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Maryland Amphibian &
Reptile Atlas
July 2013 Newsletter
Hello!
A Joint Project of The Natural History Society of Maryland, Inc.
& the Maryland Department of Natural Resources
Despite the heat, we have still had some really exciting finds this summer. Eastern Narrow-
mouthed Toads have been reported, with photos, from St. Mary’s County. A Kemp’s Ridley Sea
Turtle was reported from Dorchester County waters. We have also had a Mole Kingnskae
reported from Prince George’s County. An Eastern Six-lined Racerunner was found in Anne
Arundel County. There have also been Smooth Earthsnake, Queensnake, and Eastern
Kingsnake sightings. Gray, Cope’s Gray, and Green treefrogs, Northern Green Frogs, and
American Bullfrogs have been calling. Various salamander reports have also been shared. All in
all, summer has been pretty good to us, so far.
The error message at the online submission site for incidental data,
http://marylandnaturalist.org/submit-observation/, has been resolved. Please let us know if
you experience any difficulties or errors when using this site.
Just as a note, 2014 has been designated “Year of the Salamander” by PARC (Partners in
Amphibian and Reptile Conservation). To learn more please see the following website.
http://www.parcplace.org/news-a-events/2014-year-of-the-salamander.html
A presentation about the Maryland Amphibian and Reptile Atlas was given, by Heather
Cunningham, at the International Congress for Conservation Biology. The meeting was held in
Baltimore July 21-25. The presentation was given during a session on public participation in
science.
An additional feature has been added to the ‘Project Status’ link at the MARA database,
https://webapps02.dnr.state.md.us/mara/default.aspx?strSelection=SystemStats. Specifically,
there is a new report that lists the sightings entered by county. It is found in the county section
of the report table and gives the most recently entered sightings at the top. This was developed
to make it easier for coordinators and atlasers to update any personalized spreadsheets they may
have created for targeted surveys or other reasons. It lists the observer and sighting ID of
recent sightings.
Thanks to everyone who contributed to this month’s newsletter. Be sure to contribute news,
stories, or photos to upcoming newsletter.
Happy Herping!
Heather Cunningham
Statewide Coordinator
Atlasing for herps in the Carolinas By Glenn Therres, MARA Co-chair, Queen Anne’s County Coordinator,
and Talbot County Co-coordinator
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During the last week of June, my wife and I went to North Carolina for a week to visit our
newly-wed daughter and her husband. They live in Raeford, which is on the edge of the
coastal plain of North Carolina close to the Piedmont. Much of the area is dominated by long-
leaf pine forests, hardwood swamps, farm fields, and the suburbs of Fayetteville.
Since the Carolinas have many more species of reptiles and amphibians than Maryland, I
decided to look for some while I was in the area. Within a half hour after unloading the
luggage from the family minivan, I caught a Little Brown Skink (Scincella lateralis) in my
daughter’s backyard. Nice start to the vacation! That evening I heard Cope’s Gray Treefrogs
(Hyla chrysoscelis) and one Squirrel Treefrog (H. squirella) calling in the neighborhood.
I was aware of the Carolina Herp Atlas project, so I decided to herp with a purpose on my
vacation. That purpose was to add records to their atlas project. The Carolina Herp Atlas
project started in 2007. The primary objective of the atlas is to provide detailed data on the
distribution of reptiles and amphibians of both North and South Carolina. Instead of being a
grid-based atlas like MARA, the Carolina Herp Atlas maps records at the county level. Instead
of the project recruiting an army of volunteers to actively search for herp records like MARA,
the Carolina Herp Atlas depends mostly on volunteers submitting incidental records when they
find a reptile or amphibian. No verification of any species is required, though they do provide
the opportunity to submit a photo of one’s observation.
Green Anole, Anolis carolinensis, Cumberland
County, NC. Photograph by Glenn Therres
The Carolina Herp Atlas has a website
(http://www.carolinaherpatlas.org) where
volunteers register to submit records and to view
results of the project. I was the 1,488th observer
to register. Submitting a record is fairly simple.
