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California Newt

California Newt line art illustration (click image to enlarge)

California Newt full color illustration (click image to enlarge)

Artist's notes:

The California Newt was completed on 2/16/2009. The drawing was done during a storm, and I was thinking about the newts who would be moving from the forests into the seasonal ponds and streams to mate. I always enjoy seeing these charming amphibians when hiking in the hills of the Bay Area. The drawing is based on an image by wildlife photographer Pierson Hill.

Information about the California Newt:

The California Newt is a small amphibian native to the California coastline and in the Sierra Nevada. The are roughly 5-8 inches long. They are divided into two subspecies: the Sierra Newt and the Coastal Range Newt. During the non-breeding season the newts are land dwelling, preferring rock crevices and the undersides of rotting logs. While breeding, the newt prefers slow moving pools in coastal streams.  Like other members of the genus the Taricha's glands in the skin secrete the potent neurotoxin tetrodotoxin, which is hundreds of times more toxic than cyanide. Due to this poison the California newt has few natural predators. To combat this toxicity some species of Garter snakes have developed a genetic resistance the newt's tetrodotoxin.