A newt of a different colour (hypomelanistic L. vulgaris)

[Kristian Munkholm]

So, I was going to the local post office today to pick up my new head lamp and on the way I couldn't restrain myself from flipping a pile of planks a couple of hundred meters from my house. This was what I saw between the two layers:



1 adult male and 9 juvenile smooth newts.

While considerable variation in colour is of course normal one individual was obviously significantly outside of the normal range - very light, with practically see through skin and a bright orange stripe down its back. I guess it must be hypomelanistic but I'm really awfully ignorant of terminology and genetics in regards to abnormalities of pigmentation.

The venter was unspotted. Even at this size normal specimens have black spots. Here is a comparison with two of the other individuals of similar size:







By now the cute little thing was pretty warm and wouldn't sit still any more and I was in a hurry so my pics aren't all that I could have hoped for but here's a few more nonetheless.

[Vlad Cioflec]

Sweeeet! Now read my signature.

Thanks for sharing,
Vlad

[Kristian Munkholm]

Thanks Vlad

That's very far from my best newt flip around here in terms of numbers, though

The first couple of years after moving into our house I only found very few newts. On land I never found more than three at a time and though I had flipped everything flippable within a rather large radius all - with the exception of a single specimen - were found under three logs lying around right next to each other. Eventually I located what I still believe was the only breeding pond in immediate vicinity as well and dipnetted a few individuals. In the end I was content that there just weren't that many of them locally.

Then, one nice fall day on my way home from work, I stopped to look around a small grove of trees next to the pond for... whatever. I noticed a black plastic bag on the ground between the trees and picked it up to throw it out. Underneath it the ground was alive with a mass of newts crawling around amidst each other. I don't know how many there were but my estimate was somewhere between 75 and 100. I watched in awe for a little while and when they started to crawl away I put back the plastic bag and went home to fetch my son. When we came back a few minutes later there seemed to be noticably fewer under the bag but we still counted 58

The pond was since filled when they widened the highway around Copenhagen with another two lanes. A new one was established but to my eyes it didn't look promising. They must be breeding there though - or have found somewhere else - as there are still plenty of juveniles

[Vlad Cioflec]

I had flipped everything flippable

That saying right there made my day!
That`s the spirit Kristian!