed these looked more blue spotted. I've found them in early spring through summer under debris around my father's property.
(Ambystoma laterale x jeffersonianum by Jake M. Scott, on Flickr
Ambystoma laterale-jeffersonianum by Jake M. Scott, on Flickr
Spotted Salamander (Ambystoma maculatum). In late spring these salamanders migrate right in front of my father's house. You can find them along side blue spotted salamanders under the same cover throughout the summer months.
Ambystoma maculatum by Jake M. Scott, on Flickr
Ambystoma maculatum by Jake M. Scott, on Flickr
Northern Dusky Salamander (Desmognathus fuscus).
Desmognathus fuscus by Jake M. Scott, on Flickr
Desmognathus fuscus by Jake M. Scott, on Flickr
Northern Two-lined Salamander (Eurycea bislineata). Semi-common alongside dusky salamanders in a rocky creek near my father's house.
Eurycea bislineata by Jake M. Scott, on Flickr
Red-spotted Newt (Notophthalmus v. viridescens).
Notophthalmus v. viridescens by Jake M. Scott, on Flickr
Notophthalmus viridescens viridescens by Jake M. Scott, on Flickr
Eastern Painted Turtle (Chrysemys p. picta). Once extremely common in the ponds near my father's place, they have become less and less seen in recent years. When I was a kid I'd spend countless hours canoeing and catching these turtles. They would line logs and rocks in high numbers, but I'm lucky to see one or two on a given day.
Chrysemys picta picta by Jake M. Scott, on Flickr
Chrysemys picta picta by Jake M. Scott, on Flickr
Common Snapping Turtle (Chelydra serpentina serpentina). I remember when I was about 8 my father caught a large snapper and he decided to eat it. I really didn't like that idea, but he did it anyway. I couldn't beat him up, I was 8. He did end up giving me the shell, so I did think that was kind of cool.
Chelydra serpentina by Jake M. Scott, on Flickr
Chelydra serpentina serpentina by Jake M. Scott, on Flickr
A few of the reptiles:
Wood Turtle (Glyptemys insculpta). I have never encountered this turtle in Maine before. I found this one while looking over a culvert down into a rocky stream, a stream I find dusky and two-lined salamanders in. In fact, this turtle was engorging itself on dusky salamander eggs under a rock. I shared the sighting with my family, none of which had ever seen one and most of them spend a lot of time outdoors fishing and hunting. I hope to see him next year.
Glyptemys insculpta by Jake M. Scott, on Flickr
Maritime Garter Snake (Thamnophis sirtalis pallidulus). These snakes are quite common in this area of Maine and can be found in all sorts of habitats; ranging from mountaintop woodlands, to bottomland bogs.
Thamnophis sirtalis pallidulus by Jake M. Scott, on Flickr
Thamhophrs sirtalis pallidula by Jake M. Scott, on Flickr
Northern Red-bellied Snake (Storeria o. occipitomaculata). In this area this snake seems to be the most commonly encountered under debris. I can regularly find one or two sharing a single small rock or piece of wood. They can have a slate gray or a light brown dorsal color, or anything in between.
Storeria occipitomaculata occipitomaculata by Jake M. Scott, on Flickr
Storeria occipitomaculata occipitomaculata by Jake M. Scott, on Flickr
Storeria occipitomaculata occipitomaculata by Jake M. Scott, on Flickr
Eastern Milk Snake (Lampropeltis t. triangulum). I find these most often around the property where the old farm house and barn that my great grandfather once resided on. I was able to lay a bunch of junk around the property and these have produced. Both of the below examples were found in the same area. The color difference is amazing.
