It seems that the bright orange salamander that I saw while hiking with Bunny is an immature Red-Spotted Newt. The picture here closely resembles the picture of the little guy in my blog post entitled "Hiking with Bunny" dated 7/25/09. Take a look and see if you think they match. I think they do. And from what I've read below they are fairly common in our area but not everywhere. Mystery solved!
Wildlife -->Nongame Amphibian & Reptile Book -->
The red-spotted newt is a widespread and familiar species in many sections of Connecticut. -->
Red-spotted Newt
(Notophthalmus v. viridescens)
IDENTIFICATION: Aquatic adults are smooth-skinned, with an olive green dorsum. A row of red ocelli (red spots ringed with black) are present on each side, and the belly is yellow with black dots. The tail is fin-like. The conspicuous terrestrial eft stage is bright orange to dull carmine brown, with very granular skin, and a row of ocelli along each side as in the adults. Small size, adults 60-110 mm total length.
The red-spotted newt is a widespread and familiar species in many sections of Connecticut. Newts have a three part developmental stage, an aquatic larva, a terrestrial "eft" stage, and an adult aquatic stage. The bright red-orange eft is the most familiar, and large numbers of these can be found wandering on the forest floor in damp weather. Newts are most abundant in theupland areas of Connecticut, especially the northwestern highlands. They are far more localized in the low-lying sandy areas of the state, and are absent from large portions of the Central Connecticut Lowland. Newts are secure in many areas of the state, though they are declining in more urban areas. They require large areas of forested habitat adjacent to their breeding sites to support the multiyear terrestrial eft stage. Under Section 26-66-13-C of the Connecticut Code, eggs and juveniles may not be collected, and adults may be taken only by hand or handheld implement. The collection of newts by seine, minnow traps, or with the aid of a motorboat is specifically prohibited.
Salamanders Amphibians and Reptiles in Connecticut