After clicking on “Submit Record” the data entry
screen appears. The observer selects the state
and county in which the herp record occurred, as
well as the group (eg., snake or lizard) and
scientific name of the species. Then one enters
the date and time of the observation. Location
of the observation is typed in along with the lat-
long coordinates. A photo can be added if the
observer took one.
Like MARA’s real-time database, as soon as a record is submitted it populates the map if it is a
new record. If it is a new record, the county in which it was found is shaded dark pink on the
map.
During my vacation in North Carolina, I added eleven new county records and 25 total
records to the Carolina Herp Atlas. Some of the new records were Cope’s Gray Treefrog and
Squirrel Treefrog in Hoke County, Green Anole (Anolis carolinensis) in Cumberland County,
and Eastern Wormsnake (Carphophis amoenus) and Banded Watersnake (Nerodia fasciata) in
Harnett County. The watersnake was huge and basking on a large boulder along the shore of
the Cape Fear River. At first, I thought it might be a Cottonmouth (Agkistrodon piscivorus). But
upon close inspection of its eye through binoculars, I could see it had a round pupil.
The last morning of my trip, my daughter and I explored the creek and floodplain behind her
house. She found a male skink basking on the side of a tree. I took a few pictures of its head
to look at the scales on the upper lip and in front of the ear hole. That ruled out Broad-
headed Skink (Plestiodon laticeps). However, the scales on the head of both the Common Five-
lined Skink (P. fasciatus) and Southeastern Five-lined Skink (P. inspectatus) look the same. The
two distinquishing characteristics to separate the species were not evident on my pictures
(namely the scales on the underside of the tail and the rows on which the stripes of a female
or juvenile occur). Neither species has been reported from Hoke County yet and I could not
identify this skink. Guess I will have to go back and visit another time.
A little ways down the creek from my daughter’s backyard we found a water snake at the edge
of the shoreline. I passed it off as a Banded Watersnake, but took some pictures of it for the
atlas. When I got back to Maryland and loaded the pictures on my computer, I noticed the
pupil was a slit instead of rounded. This Banded Watersnake turned out to be a
Cottonmouth. Cool. Good thing I took those pictures. That Cottonmouth was one of the
new county records I added to the Carolina Herp Atlas.
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Cottonmouth, Agkistrodon piscivorus, Hoke County,
NC. Photograph by Glenn Therres
That snake brought the total records
submitted to the Carolina Herp Atlas to
21,359. That same day, over 24,000
records had already been submitted to the
Maryland Amphibian and Reptile Atlas.
Remember, our statewide atlas started
three years after the project in North and
South Carolinas. How did we get ahead
of an atlas in two states with lots more
species?
We are good, really good!!! That, and we designed our herp atlas based on active searching by
county coordinators and their volunteers. We don’t rely on incidental reporting; we actively
seek out and record amphibians and reptiles in every one of our 1,300 survey blocks. Of
course, we take incidental records as well. Setting minimum coverage goals of 10 species per
block and 25 species per quad is a major factor as well. But the key to MARA’s success is our
army of volunteers actively flipping logs, cruising roads, listening to frog calls, looking at
turtles through binoculars, etc. The Carolina Herp Atlas (and those in other states) cannot
hold a candle to us. We are kicking butt!!!
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Banded Watersnake, Nerodia fasciata, River
Cooters, Pseudemys concinna, Hoke County,
NC. Photograph by Glenn Therres
Eastern Box Turtle (eating a slug), Terrapene
carolina, Montgomery County. Photograph by
Sara Sagalow
Don’t forgot to share your photos on the
MARA Facebook Page! It is a great way to
let others know about what species are out
and about.
https://www.facebook.com/MDHerpAtlas
Announcements
Since it is a little hot out for the terrestrial salamanders across much of the state, we can focus
our attention on those that favor stream habitats. Northern Dusky Salamander, Northern Red
Salamander, and Northern Two-lined Salamander are expected to occur over a large portion of
the state. Look for these salamanders near or in streams. Look under rocks, logs, and course
woody debris along the margins of small streams or seeps within forests. Breeding occurs in the
fall for Northern Red Salamanders and Northern Dusky Salamanders; thus, an increase in activity
may be observed. The maps are shown at the block level.
