Twelve Months of Northern Ohio Herps in 2024 (Part 5)

Herp habitat in Columbiana County.

A Mudpuppy that I caught on September 14th. Mudpuppies are large aquatic salamanders. They have gills and spend their entire life underwater.

Although it's not a herp, this Hellgrammite is kind of awesome.

A couple of Queen Snakes on September 16th. This species is semi-aquatic and only eats one thing: crayfish. Not just any kind of crayfish, but those which have recently shed their exoskeleton and therefore are soft-bodied for a period of time before their shell hardens.

I found my first Slimy Salamanders of the year in Lake County on September 18th.

A young Lucas County Eastern Fox Snake the I found "on the crawl" on October 3rd.

I saw a bunch of non-native turtles in Cuyahoga Valley National Park on October 18th, like this melanistic Red-ear Slider.

A duckweed covered Green Frog. Its mating call sounds like the single note of a plucked banjo.

A Red-ear Slider/Redbelly Turtle combo in the Ohio & Erie Canal.

This non-native River Cooter basking with a Midland Painted Turtle was also observed on October 18th.

A young DeKay's Brown Snake that I helped across the towpath on October 22nd. Adults usually measure less than 12 inches long.

A Red-spotted Newt that I caught on October 23rd. This salamander is at home in both coniferous and deciduous forests. Habitat preferences include shallow water, quiet stretches of streams, swamps or ditches, lakes and ponds with heavy submerged vegetation. and nearby damp woodlands.

A backyard Redback Salamander on November 2nd. Like many lungless salamander species, Redbacks exhibit homing behavior, with homing of females to their nests, as well as non-attending females and males to a home range.

On November 6th I came across this Two-lined Salamander - these amphibians inhabit a wider range of habitats than Dusky Salamanders (another creekside dweller).

There were a few Turtles out basking on November 8th, like this Midland Painted.

A post-Thanksgiving Red-spotted Newt on November 26th. This species has a lifespan of about 8–10 years in the wild, but some individuals have been known to live up to 15 years.

I caught this chilly American Bullfrog on December 8th.

This Redback Salamander was seen in my yard on December 9th. This is one of the most numerous salamanders throughout its range.

A creekside Two-lined Salamander on December 16th. This species is more water-oriented than the Redback Salamander, and can often be found in and around water such as rain puddles, streams, swamps, and damp stream beds, whereas the Northern Redback tends to be found in damp ground, but usually not near open water.

My last herp of this year was this fine "leadback" morph of Redback Salamander found in my backyard on December 29th.