>400 Dead Newts; 1 live one on the road
February 2, 2019 (Saturday)
I found >400 fresh Pacific Newt carcasses on Alma Bridge Rd. within 3 hours this morning. I’m still processing them. I’ll have an exact number in a day or so. I also photographed ~50 partially decomposed carcasses that will have to be compared to previous observations to ensure that no duplicates are entered.
See: https://www.inaturalist.org/calendar/truthseqr/2019/2/2
Coverage: (~76%) Vulcan Materials quarry to Gate SA-19 (~5 miles).
Rainfall: It rained heavily this morning. We’ve had 1.45 inches of rain since I was last here on Wed.
Traffic: There was a steady stream of cars coming and going from the Los Gatos Rowing Club (even though it was raining heavily). People raced in, dropped off their kids, and raced out. There was a group of runners (approx. 20). Only a few cars parked at the trailheads. South of the Rowing Club, there was very little traffic – only about half a dozen cars. There were also about 6 bicyclists. It was a treacherous day to be out on the road. Water was roaring down the mountainside making many beautiful waterfalls that sounded just like cars driving on the wet road.