Notophthalmus viridescens
Silhouette: Beth Reinke · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~90% in a week >90%
The eastern newt (Notophthalmus viridescens) is a common newt of eastern North America. It frequents small lakes, ponds, vernal ponds and streams or nearby wooded areas. The eastern newt produces tetrodotoxin, which makes the species unpalatable to predatory fish and crayfish. It has a lifespan of 12 to 15 years in the wild, and it may grow to 5 in (13 cm) in length. These animals are common aquarium pets, being either collected from the wild or sold commercially. The striking bright orange juvenile stage, which is land-dwelling, is known as a red eft. Some sources blend the general name of the species and that of the red-spotted newt subspecies into the eastern red-spotted newt (although there is no "western" one).
The eastern newt includes these four subspecies: Red-spotted newt (Notophthalmus viridescens viridescens); Broken-striped newt (Notophthalmus viridescens dorsalis); Central newt (Notophthalmus viridescens louisianensis) - Central newts measure from 2.5 in (6.4 cm) to 4 in (10 cm) in length. They are brown or green, with fine black dots all over the body. There may be a row of red spots on each side of the body. The belly is yellow or orange and is noticeably... Wikipedia →
Recording0:21
Canada · 2024
© schw0099 · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Shenandoah National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Acadia National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Great Smoky Mountains National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | Isle Royale National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 5 | Cape Breton Highlands National Park | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 6 | Big Cypress National Preserve | 🇺🇸 United States |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Toronto | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 2 | New York City | 🇺🇸 United States |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | National Zoological Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Ostrava Zoo | 🇨🇿 Czechia | |
| 4 | Ecomuseum Zoo | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 5 | Toronto Zoo | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 6 | The Maryland Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 7 | ZooTampa | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 8 | Krakow Zoo | 🇵🇱 Poland | |
| 9 | Western North Carolina Nature Center | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 10 | Aquarium du Québec | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 11 | North Carolina Aquarium at Fort Fisher | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 12 | Reptile Gardens | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 13 | Oklahoma Aquarium | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 14 | North Carolina Aquarium at Pine Knoll Shores | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 15 | Huntsman Fundy Discovery Aquarium | 🇨🇦 Canada |
Likely
About 50% of wildlife watchers report an Eastern Newt sighting in Shenandoah National Park on a given day, based on 244 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 3rd most-seen of the 20 amphibians we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 90%, and over a week to over 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.
May
In that month about 70% of wildlife watchers report an Eastern Newt in Shenandoah National Park on a given day, against under 5% in January and November, the lowest months.
Between 9 am and noon
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Eastern Newt sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Yes
Of the 6 parks where we can rate Eastern Newt sightings, Shenandoah National Park has the highest daily chance: about 50%. Next come Acadia National Park (United States, about 30%) and Great Smoky Mountains National Park (United States, about 30%). All parks ranked.
Same order: Caudata
The closest relatives of the Eastern Newt that you can see in Shenandoah National Park (order Caudata, Salamanders) are Eastern Red-backed Salamander (about 60%), Seal Salamander (about 40%) and Northern Two-lined Salamander (about 40%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Eastern Newt is recorded against all the amphibians logged in Shenandoah National Park (244 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
