Download Biodiversity of Alabama: 100 Species to Know

Biodiversity of Alabama:
100 Species to Know
Common Terrestrial Species
1. Turkey Tail
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Type of shelf fungus, common on rotting trees in
forests
Fungi are saprophytes, they get nutrients from dead,
decaying things, important to recycle nutrients in
ecosystems
Turkey for comparison
2. Lichens
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Flat, crusty plant-like growth on rocks, bark of trees
Are a combination of algae and fungus living together
(symbiosis)
Good example of pioneer species – are the first to
grow on bare rock, or in disturbed areas
3. Cicada
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young nymph lives underground, crawls out and climbs up onto a
branch
undergoes metamorphosis to emerge as a winged adult (like
butterflies)
some species emerge in large numbers after spending years
underground
makes loud noise in trees
Adult (after
metamorphosis)
Nymph
(young
cicada
after
crawling
out of
ground)
4. Fowler’s toad
Bufo fowleri
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Common statewide in a variety of habitats,
including disturbed areas.
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Breeds March to August, often in more
permanent aquatic sites than other toads.
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Alabama’s most commonly encountered and
widely distributed toad; often seen on roads
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Field marks: bumpy skin with brown spots
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Toads do NOT cause warts in humans
NOTE: Many amphibian species are used as indicator species (defined as a
species that is so sensitive to changes in the environment that it indicates the
health of the entire ecosystem). Mutant toads, frogs have been found in
many places.
5. Green Treefrog
Hyla cinerea
•Common nearly statewide,
• Breeds April to August in
permanent aquatic habitats
with emergent vegetation.
•Field marks: bright green
color with white stripe down
side,
•Treefrogs have sticky toe
pads that help them hang
onto surfaces
6. Cave salamander
Eurycea lucifuga.
• Fairly common to common in caves of northeast AL
• Field marks: orange-red body with dark spots,
• Huge eyes are an adaptation for living in dark caves
• Salamanders must stay moist to breathe through skin
7. Scarlet Kingsnake
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Lampropeltis getula holbrooki
Fairly common, but secretive and
nocturnal
Lives in burrows underground
and in rotten logs
Predator, but not venomous
“Red on black, venom lack;
red on yellow, kill a fellow”
May be confused with poisonous
coral snake
Eats small rodents, reptiles and
other snakes (hence, the name
kingsnake)
8. Rat Snake
Elaphe obsoleta
• Fairly common statewide.
• Large arboreal snake, may nest high in tree cavities, a position
that may reduce mortality from fire ants and other groundforaging predators.
• Known to many as “chicken snake” because it frequents chicken
houses for food
• Occurs in most terrestrial habitats, and occasionally may be
found in, or near, forested suburbs.
• Two subspecies with different colors:
– E. o. obsoleta (black rat snake) – north AL
– E. o. spiloides (gray rat snake) – more common in south AL
9. Eastern Garter Snake
Thamnophis sirtalis sirtalis
•Fairly common statewide. Frequently encountered,
especially in northern Alabama.
•Very generalized in habitat preferences, and found in most
terrestrial habitat types.
•Field Marks – stripes, round pupils
•Harmless to humans, helps us by eating small bugs and
rodents
10. Green Anole
Anolis carolinensis
• Common across AL except in extreme north due to cold
winters
• A climbing lizard that inhabits a variety of vegetated
habitats, including residential areas.
• Many know this conspicuous color-changing lizard as
“chameleon,” but a chameleon is another type of reptile
11. Box Turtle
Terrapene carolina
• Low Conservation Concern but numbers have dropped
in past few decades
• Often found in open woodlands or forests, especially
after rain
• Domed shell on top, has hinge underneath that allows it
to close up for protection
• Omnivorous (eats a wide variety
of plants and animals)
12. Red-tailed Hawk
Buteo jamaicensis
• Found in open country and
woodland edges, but also
in developed areas
• Adapted for predation:
hooked beak, talons; feeds
on small mammals,
songbirds, reptiles
• Often seen perched on
telephone poles, dead tree
tops
13. Great Egret
•Feeds in shallow water on
fish, frogs
•Live in colonies near water.
•Adapted for hunting aquatic
animals with long beak, long
neck, long legs.
•Beautiful feathers once
used on ladies’ hats; led to
formation of Audubon
Society in 1905 to protect
birds
14. Ruby-throated
Hummingbird
Archilochus colubris
•Adapted for drinking nectar from
flowers with long beak, ability to
hover (wings can beat up to 75 times
per second!)
•Important role as pollinator for
plants
•Migratory, live in AL in summer;
then go to Central and South
America
•Like most birds, males more brightly
colored than females (sexual
dimorphism)
Male
Female
15. Laughing Gull
•Common on the Gulf Coast, but can be found near inland
waterways
•Name comes from call that sounds like laughter
•Omnivore-scavenger - will catch invertebrates (crabs,
insects, snails, etc.) and fish, but is also known for hanging
around humans for food, even at dumps and parking lots
16. Cardinal
Cardinalis cardinalis
•Common in all seasons across the state
•Found in shrubby areas, hedgerows, thickets, and
suburban gardens.
•Eats seeds and insects
•Sexual dimorphism – which one is the male?
17. Canada Goose
•Found in freshwater and brackish marshes, agricultural
fields, and on lakes.
•Breeding birds have been established from introduced
resident populations.
•Migratory but may live year-round in AL
•Fly in V-formation
•Primarily herbivores, but will eat small insects, fish
•Monogamous, mate for life
18. Turkey Vulture
• Scavenger, no feathers on head
keeps head cleaner when
feeding
• Red head resembles turkey
• Commonly seen soaring in
flocks high overhead
• Holds wings in shallow V when
flying (distinguishes it from a
hawk)
19. Mourning Dove
Zenaida macroura
•Common in all seasons across the state
•Found on farms, and in towns, woodlots, agricultural fields,
and grasslands.
