Herping in Red River Gorge, Kentucky

Southern Two Lined Salamander: PC Yatin Kalki

Date:

March 23rd 2015

Species Found:

1. Southern Two Lined Salamander (Eurycea cirrigera)
2. Northern Dusky Salamander (Desmognathus fuscus)

Background:

I along with 4 friends from my college went hiking at Red River Gorge for a day. My friends didn't really know much about wildlife so I decided to take the lead and show them how interesting animals could be.

The Trip:

We were looking at the map with all the trails at Red River Gorge and we just couldn't decide which one to take. We wanted to walk along the river but none of the trails really ran by the river for a substantial distance. In the end, we decided to 'go on our own trail', so we climbed down to the river by a bridge and just started walking along the river. Since there wasn't any carved out path for us to walk on, we had to weave through thickets and climb over fallen branches. At one point, we ran out of flat land to walk on on our side, so we crossed the river, getting our shoes, socks and pants wet. I was looking in every crack and hollow for wildlife but I couldn't find anything except insects and earthworms. Soon, we stumbled upon a small stream that was flowing down the mountain and into the river. Choosing to walk up the stream was one of the best decisions we made.

The stream was filled with tiny waterfalls and had countless rocks to flip (which meant I had my work cut out for me). I flipped rocks that looked promising for salamanders to be under but kept finding crayfish, which were pretty cool in their own way. Finally, I flipped a flat rock to find a familiar yellow amphibian sitting all curled up. It was a Southern Two Lined Salamander. I had seen dozens of these just the previous day, but it was the first time my 4 friends had ever seen a salamander. They thought it was pretty cool and even started to help me flip rocks.

Southern Two Lined Salamander: PC Yatin Kalki

We continued to find more Southern Two Lined Salamanders, about 7 or 8. One of the individuals we found had large jaw muscles, indicating that it was in a breeding state.

Southern Two Lined Salamander: PC Yatin Kalki

Under a small rock just behind a small waterfall, I found a baby Dusky Salamander. I had seen a Dusky Salamander before in Southern Illinois but this one was much smaller and had an interesting pattern on its tail.

Dusky Salamnader: PC Yatin Kalki

Dusky Salamnader: PC Yatin Kalki

I didn't get any new species from this trip, then again, this wasn't really a herping trip. I did however have a lot of fun hiking with my friends.