My post about mudpuppies elicited quite a bit of debate regarding the difference between mudpuppies, axolotls, and (my new favorite) the hellbender. I was able to locate a masterful herpetologist on Flickr, Andrew Hoffman, and secure his permission to use the photos below. He was also quite forthcoming in the aforementioned debate.
Behold the bona fide Eastern Hellbender (Cryptobranchus alleganiensis alleganiensis). Any amphibian that can eat a crawdad is all right in my book (not that a creature called the Hellbender needs any approval from a second-rate blogger like me).
Thanks for the photos, Andrew. Your skill at photographing amphibians is second to none.
Oct 8, 2007
Bona Fide
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4 comments:
Snot otter, I love you.
I now have a favorite amphibian! Look at that adorable little face with the almost non-existant eyes... that. see. into. your. soul!
Second rate?
Second to NONE in the Uglies category.
Love the hellbender. The creepy thing? Where are it's EYES? Does it have any? Great nightmare fodder.
Porsches. Snot otters as well as salamanders etc. have faces that look like the front of a porsche. Wide and smiley. Every time I see a porsche I think "oh, I wish I was holding a salamander..." Now I'll wish I was holding a hellbender.
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