Eastern newt

The eastern newt (Notophthalmus viridescens) is a common newt of eastern North America. It frequents small lakes, ponds, and streams or nearby wet forests. The eastern newt produces tetrodotoxin, which makes the species unpalatable to predatory fish and crayfish. It has a lifespan of 12 to 15 years in the wild, and it may grow to in length. These animals are common aquarium pets, being either collected from the wild or sold commercially. The striking bright orange juvenile stage, which is land-dwelling, is known as a red eft. Some sources blend the general name of the species and that of the red-spotted newt subspecies into the eastern red-spotted newt (although there is no "western" one). The eastern newt includes these four subspecies: Red-spotted newt (Notophthalmus viridescens viridescens) Broken-striped newt (Notophthalmus viridescens dorsalis) Central newt (Notophthalmus viridescens louisianensis) - Central newts measure from to in length. They are brown or green, with fine black dots all over the body. There may be a row of red spots on each side of the body. The belly is yellow or orange and is noticeably lighter than the rest of the body. The skin of newts is not as slippery as the skin of salamanders and may appear to be rough and dry for parts of their lives. Peninsula newt (Notophthalmus viridescens piaropicola) Eastern newts have a lifespan of about 8–10 years in the wild, but some individuals have been known to live up to 15 years. Eastern newts have three stages of life: (1) the aquatic larva or tadpole, (2) the red eft or terrestrial juvenile stage, and (3) the aquatic adult. The larva possesses gills and does not leave the pond environment where it was hatched. Larvae are brown-green, and shed their gills when they transform into the red eft. The larval Eastern Newt is the most heavily preyed upon stage. They are commonly predated on by fish, aquatic insects, and other adult newts (Brossman 2014). The red eft (juvenile) stage is a bright orangish-red, with darker red spots outlined in black.