On March 13, 2015, my son Michael and I left north Florida early morning with Pigeon Mountain as the destination. We arrived late morning only to run into Jake Scott and Don Filipiak on their way out heading north to another location. It was cold and raining, just plain miserable! But, that didn't stop us. We were to meet up with Ashley Tubbs and Justin Oguni later. Two wonderful field herpers we've had the pleasure herping with in the past.
One of the first finds was this beautiful Red Salamander.
Red Salamander (Pseudotriton ruber) by Daniel D Dye II, on Flickr
The next was a Red Eft Red-Spotted Newt.
Red-Spotted Newt (Notophthalmus viridescens) by Daniel D Dye II, on Flickr
Ashley and Justin arrived and we decided to check out some caves and look for a few more species of salamanders found on the mountain.
This is Michael crawling out one of the caves.
Michael Crawling out of a Small Cave by Daniel D Dye II, on Flickr
Ashley and Justin taking photos of a salamander, I don't remember which species this was.
Ashley and Justin by Daniel D Dye II, on Flickr
Here's the group searching the rocks for Pigeon Mountain Salamanders.
Ashley, Justin and Michael by Daniel D Dye II, on Flickr
Yours truly.
Me Standing next to Water Fall by Daniel D Dye II, on Flickr
We found this nice Southern Zigzag Salamander (Plethodon ventralis).
Southern Zigzag Salamander (Plethodon ventralis) by Daniel D Dye II, on Flickr
And this Cave Salamander (Eurycea lucifuga).
Cave Salamander (Eurycea lucifuga) by Daniel D Dye II, on Flickr
We also found this monster Northern Slimy Salamander (Plethodon glutinous).
Northern Slimy Salamander (Plethodon glutinous) by Daniel D Dye II, on Flickr
On the way out from the cave system, I found this Eastern Red Bat (Lasiurus borealis) hanging just above my head on a tree branch.
Eastern Red bat (Lasiurus borealis) by Daniel D Dye II, on Flickr
We then set out to find a Green Salamander, which we did! Thanks to the sharp eyes of Justin Oguni!
Green Salamander (Aneides aeneus) by Daniel D Dye II, on Flickr
We went down the mountain in search of other species and found this large Spring Salamander.
Spring Salamander (Gyrinophilus porphyriticus) by Daniel D Dye II, on Flickr
Ashley and Justin had to head out to meet up with Dale Wilson, so Mike and I hit a few more spots before heading south to find a place to over night.
Michael and Jeep by Daniel D Dye II, on Flickr
We found a hotel and settled in. Here's the face of a worn out man!
Michael Worn Out by Daniel D Dye II, on Flickr
We later met Ashley, Justin and Dale near Okefenokee and settled in at the place we would spend the next couple of days. Then we started road cruising. We found plenty of snakes, most I photographed with my iPhone for documentation only.
Here are some of the finds.
Glossy Crayfish Snake (Regina rigida rigida) by Daniel D Dye II, on Flickr
Striped Crayfish Snake (Regina alleni) by Daniel D Dye II, on Flickr
Brown Water Snake (Nerodia taxispilota) by Daniel D Dye II, on Flickr
Ashley has a keen interest in spiders so we spent some time looking for some. Here's a couple finds.
Bowl and Doily Spider (Frontinella pyramitela) by Daniel D Dye II, on Flickr
Starbellied Orbweaver (Acanthepeira stellata) by Daniel D Dye II, on Flickr
Ashley and Dale by Daniel D Dye II, on Flickr
Michael, Ashley, Dale and Justin by Daniel D Dye II, on Flickr
That's it for this trip. Thanks for looking.
March 2015 Trip to Pigeon Mountain and Okefenokee Swamp Geo
Moderator: Scott Waters
- Daniel D Dye
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- Josh Holbrook
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Re: March 2015 Trip to Pigeon Mountain and Okefenokee Swamp
Nice Zigzag! Looks like fun all around, Dan, thanks for posting.
-Josh
-Josh
- Kyle from Carolina
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Re: March 2015 Trip to Pigeon Mountain and Okefenokee Swamp
Great photos, Dan. Did yall end up finding any pigeon mtn sals proper?
Re: March 2015 Trip to Pigeon Mountain and Okefenokee Swamp
It was fun and random that we ran into each other up there, but I wish Don and I could have stayed and herped with you guys.
I know you found ample petraeus, why no post? Already have enough photos of them that you didn't photo any this trip? I know that's what happens to me every time I go there and yet I still want to see them badly every time.
-Jake
I know you found ample petraeus, why no post? Already have enough photos of them that you didn't photo any this trip? I know that's what happens to me every time I go there and yet I still want to see them badly every time.
-Jake
- Daniel D Dye
- Posts: 1220
- Joined: June 7th, 2010, 4:56 pm
- Location: New River (Brooker), Florida
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Re: March 2015 Trip to Pigeon Mountain and Okefenokee Swamp
Thanks, guys.
Kyle, I have so many Pigeon Mountain photos, I didn't bother to take any.
Jake, you right on!
Kyle, I have so many Pigeon Mountain photos, I didn't bother to take any.
Jake, you right on!
Re: March 2015 Trip to Pigeon Mountain and Okefenokee Swamp
What were the temps ?