Out of all the turtles native to New England, I suspect Wood Turtles are the species most directly impacted by extreme floods. As valley stream specialists, the rivers most prone to extreme floods are the same rivers where Wood Turtles thrive.
An early May Wood Turtle survey led to the rediscovery of a plant that hadn’t been documented in Vermont in over 100 years – false mermaid weed (Floerkea proserpinacoides).
It wasn’t until high school that I encountered Vermont’s largest stream salamander, the Northern Spring Salamander… I uncovered a 7-inch-long bright orange salamander that nearly knocked my socks off.
Blue-spotted and Jefferson Salamanders cannot breed with each other; they are distinct species. However, there is group of hybrids that can breed with either of the pure species.
Northern Map Turtles have tan or grayish shells, yellow markings on their skin, and intricate markings on their shell resembling lines on a topographic map, giving the species its name.