Lampropeltis triangulum triangulum by Jake M. Scott, on Flickr
Lampropeltis triangulum triangulum by Jake M. Scott, on Flickr
Smooth Green Snake (Opheodrys v. vernalis). This snake has been a thorn in my side for many years. As a kid I would find them very frequently around my father's house. They would almost always be in the open, grassy areas. I was even able to keep one for a long period of time and it eventually laid eggs and was able to hatch them. However, they have certainly reduced in numbers for reasons unknown. I have been searching for several years with no success. I would look in areas that have produced in the past and in new, seemingly perfect, habitat. This year I finally turned on up at the edge of a wild flower field on my father's property.
Opheodrys vernalis by Jake M. Scott, on Flickr
Some scenery shots:
An outcropping where Maritime Garter Snakes and Red-bellied Snakes are found.
Acadia National Park by Jake M. Scott, on Flickr
The bog where Mink, Bull and Green Frogs are found.
The Bog by Jake M. Scott, on Flickr
The wildflower field where the Smooth Green Snake was found.
Wild Flowers by Jake M. Scott, on Flickr
A state that I feel is underappreciated, I hope you enjoyed this small taste.
Thank you!
-Jake Scott
Maine Made
Moderator: Scott Waters
Re: Maine Made
Great post and great photos. Its always nice to see some of the boreal fauna which are so foreign to us southerners.
Re: Maine Made
Great post, Jake! As someone who has spent almost no time in the northeast USA, I am pleasantly surprised by the variety of herps in Maine. All that and lobster too! Wonderful photos, too.
John
John
Re: Maine Made
Great post...nice animals and excellent photographs!
Re: Maine Made
I've never herped far enough North to get a Mink frog, and someday I will. Very good shots man. Is it me or do the two "Blue Spotteds" have different tails? The second one has a laterally compressed tail, where as the previous one doesn't seem to.
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Re: Maine Made
Great stuff ! I love Maine too, did you get any Ribbons or Northern waters ?
- BillMcGighan
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Re: Maine Made
That really was great, Jake.
Understansably, we don't see much from Maine (except from Stephen King).
You documenting Milk diversity is pretty cool, and my impression is that they follow Bergmann's rule, at least the ones I've seen in Vermont.
Understansably, we don't see much from Maine (except from Stephen King).
I don't think I ever heard that expaination. That's interesting.although I've never smelled a mink, I hear they stink pretty awful, and so does this frog when it is agitated.
You documenting Milk diversity is pretty cool, and my impression is that they follow Bergmann's rule, at least the ones I've seen in Vermont.
Re: Maine Made
What a great report on a little-reported area! Very nicely done, Jake!
Gerry
Gerry
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Re: Maine Made
Cool post. The milk snakes and wood turtle seem very exotic to a southerner.
About how long are snakes active up that way? May-September or so?
About how long are snakes active up that way? May-September or so?
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Re: Maine Made
Beautiful creatures. Jake, you make Maine really appealing.
- ZantiMissKnit
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Re: Maine Made
Thanks for posting this, Jake! Some of us in MA have talked about going to Maine to find smooth greens, because they are supposed to be easier to find up there.
One of these days I will make the trek up there to go for my lifer mink frog.
One of these days I will make the trek up there to go for my lifer mink frog.
- Rich in Reptiles
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Re: Maine Made
Amazing post! The wood turtle encounter must have been somethin' else! Love the contrast on that first milksnake! Thanks for sharing your experiences.
- John Martin
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Re: Maine Made
Really nice post Jake! I'll bet you experienced some reminiscing time putting this together too . It's certainly awesome to spend one's youth in a rural setting - I was fortunate enough to do just that while growing up in Ohio .
Re: Maine Made
Great post! This is a really well put together. I love the northern bogs and swamps in the spring! That spring melt and all the life that just appears out of nowhere is awesome. Super pics. Thanks for posting.
Re: Maine Made
Thanks all, for the kind words. Without a lie, it is my favorite place to be in the world.........in the summer month. I would have wrote more about it and my experiences and added more scenery photos, but as you all know, these posts can drag and take a long time. By the time I ended this one, my eyes were crossing and my arms both fell asleep.
