Things that stalk in the night and things that flit in the light

And now, dear readers, now that we've finally arrived at Uncle Johnny's Nolichucky Hostel in Erwin, TN after hiking 338 miles (wahhhoie!), it is time for an accounting of the slimy, hairy and feathered things, beloved of Banjo (formerly known as Cougar) and I. Salamanders are an indicator species, meaning, when ecosystems are deteriorating they are the first to suffer, giving you an idea of the overall health of a forest. The amount of salamanders we've seen has boggled my mind and I wouldn't have noticed half of them if it hadn't been for Mike who has eyes specially engineered for glimpsing the little wigglers in forest streams and springs that flow liberally out of the mountainsides. The slimers even stalk around our tent at night slurping up delicious worms and bugs. They come in the most amazing array of spots, stripes and colors and they have huge bulging eyes and long dragging tails. We take pictures of the creatures we see, if possible, and later ID them with a pocker-guide of reptiles and amphibians of the southern Appalachians. Mike is well versed in the bird-business, but also carries a small field guide to help him with identification.

Here is a species list from Mike:

Birds: The southern highlands hold and receive a diverse array of bird species, sometimes familiar and sometimes unique to the higher elevations of the east. One such group, as I've been finding out, are the Warblers - a family of small song birds who migrate from Central and South America to the United States and Canada, and are found only in the New World. Warblers that we have sighted:

Yellow Rumped Warbler, Hooded Warbler, Yellow Breasted Chat, Chestnut-Sided Warbler, Black and White Warbler, Black-Throated Blue Warbler, Black-Throated Green Warbler

Other bird sightings, from Northern Georgia to Erwin, Tennessee:
Pileated Woodpecker, Red-Bellied Woodpecker, Red-Tailed Hawk, Sharp-Shinned Hawk, Turkey Vulture, Wild Turkey, Ruffed Grouse, Dark-Eyed Junco (known as Snowbirds down here), Blue Jay, Eastern Peewee, Rufuous-Sided Towhee (also known as the Eastern Towhee), White-Breasted Nuthatch, Solitary Vireo, Carolina and Black-Capped Chickadee, Golden-Crowned Kinglet, Scarlet Tanager, Barred Owl, Great Horned Owl (heard only), Eastern Bluebird (only one), Brown Thrasher, Ruby-Throated Hummingbird, Gray Catbird, Northern Mockingbird, Blue Gray Gnatcatcher, Common Bobwhite (heard only), Mourning Dove, American Robin, Northern Cardinal, Belted Kingfisher, Barn Swallow, Bank Swallow, Tree Swallow, American Crow, Common Raven, Common Grackle, Rose-Breasted Grosbeak, Indigo Bunting, American Goldfinch

Salamanders sighted:

Southern Appalachian Salamander


Red-Spotted Newt (immature or Eft phase - an incredibly bright and beautiful guy who the field guide describes as "incredibly bold" - they aren't afraid of nothin!)


Shovel-Nosed Salamander


Santeetlah Dusky Salamander


Blue Ridge Two-Lined Salamander, Spotted Dusky Salamander, Seepage Salamander, Northern Slimy Salamander, Southern Gray-Cheeked Salamander (maybe - not positive on the ID), Blue Ridge Spring Salamander

Snakes sighted (and caught! - by Mike) :

Northern Watersnake


Eastern Garter Snake, Northern Ringneck Snake

Frogs/Toads:

Eastern American Toad (one so huge the earth shook as it hopped)


Fowler's Toad, Eastern Cricket Frog (heard only), Cope's Gray Treefrog (heard only)

Others: Common Five Lined Skink, Eastern Fence Lizard, Broad Headed Skink

Giant Millipede



Furry Beasts: Bears, feral hog, squirrels galore, smelly hikers, chipmunks, deer, fox (heard only -an inhuman wailing). And, of course the mice. We've seen the deer and harvest mouse (both native species). The house mouse (an Asian import) has flourished in the region and has more than flourished in the AT shelters, this is the species that visits our food bags and chews holes in our socks.

One day, a fellow hiker who we shared a shelter with woke up to find his backpack stuffed about 1/4 full of acorns - a squirrel had apparently decided his bag was a fine place to do some food accessioning for the winter. The dude woke up in the morning and yelled at all his buddies "Hey guys - who the hell stuffed all this crap in my bag?!!" All of his friends and us started laughing because no one had done it - it was the squirrel. Finally, the acorn laden hiker accepted his new food as a gift from the forest.