Newt ID?

[WhichDoctor]

I went for a walk round the garden in the evening the other day after it had been quite wet. In a small pot pond at the bottom of the garden I saw a small newt. We quite often get Grate Crested Newts in the garden but this looked quite different. I've done a bit of googling but haven't seen anything that really looks like what I saw. They mostly seem to be brown and spotty, where as this one was quite green looking and distinctly stripey.





Any thoughts on an ID for this little chap?

BTW He was about 6-7cm long

 

[WolfCub]

It looks like a palmate newt to me. Certainly near identicle to one I caught and kept for a while as a kid. Later released back after spending several weeks being fascinated by it.

 

[Toddy]

Looks like a male smooth newt in juvenile stripes..........just gone a googling and it says that females also have those stripes.......I thought they were spotted too though

cheers,
Toddy..........who has the little palmate ones in her garden ponds

 

[WhichDoctor]

Thanks for the replies .

I hadn't thought it mite be a juvenile, certainly googling for juvenile newts brings up more things that look more similar. I also found this on a wildlife blog

Juvenile palmate newts have an pale orange colored stripe down the center of the back and onto the tail, whereas in the smooth newt this stripe starts just behind the eyes, but peters out before it reaches the forelimbs -

So possibly more lightly to be a palmate newt than a smooth newt. Having said that the photos of young newts I've seen look pretty similar for both species

I guess I'll just have to keep my eyes out for some adults, hopefully they will be more easily IDed. It is a little worrying that its not a Grate Crested though. Before now they were the only newts we'd ever seen round here. I hope there population isn't declining.

 

[Toddy]

I took the smooth newt option from this description
"Females and non-breeding males are pale brown or olive green, often with two darker stripes on the back."

http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/wildfacts/factfiles/479.shtml

None of the palmates in my garden look so striped, and the smooth newts I recognised have spots, that's why I went looking.

Interesting though
Hope your Great crested ones are thriving if a bit elusive.

cheers,
Toddy

 

[Kepis]

Smooth newt, Palmates have webbed feet

 

[badgeringtim]

Its only the male palmates that have the large, webbed, back 'gloved' feet, they also have a small tail filament coming out of the tail. (although interestingly smooth newt males can have very fringed back feet which look almost webbed if in really good condition, but the crest kinda gives them away).

It looks like a smooth newt female to me although could be jeuvinile. They dont usually go back to the pond untill thay are read to breed though.

If you want to be 100% either try to spot a male or if have female pick up and look under the throat, smooth newts have pigment of yellowy sometimes a touch of orange or dark blotches under the throat. Palmates dont have any pigment so it just looks a slightly pinky grey (as you can see through to the bood circulation system).

hope that helps.

 

[badgeringtim]

Its only the male palmates that have the large, webbed, back 'gloved' feet, they also have a small tail filament coming out of the tail. (although interestingly smooth newt males can have very fringed back feet which look almost webbed if in really good condition, but the crest kinda gives them away).

I would be 95% of it being a smooth newt female could be jeuvinile... They dont usually go back to the pond untill thay are read to breed though.

If you want to be 100% either try to spot a male or if have female pick up and look under the throat, smooth newts have pigment of yellowy sometimes a touch of orange or dark blotches under the throat. Palmates dont have any pigment so it just looks a slightly pinky grey (as you can see through to the blood circulation system).

Cresties look great but you wouldnt miss-identify them, they area suprisingly common. Id even go so far as to suggest that palmates are less frequently found!

hope that helps.

 

[Toddy]

I love the way information comes out in these threads, it's the little tidbits that stick in the mind
Thanks for posting

cheers,
Toddy