-Jake
I've never seen any ribbons or waters there. I think this part of Somerset County, they don't quite reach. If they did, I'd like to think I would have seen one. But who knows, it would be the very edge of their range, if anything, so that might be the reason for their scarcity.Flintdiver wrote:Great stuff ! I love Maine too, did you get any Ribbons or Northern waters ?
-Jake
Re: Maine Made
Man I love that dark eastern Milk, that thing is awesome, great habitat shots too. awesome post thanks for sharing
- Josh Holbrook
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Re: Maine Made
Beautiful habitat, Jake. Have you done any dipnetting in any of the bogs or vernal pools for larval salamanders?
Interesting about the smooth greens - I used to find them in Connecticut as well, but none in recent history.
Interesting about the smooth greens - I used to find them in Connecticut as well, but none in recent history.
- ZantiMissKnit
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Re: Maine Made
Oddly enough, I've seen two smooth greens in MA in the past 24 hours. Mike found one last night at dusk, and I found one around noon today at a spot about 25 minutes from our house.
Re: Maine Made
Josh, most of the bogs, like the one pictured, have "large" predatory fish in them (only Notophthalmus in them). There's a few small, semi-permanent fishless pools nearby that I have found spotted and blue spotted salamander larvae in. I didn't check this year, but my brother (who lives up there) says he saw large migrations of spotteds a month ago, so I know there'd be larvae in there still.
-Jake
-Jake
- Josh Holbrook
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Re: Maine Made
JakeScott wrote:Josh, most of the bogs, like the one pictured, have "large" predatory fish in them (only Notophthalmus in them). There's a few small, semi-permanent fishless pools nearby that I have found spotted and blue spotted salamander larvae in. I didn't check this year, but my brother (who lives up there) says he saw large migrations of spotteds a month ago, so I know there'd be larvae in there still.
-Jake
Ahh; too bad about the large fish - maybe make a rotenone purchase in the near future? I totally made that bog picture my background.
- Brian Hubbs
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Re: Maine Made
Great pics and narrative Jake. I think I need to visit Maine with you sometime...
Re: Maine Made
Very nice! My sister lives near Winterport and herping her property has produced pretty much everything you just showed (except wood turtle and mink frog)
- Tim Borski
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Re: Maine Made
I would love to find a Mink frog. I visit their range but have never seen one. sigh. Great post as always!!
Oh, and great job on the Grass snakes!
Tim
Oh, and great job on the Grass snakes!
Tim
Re: Maine Made
Thanks for sharing. I especially liked the wood turtle, smooth green, and that dark eastern milk. I've seen milk snakes in a lot of different shades and colors, but I've never seen one like that.
Hey, at least you and Mike have seen one at all. On the plus side, I just found my lifer red-bellied snake in Bristol County on Tuesday, so I feel like there's still hope for me yet. Hit me up on FB if you guys feel like heading out to Boyden or being shown around some of my more productive sites here on the South Coast.ZantiMissKnit wrote:Thanks for posting this, Jake! Some of us in MA have talked about going to Maine to find smooth greens, because they are supposed to be easier to find up there.
One of these days I will make the trek up there to go for my lifer mink frog.
Re: Maine Made
It's hard to say. The milk snakes in the US do become much smaller as you move down in latitude, but they start getting bigger again in Mexico and especially in Central America. Honduran milk snakes are about as big (and robust) as eastern kings here in the States. When Ruane et al. finish their work, I suspect that they might find the "milk snake" as we know it to be comprised of several (and perhaps many) species, but as long as they form a (monophyletic) clade that leaves them more closely related to each other than to other species of kingsnake, Bergmann's rule goes right out the window as it relates to Lampropeltis triangulum. I can't wait to see what they find!BillMcGighan wrote:You documenting Milk diversity is pretty cool, and my impression is that they follow Bergmann's rule, at least the ones I've seen in Vermont.
EDIT: It might actually be done already. Gonna look now.