Dog Posted February 15, 2009 Share Posted February 15, 2009 Did my good deed for the day yesterday, the stream running through the path in the forest after the heavy rain had finally stopped flowing. I was walking through the muddy remains and saw something flipping around. On closer inspection there were two flipping and two too tired to move. They were about 30mm long and had dark bodies with tiny legs and feet.They couldn't walk and so I reckoned they must still be at the land stage so I flipped them onto a leaf and took them to a pond where they happily swam away. I think they were young newts.Also yesterday saw my first lizard of the year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kitty Posted February 15, 2009 Share Posted February 15, 2009 It shows how kind hearted you are, Dog. I have never seen a newt.I went on a long walk this morning in the gorgeous sunshine, climbing over the trees that have blown down in the two big storms, and didn't see much sign of wildlife. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Russethouse Posted February 15, 2009 Share Posted February 15, 2009 Do you have a pond Cathy ? We get lots of newts even in our very small pond.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Âme Posted February 15, 2009 Share Posted February 15, 2009 Great that you saved them, Dog. I haven't seen any yet this year, but here is a photo from last spring. This one isn't a baby! I'm told they can live for 25+ years.[img]http://www.laviepyreneenne.com/img/newt.jpg[/img] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dog Posted February 15, 2009 Author Share Posted February 15, 2009 Was late for my walk tonight as finally got the right wind direction to buzz people in the tower of the castle at Bordeilles with my kite.Saw a big female deer she was quite inquisitive and kept stopping to look over her shoulder. For some unknown reason tonight we have lots of pigeons roosting in the woods. Lovely noise of wings as they take to the sky and others joins in a great wave of sound.Saw two red squirrels, wildboar footprints and a robin was waiting when I got home. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pierre ZFP Posted February 16, 2009 Share Posted February 16, 2009 Driving home on Friday night a small deer ran out of a field on my left, looked a me in the headlights then ran off into the forest on the other side of the road, beautiful. Mindfull of a warning on the radio a little while back of 'where there's one there will be more' I drove very slowly and saw all the mates of the first one run across the road. Lovely things. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Christine Animal Posted February 16, 2009 Share Posted February 16, 2009 [IMG]http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a363/Bechamel/ChevreuilJan09.jpg[/IMG]Only specks in the distance, but they are there. I since saw them on our land one afternoon. I could see their beautiful little faces through the branches, but didn't have the camera. I backed off, but they had seen me and ran. I always hope the chasseurs don't get them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ventodue Posted February 16, 2009 Share Posted February 16, 2009 [quote user="Âme"] I haven't seen any yet this year, but here is a photo from last spring. This one isn't a baby! I'm told they can live for 25+ years.[/quote]What a super beast, Âme! A male Marbled Newt, Triturus marmoratus, I believe. Most handsome ...Reckoned to be endangered in France, I see - and yes, 25 years in captivity.AmicalementCraig Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Âme Posted February 16, 2009 Share Posted February 16, 2009 Craig - Thanks for the identification. Having googled more pictures I'm sure that you're right. As this one is in the wild (an old agricultural water hole) it would have a lifespan of 15 years rather than 25. Fascinating creatures. Some of them are bright yellow and black. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ventodue Posted February 16, 2009 Share Posted February 16, 2009 [quote user="Âme"]<snip>Some of them are bright yellow and black. [/quote]Ah, you may have something else there ...Do they look like this, by any chance?[IMG]http://i468.photobucket.com/albums/rr42/Ventodue/firesalamander.jpg[/IMG]Or maybe this?[IMG]http://i468.photobucket.com/albums/rr42/Ventodue/firesalamander2.jpg[/IMG]AmicalementCraig Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Âme Posted February 17, 2009 Share Posted February 17, 2009 They behave in the same way as the marbled newts; float a few inches below the surface of the water and 'drift' for long periods. Here's a fuzzy picture. [img]http://www.laviepyreneenne.com/img/newt1.jpg[/img] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ventodue Posted February 17, 2009 Share Posted February 17, 2009 Hi Âme,Still Marbled Newt, methinks - just more yellow than the previous. Have a look here, for example: http://calphotos.berkeley.edu/cgi/img_query?query_src=&enlarge=0000+0000+0704+0092Can you see yours has a crest on the lower half of the tail? That marks it out as a newt, and Marbled is what you have around you (apart from Palmate, which it's not).Colour isn't very important in amphibians - Common Frogs, for example, come in a range of colours from deep olive green through yellow green, to reddish/orange and occasionally albino.Anyway, it's not what I posted earlier (Fire Salamander) which has no crest, is almost exclusively nocturnal and, critically, doesn't hang around in ponds ...AmicalementCraig Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Âme Posted February 19, 2009 Share Posted February 19, 2009 Thanks Craig. The picture in the link is a beauty. They are very difficult to photograph! I rarely see newts out of the water, only once in late autmn when I was gardening and disturbed a little brown one. There are palmate newts in the same pond too. When I first saw the muddy puddle that is now the pond, I thought that it was going to be a problem... but then I saw life (tiny newts). The 'puddle' is now a much larger, deeper pond fed by rainwater from the roof, so it stays right through the summer, albeit becoming a bit soup-like in the hottest months. The amount of life a pond supports is incredible. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Patf Posted February 19, 2009 Share Posted February 19, 2009 Plenty of deer in the woods near us. We do seem to be without frogspawn though, perhaps our ducks are eating it.As for flowers: I've seen celandines and comfrey, since 2 weeks or so.http://www.cliffwhittem.com/photo_1095475.html Lots of this along the streams where I go walking. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony F Dordogne Posted February 19, 2009 Share Posted February 19, 2009 Deer have been around throughout the winter.Heard the first woodpecker of spring yesterday, daffs are starting to flower, roses have buds on them (very small tho) and the buddleas are doing very nicely thank you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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