•Name comes from its mournful call
20. Eastern
Bluebird
Sialia sialis
•Common in all seasons across the
state
•Found in open rural areas, farmlands,
fence rows, open suburban areas, and
parks with scattered trees.
•Nests in tree holes; providing bluebird
houses helps increase population
•Eats mostly insects
•Sexual dimorphism
Male bluebird
Female bluebird
21. American
Robin
Turdus migratorius
• Distinctive red on breast
• Found in short grass areas with
scattered trees in cities, towns,
parks, suburbs, and rural areas
• Migrates out of the Coastal Plain in
the summer; found statewide the
rest of the year (note the species
name)
• Feeds on berries and insects
• Eggs are “robin’s egg blue”
22. Brown Thrasher
Toxostoma rufum
• Common in all seasons and regions.
• Likes thick shrubby areas
• Name comes from habit of thrashing in
leaves for food with long bill
23. Mockingbird
Mimus polyglottos
•Common in all seasons and
regions.
•Found in rural, suburban, and
urban areas in openings with short
grass, scattered shrubs, and trees.
• Learns and repeats calls of birds in
its area (note scientific name which
means “mimic of many voices”)
• Territorial; will swoop down on
people and cats
24. American Crow
Corvus brachyrhynchos
• Common except near the Gulf
• Found in woodlands, farmlands, and suburban areas
• Susceptible to West Nile virus
mosquito  crow  mosquito  human
• Crow population down 45% since West Nile virus was
introduced into the U.S. in 1999
• Live in family groups with siblings helping raise young
birds
• Feed on almost anything (including leftovers in our
courtyard after lunch!)
25. Northern Bob White Quail
Colinus virginianus
• Found on farms, along woodland
edges, and in brushy open country
habitats and old fields.
• Extensively hunted
• Named for call that sounds like the
words “bob-white”
• Nests on ground; young are
precocial and can run after parents
within hours of hatching
26. Barn Owl
Tyto alba
• Found on every continent (except
Antarctica) and in all 67 AL
counties, mostly widely distributed
land bird in the world
• Feeds on small mammals, lives
near farms, edges of woods, fields
• Adaptations for predation: special
wing feathers allow silent flight;
great hearing (facial feathers form
a “dish” and asymmetrical ears
improve sound reception)
Fluffy barn owl chicks covered with
downy feathers
27. Eastern Screech Owl
Otus asio
• Found in woodlands, especially
near open areas, and orchards
• Very small owl (6-10 inches)
• Nests in cavities
• Strictly nocturnal, so not
well-known
28. Southern Flying Squirrel
Glaucomys volans
• Found in a variety of forest
habitats
• Not well-known because it is
strictly nocturnal
• Omnivorous – eats nuts, insects,
eggs, fungi, fruits
• Doesn’t really fly but glides
using webbed skin along side of
body
29. Coyote
Canis latrans
• Increasing in numbers statewide,
including urban areas
• Successful as a generalist – smart
and adaptable
• Diet extremely varied and
includes rodents, rabbits, birds,
eggs, many kinds of fruits,
domestic poultry, livestock,
garbage, pet cats and
watermelons
• Usually 6 pups per litter
• Looks like a domestic dog, but
with longer legs, more scruffy
30. Bobcat
Lynx rufus
• Common statewide in a wide array of
habitats including dense understory,
bottomland hardwood forests, swamps,
and farmlands.
• Breeding peaks December-April, but
young may be born anytime during the
year.
• Diet includes many kinds of vertebrates
and invertebrates.
• Behavior: crepuscular (active at dawn and
dusk)
31. Eastern Cottontail
Sylvilagus floridanus
• Primarily occurs in deciduous
forests and forest edges, but
also in grasslands, along
fencerows, and in urban areas
• Produces up to seven litters
averaging three to five young
annually
• Forbs and grasses comprise
most of diet in summer, but
consumption of twigs and tree
bark increases in winter
32. Nine-banded Armadillo
Dasypus novemcinctus
• Range expanded from Texas into southern US
since late 1800s, partly due to decreasing
numbers of large predators
• Armored carapace or shell is bone and horn
• Live in burrows
• Eat mostly insects
• Clumsy, slow movement
33. Opossum
Didelphis virginiana
• North America’s only marsupial
(young develop in mother’s pouch)
• Has a prehensile tail
• Omnivorous
• Sometimes they will “play possum”
and roll over, become stiff, and
their breathing will become slow
and shallow. This coma-like state
can last up to four hours. Some
predators will think the opossum is
dead and go away.
34. White-tailed deer
Odocoileus virginianus
• Flash of white on underside
of tail used to communicate
between deer when running
• Almost wiped out of
Alabama by early 1900s
when number of deer fell to a
few thousand, efforts to
restore population have
resulted in 1.75 million deer
by year 2000
• Important game animal
35. Red Fox
Vulpes vulpes
• Common in forested
habitats statewide.
• Diet: mostly small
animals, but may include
plants, eggs, and carrion
• Nocturnal
• Only one litter per year
(3-9 pups)
36. Raccoon
Procyon lotor
• Successful generalist, found even
in urban areas
• Often associated with water
• Omnivore - consumes an
unusually wide range of plant and
animal foods
• The raccoon’s Latin name, lotor,
means “the washer” and refers to
the perceived habit of dipping food
in water before eating it. Recent
studies indicate that this behavior is
only common in captive raccoons
and seems to be a substitute for the
dabbling process used in searching
for prey in aquatic habitats.