National Great Outdoors Month is celebrated in June and serves as a reminder to enjoy and appreciate our state parks and wildlife refuges. This observation, begun in 1998, encourages us to explore our parks and enjoy the beauty that awaits us in our natural world.
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(Desmognathus ocoee) The ocoee salamander is lungless and lives in streams in wet areas adjacent to streams. It has a highly variable dorsal color patterning; usually a series of connected paired...
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(Pseudotrition ruber) The red is one of the most beautiful salamanders in the cove forest. Colors range from purplish brown to deep orange-red. It is lungless and terrestrial. Eggs are laid in water...
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(Plenthodon jordani) This lungless salamander is extremely abundant in cove forests at higher altitudes. Large quantities of sticky mucus are secreted by the tail for protection against avian...
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(Eurycea bislineata) The two-lined is one of the smallest salamanders in the cove forest. This species is found under logs and rocks in the moist soil conditions, usually near water. Breeding occurs...
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This shrew is very common and is one of the largest of the various shrew species weighing 11- 30 g. Food consists mainly of invertebrates such as earthworms, snails, and insects. However, these shrews...
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The pipistrelle is the smallest bat in the southern US. This is one of the most common bats in the cove forest. This bat is a very early evening feeder and tends to feed at treetop levels.
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(clethrionomys gapper) This rodent is a relative of the muskrat and lemming. This vole is found only in cove forests at higher altitudes in the mountains of South Carolina. It is semifossorial using...
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(sorex cinereus) This insectivore is related to the common moles. It is one of the smallest mammals found in the United States weighing between 2-5 g. It is constantly active with a very high...
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(peromyscus maniculatus) This rodent is the most important prey item for the avian and mammalian predators that frequent the cove forest. This specis is the most widespread of North American rodents...
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(Terrapene carolina) This turtle is very common and is highly terrestrial. The males have red eyes and the bottom of the shell (plastron) is scoped out; while the females have brown/yellow eyes and a...