Closing gaps
Northern Dusky Salamander
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Northern Red Salamander
Northern Two-lined Salamander
Photograph by Bonnie Ott
Photograph by Mike Quinlan
Photograph by Nate Nazdrowicz
Northern Dusky Salamanders are variable in
color and pattern. Generally, they are dark
brown with a dark dorsal stipe and a cream
belly with gray or brown flecks. They also
have a dark line that extends from the eye to
the mouth.
Northern Red Salamanders are relatively
large, stout salamanders. As the name
implies, they are red to reddish brown
with irregular, rounded black dorsal spots.
Their color will often darken with age.
Their eye color is yellow.
Northern Two-lined Salamanders
are small, yellowish salamanders.
Individuals will have a black or
brown line running from each eye
to the tail that border a light mid-
dorsal stripe. The light mid-dorsal
stripe is often sprinkled with black
spots. Some older individuals may
appear very dark in color.
Field Notes
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Late July—Mid-August Amphibian and Reptile Watchlist
Salamanders
Common Mudpuppy
Red-spotted Newt
Eastern Redbacked Salamander
Wehrle’s Salamander
Northern Slimy Salamander
Seal Salamander
Northern Dusky Salamander
Northern Red Salamander
Eastern Mud Salamander
Northern Spring Salamander
Northern Two-lined Salamander
Long-tailed Salamander
Frogs & Toads
Eastern Spadefoot
Eastern American Toad
Fowler’s Toad
Eastern Cricket Frog
Reference(s):
-Active Season for Maryland Frogs, compiled by Wayne Hildebrand, available from the MARA website
(www.marylandnature.org/mara).
-Kyle Loucks, Nate Nazdrowicz, and Ed Thompson, personal communication.
Green Treefrog
Cope’s Gray Treefrog
Gray Treefrog
Barking Treefrog
Carpenter Frog
Northern Green Frog
American Bullfrog
* This can be a tough time of year to find
terrestrial salamanders. However salamander
species that favor spring, stream, or seep
habitats can still be found. We should see
surface activity of some terrestrial species
resume in a few months.
Long-tailed Salamander, Eurycea longicauda,
Frederick County. Photograph by Bonnie Ott
Reference(s):
-Active Season for Maryland Salamanders, compiled
by Heather Cunningham and Rachel Gauza
-Kyle Loucks, Nate Nazdrowicz, and Ed
Thompson, personal communication.
*Calling season has concluded for many of
Maryland’s frog species. However, road
cruising on rainy evenings and nights can still
net a lot of good data. Frogs and toads will
still frequent wet roads.
Field Notes
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Late July—Mid-August Amphibian and Reptile Watchlist
Turtles
Eastern Musk Turtle
Eastern Mud Turtle
Eastern Box Turtle
Spotted Turtle
Wood Turtle
Northern Diamond-backed Terrapin
Northern Map Turtle
Painted Turtle
Red-eared Slider
Northern Red-bellied Cooter
Eastern Snapping Turtle
Eastern Spiny Softshell
Reference(s):
-Active Season for Maryland Turtles, compiled by Chris Swarth,
available from the MARA website
(www.marylandnature.org/mara). Lizards
Eastern Fence Lizard
Eastern Six-lined Racerunner
Little Brown Skink
Northern Coal Skink
Common Five-lined Skink
Broad-headed Skink
Reference(s):
-Active Season for Maryland
Lizards, compiled by Chris Swarth,
available from the MARA website
(www.marylandnature.org/mara). Ring-necked Snake
Eastern Wormsnake
Northern Rough Greensnake
Smooth Greensnake
Eastern Hog-nosed Snake
Northern Black Racer
Reference(s):
-Active Season for Maryland
Snakes, compiled by Scott Smith.
