Newt ID please.

[Gerel]

Hi,

I can't make up my mind about this newt that I saw in a small pond yesterday. The pond is in upland Wales at the edge of a conifer plantation so likely to be fairly acidic if this makes a difference.

Apologies for picture quality, it was taken through a couple of feet of water (and was massively underexposed)



regards

Steve

[dampflippers]

Male palmate.
Look at dark, webbed back feet.
Filament at end of tail (like a thread)
Smooth edge to the top of its crest.
Palmates are meant to favour (or toletate) slightly acidic water.

[Adrian Vygus]

Absolutely right, and probably the only species you'd find in a highland area, they'll breed in a wheelrut as long as there is a couple of inches of water!

[Gerel]

Thanks both,

I thought palmate was most likely, but was thrown by the guide I was looking at saying that palmates don't have spots on the throat, which this appears to. (Although it is hard to be sure from this picture.)

Steve

(ps. Not sure that you'd count this as a highland area Adrian at a tad over 400m)

[Adrian Vygus]

that'd be around 1300 feet, 300 more than it needs to be a mountain! it's high for Britain! lol