Wednesday, 9:10-11:25 no live newts. 8 dead newts.
I walked with my brother!
Weather: nice, but you could feel it's going to get hot.
Coverage: from the Jones Trailhead parking lot to the second stop sign.
Newts: we documented 7 newts on the hill side, and 1 on the reservoir side. All were very dry. No juveniles.
The CA newt egg clusters in the little pond by Limekiln trail - eggs are more developed, water level is getting low! I'm not sure how long they could survive. Many of the clusters are already above the water level.
Other roadkills: centipede, caterpillars, fence lizard.
Traffic: 25 cars, 8 trucks, 0 motorcycles, 5 bikes, 6 pedestrians, 10 parked cars (0 cars in the farthest parking lot).
We went down to see limekiln, and saw dozens of toad tadpoles, some frog tadpoles, an adult tree frog, and 8 happy newts.
My observations of the day - https://www.inaturalist.org/observations?captive=any&on=2022-04-06&place_id=any&user_id=merav&verifiable=any

"Just hit" - how ironic, and what a grim milestone. Over half of them were observed by @merav - a herculean effort. Thank you everyone for your continued dedication towards making things better for the newts (and many other species) in our county.

Walked from Aldercroft Road to the stop sign.
Time: 7:30 AM - 9:30 AM
Weather: Sunny, temp not recorded
Observer: Robin Agarwal

Newts: 55 dead, including 2 juveniles. None fresh. No live newts.

The recent warm daytime temps and cool nights brought out a menagerie of creatures onto the road, probably at night, probably seeking the retained warmth of the asphalt or invert prey. There were 18 non-newt species recorded:
1 small California Kingsnake (9") - beautiful, very fresh, first thing I saw when I got out of the car
1 Santa Cruz Aquatic Garter Snake - neatly marked with a fox poop already
3 Western Toads - one was gigantic
1 Sierran Tree Frog
3 AOR Wild Turkeys
3 Scorpions, possibly of two species
1 Ornate Tiger Moth, so pretty
1 Banana Slug
Crickets, Millipedes, caterpillars
1 Largemouth Bass DOR (Ha! A Newt Patrol first. Not roadkill, of course, but funny.)

There was a large Gopher Snake DOR on Aldercroft, so I pulled over and recorded that as well, although it is not added to our project.

Human Activity: 22 cars, no trucks, no construction. One nice conversation with a Soda Springs Road resident, Danny, who asked about our project and said he moves live newts off the road regularly (perhaps a secret softie, since he also had an NRA sticker on his pickup).
:-)

Tuesday, 10:15-11:30 no live newts. 10 dead newts.
I walked with Jim
Weather: either very cold or warm or both at the same time :)
Coverage: from the Jones Trailhead parking lot to the second stop sign.
Newts: we documented 3 newts on the hill side, and 7 on the reservoir side. All were dry, 1 juvenile.
Other roadkills: 2 fence lizards, alligator lizard, cicada, spider, grasshopper. Also a live cicada on the road, and a live White-lined Sphinx moth at the parking lot. I moved both out of the road.
Traffic: 6 cars, 4 trucks, 3 motorcycles, 1 bike, 1 pedestrian, 8 parked cars (0 cars in the farthest parking lot).
My observations of the day - https://www.inaturalist.org/observations?on=2022-04-12&place_id=any&user_id=merav&verifiable=any

The South Section - April 14, 2022
Walked from Aldercroft Road to the stop sign.
Time: 9:00 AM - 11:45 AM
Weather: Cloudy, temp not recorded
Observers: Robin Agarwal, Merav Vonshak

Newts: 31, mostly dried. No live newts.

Non-newt species:
1 Wild Turkey AOR
2 Western Fence Lizards
1 Arboreal Salamander
1 California Slender Salamander
2 Cicadas
Crickets, Millipedes, caterpillars

(And a DOR Broad-footed Mole was recorded on Aldercroft Heights Road: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/111472328 )

Human Activity: 12 cars, 3 trucks, 3 bikes, no construction. One nice conversation with a fisherman, who knew about our project and said he noticed newts in the reservoir.

Tuesday, 9:00-11:15 no live newts. 26 dead newts.
Weather: drizzle on and off.
Coverage: from the Jones Trailhead parking lot to the second stop sign.
Newts: I documented 14 newts on the hill side, and 12 on the reservoir side. Many of them were fresh.
Other roadkills: warbler, a baby bird - maybe a jay or some other bird dropped it on the road? still pink and blind. Also beetle, caterpillar, grasshopper. I saw 3 more White-lined Sphinx moths - two were mating on a stick by the road, and the 3rd one was flying back and forth nearby, probably smelling the female's pheromone?
Traffic: a bit more busy, with high helicopter activity - so noisy!
35 cars, 6 trucks, 0 motorcycles, 0 bikes, 7 pedestrians, 16 parked cars (3 cars in the farthest parking lot).
My observations of the day - https://www.inaturalist.org/observations?on=2022-04-19&place_id=any&user_id=merav&verifiable=any

Wednesday, April 20, 2022, 8:00-10:30 AM
Weather: Mid-50s, light rain two days prior.
Coverage: Aldercroft road to stop sign.
Observers: Robin and Merav

Newts: Robin: 21 adults, 1 juvenile (Merav #s to be added later)

Non-newts: 1 Broad-footed Mole, 1 ring-necked Snake, 1 Arboreal Salamander, 1 Sierran Tree Frog, 2 Western Fence Lizards, a few inverts

Traffic: 17 cars, 4 trucks, 3 bicycles. No pedestrians or conversations with locals about newts.

Tuesday, 9:20-11:20 no live newts. 30 dead newts.
Weather: nice
Coverage: from the Jones Trailhead parking lot to the second stop sign.
Newts: I documented 14 newts on the hill side, and 16 on the reservoir side. All were dry.
Other roadkills: beetles, moth adult and caterpillars, and the first solifugid.

Traffic: 12 cars, 4 trucks, 0 motorcycles, 5 bikes, 11 pedestrians, 24 parked cars (0 cars in the farthest parking lot).
My observations of the day - https://www.inaturalist.org/observations?on=2022-04-26&place_id=any&user_id=merav&verifiable=any

Friday, 9:25-12:30 no live newts. 9 dead newts.
Weather: nice
Coverage: Aldercroft road to stop sign.
Newts: I'll upload all photos later. All newts were very dry.
Other roadkills: caterpillars, toad.
I saw a fox by the road, climbing up the hill side. Might have crossed the road?
Traffic: 22 cars, 1 truck, 0 motorcycles, 13 bikes, 0 pedestrians, 4 parked cars.
My observations of the day - https://www.inaturalist.org/observations?nelat=37.225444397985044&nelng=-121.91187746376471&on=2022-04-29&place_id=any&swlat=37.150228910853805&swlng=-122.34484563600944&user_id=merav&verifiable=any