Wood Turtle,
Glyptemys
insculpta,
Washington
County.
Photograph by
Paul Petkus
Snakes
Northern Watersnake
Queen Snake
Eastern Smooth Earthsnake
Mountain Earthsnake
Northern Brownsnake
Northern Red-bellied Snake
Eastern Gartersnake
Common Ribbonsnake
Eastern Ratsnake
Mole Kingsnake
Eastern Kingsnake
Eastern Milksnake
Coastal Plain Milksnake
Northern Scarletsnake
Copperhead
Timber Rattlesnake
Eastern
Milksnake,
Lampropeltis
triangulum,
Washington
County.
Photograph by
Kent Walters
The Good, Bad & Just Plain Weird! Interesting MARA finds in 2013
Eastern Six-lined Racerunner, Cnemidophorus
sexlineatus, Anne Arundel County. Photograph by
Bart Wickel
Eastern Narrow-mouthed Toad, Gastrophryne
carolinensis, St. Mary’s County. Photograph by Kyle
Rambo
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Mole Kingsnake, Cemophora coccinea copei, Prince
George’s County. Photograph by Siobhan Flynn
Common Five-lined Skink, Plestiodon fasciatus, Anne
Arundel County. Photograph by Rick MacDonald
Miss Dixie’s Herp Corner A place for random questions, thoughts, and facts about
amphibians and reptiles. MARA
What is in a name? Recently, I came across a website that shared the meanings of Latin, and some Greek, scientific
names of amphibian and reptile species. I thought I would share a few for some of Maryland’s
salamanders. Some are pretty interesting. The meanings reference the species name, not the
genus name. Check out more here, http://ebeltz.net/herps/etymain.html.
•Ambystoma jeffersonianum, Jefferson Salamander, name honors Jefferson College, PA.
•Ambystoma tigrinum, Eastern Tiger Salamander, name references coloration of some
salamanders.
•Plethodon cinereus , Eastern Redbacked Salamander, cinereus- ash colored, name references dorsal
color of lead backed phase.
•Plethodon glutinosus, Northern Slimy Salamander, glutinosus-full of glue, references sticky skin.
[*Incidentally, the meaning of the Greek genus name, Plethodon, is pretty interesting too. Plethore
means “fullness or full of ” and odon means “teeth.” The refers to the number of paravomerine
and vomerine teeth. So basically, a salamander full of teeth and glue—good thing these
salamanders are not any bigger!]
•Desmognathus fuscus , Northern Dusky Salamander, fuscus- dark or swarthy, names references
color.
•Gyrinophilus porphyriticus , Northern Spring Salamander, Greek porphyros means reddish-brown,
purple while the Latin icus calls attention to the color, name references color.
•Eurycea longicauda , Long-tailed Salamander, longus means long and cauda means tail, name
references that tail length is usually greater than snout vent length in these salamanders.
•Hemidactylium scutatum , Four-toed Salamander, scutatus means armed with a shield, name
references how the costal grooves appear covered with shield-like plates.
[Speaking of salamanders, check out the following account of the courting behavior of the Long-tailed
Salamander in Maryland.]
9
10
The following is used with permission from the Natural History Society of Maryland. It is from
The Maryland Naturalist, 1960, v. 30, numbers 1—4.
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2013 MARA Steering Committee
Glenn Therres * Maryland Department of Natural Resources
Charles Davis * Natural History Society of Maryland
David Smith* Coastal Resources, Inc.
