Know Your Newts!

Roanoke City Spring Break Camp started today, and we got all the animal cuddles we could ask for at Apple Ridge Farm and Mill Mountain Zoo.

People often ask about the salamanders that we catch at Apple Ridge Farm. Well, they are actually NEWTS: red-spotted newts to be exact. We scoop them out of the pond when they’re in the aquatic life stage, but they also go through a terrestrial “eft” stage where they live on dry land and turn BRIGHT orange. We got to see both life stages last week, and it shows you that even the most humble little creatures aren’t always so simple.