38
1972.
We then moved some one hundred yards to the
first small crater where, as previously, in
shallow water we -Found 4 Great Crested Neats
(Triturus cristatus) along with 22 Common
Newts (Triturus vulgaris). Also Common Frog
tadpoles were present in this crater and more
were seen in a nearly dry puddle. Many
hundreds were seen almost dry due to the nature
of the puddle. Members carried as many of
these as possible back to Fairmead Pond to
save their lives.
The second crater nearby yielded 6 Common Newts
and one yearling newt tadpole. It was again
interesting to find the most newts in the
dirtiest pool and this does not support some
writers who suggest Great Crested Newts prefer
large open water.
After a lunch break we drove to Baldwins Hill
at Loughton and walked down into the valley and
up to the Lost or Blackriver Pond. Here, in
clear water, this gravel pond produced 9
Palmate Newts (Triturus helveticus) and 25
Common Newts. Members were able to see the
differences between the two species. Other
aquatic species were netted and displayed in
the trays, including one Crucian Carp, one
Dragonfly nymph, one Great Diving Beetle, 4
Three—Spined Sticklebacks (the females full of
eggs) and numerous Caddis Fly larvae, as well
as Water Scorpion and Fresh Water Mussel.
As regards the distribution of the Forest
newts, it would seem that as before Palmate
Newts prefer the higher gravel ponds, whereas