Rachel Gauza Association of Zoos and Aquariums
David Walbeck Maryland Department of the Environment
Wayne Hildebrand North American Amphibian Monitoring Program
Lynn Davidson Maryland Department of Natural Resources
Linda Weir United States Geological Survey, Patuxent Wildlife Research Center
Kyle Rambo Patuxent River Naval Air Station, Environmental Department
Nate Nazdrowicz University of Delaware
Don Forester Towson University
* Co-Chair
MARA Steering Committee Meeting Notes
The MARA Steering Committee met Thursday, June 13th at the Department of Natural
Resources Headquarters in Annapolis. Those in attendance included Glenn Therres, Lynn
Davidson, Nate Nazdrowicz, David Smith, and Heather Cunningham.
The meeting began with a brief update from the Statewide Coordinator. The website has been
updated with links to the project database and project results.
The next item of discussion was database and verification updates.
The committee discussed sending a follow-up email to county coordinators to explain that
coordinators are not responsible for manually combing through the database to look for reports
submitted of which they are unaware.
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The committee also discussed items for the newsletter.
The next MARA Steering Committee meeting will be held Thursday, July 18th at 6:00pm at the
DNR headquarters in Annapolis.
County Coordinator Email Address
Allegany Ed Thompson [email protected]
Anne Arundel Dave Walbeck [email protected]
Baltimore Co./City Don Forester [email protected]
Joel Snodgrass [email protected]
Calvert Andy Brown [email protected]
Caroline Scott Smith [email protected]
Carroll David Smith [email protected]
June Tveekrem [email protected]
Cecil Jim White [email protected]
Charles George Jett [email protected]
Dorchester Lynn Davidson [email protected]
Frederick Wayne Hildebrand [email protected]
Garrett Seth Metheny [email protected]
Amo Oliverio [email protected]
Harford Bob Chance [email protected]
Brian Goodman [email protected]
Scott McDaniel [email protected]
Howard Sue Muller [email protected]
Kent Nate Nazdrowicz [email protected]
Montgomery Rachel Gauza [email protected]
Lance Benedict [email protected]
Prince George's George Middendorf [email protected]
Mike Quinlan [email protected]
Queen Anne's Glenn Therres [email protected]
Somerset Doug Ruby [email protected]
St. Mary's Kyle Rambo [email protected]
Talbot Scott Smith [email protected]
Glenn Therres [email protected]
Washington Andrew Landsman [email protected]
Wicomico Ron Gutberlet [email protected]
Lance Biechele [email protected]
Worcester Jim Rapp [email protected]
Dave Wilson [email protected]
Roman Jesien [email protected] 13
MARA Websites & Groups
Project Website http://www.marylandnature.org/mara https://www.facebook.com/MDHerpAtlas Project Database https://webapps02.dnr.state.md.us/mara/default.aspx County Websites
Calvert:
http://www.calvertparks.org/Herp%20Atlas/Herp%20Altas%20Home/Herp%20Atlas%20Home2.html
Carroll: http://southernspreadwing.com/herps/
http://www.facebook.com/CarrollCountyHerpAtlas
Garrett:
https://www.facebook.com/GarrettCountyHerpAtlas
Harford: http://suskywildlife.org/
http://www.facebook.com/SuskyWildlife
Howard: http://www.howardbirds.org/herpatlas/index-MARA.htm
Lower Eastern Shore (Wicomico, Worcester, & Somerset) http://www.salisbury.edu/lowershoreherpatlas/
http://www.facebook.com/lowershoreherpatlas
Montgomery: http://www.facebook.com/MARA.MontgomeryCounty
Other Websites & Weblinks NHSM Meetup Site:
http://www.meetup.com/marylandnature
Discover Maryland Herps (Maryland Department of Natural Resources)
http://www.dnr.state.md.us/wildlife/Plants_Wildlife/herps/index.asp
Contact Information & Resources
Additional Contact Information
Statewide Coordinator: Heather Cunningham [email protected]
Co-chairs of the MARA project
Glenn Therres, Maryland Department of Natural Resources, [email protected]
Charles Davis, Natural History Society of Maryland, [email protected]
David Smith, [email protected]
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