(water gurgling) - I'm Coyote Peterson
and today, we're getting hands-on
with one of the most poisonous animals in the United States.
And of course, (playful music)
I'm talkin' about newts.
(powerful music)
(gentle music) When most think of California,
the imagery of sunshine and beaches probably comes to mind.
However, when it comes to the forest of Northern California,
the sand is replaced by enormous prehistoric-looking trees
and the ocean's mighty waves
become an intricate maze of battling streams.
San Mateo County boasts some of the most beautiful
and seriously epic forest scapes in the Pacific Northwest.
And if you navigate your way down into the ravines,
you'll find a thriving ecosystem,
so diverse that flipping a single trail side rock
may get you up close with a stealthy predator.
What you're lookin' at, right there,
is the Forest Scorpion, one of the most common
scorpion species that you'll find here
in the forests of Northern California.
It seems that no matter where I go,
the scorpions are right there with me.
But not everything in the forest is equipped
with pinchers and a venom-injecting stinger.
Flip over the right rock
and you might just find a cute little creature
that tops the charts as quite possibly
the most adorable amphibian in California.
Holy moly.
Look at that. - It's a newt?
- [Coyote] Nope that is not; that is actually a newt mimic.
It is an Ensatina.
You can see how it looks like a newt with a dark upper body
and an orange underside, also poisonous.
And if you handle this Ensatina too much,
they will secrete a white poison from their skin.
But look how cute that little guy is.
Just another one of the salamander species
you can find, here, in the forests of Northern California.
(upbeat music) All right, let's put him
back under his rock and see if we can find some
of his bigger cousins.
The forest was alive with salamanders
and we were even lucky enough
to encounter the Arboreal Salamander,
which is usually only found high up in the trees.
And the larva stage of a Giant Salamander
who is happily submerged
and breathing with an elaborate set of gills.
This terrain's rather difficult to navigate.
I'm sure it's not easy for you, Mark,
filming me as we're walking. - No.
- Every one of these rocks has these rounded edges.
That's what we call an ankle-breaker, right there.
All right, just watch your step comin' across this.
However, the real encounter we were looking to have
was with one of the most toxic amphibians
in the United States, the California Newt.
And as we quickly navigated downstream,
we eventually came upon a pocket of water
that was absolutely swimming with them.
Holy cow, look at 'em all!
There must be 40 or 50 of them in here.
Okay, this looks like the perfect opportunity
for me to get some of these toxic little amphibians
up close to the camera.
All right, now, the reason that I'm taking off my boots
is so that I don't accidentally step on one
of these fragile little amphibians.
Oh, that water is cold.
Oh, they are quick and they're swimmin' all over.
Oh, look at that, I'm kind of herding them all
in one direction, but as soon as you get close
they dart off to the corners
to get up under the rocks. (water splashing)
Oh, here's a big one, right here.
Ready, one, two, three. (water splashing)
Got him!
There we go, here we go, comin' right towards ya.
(water splashing) Four, five.
I think that's probably enough
to get up close for the cameras.
All right, let's get up here on shore
and take a closer look. (splashing water)
Oh, that water is absolutely freezing.
Look at that.
How adorable are those little newts?
They're a lot stronger than you would think.
There we go.
That's what we call hand full of newt, right there.
I got 'em all calmed down, now,
and if you take a real good look, there,
the top of their body is very dark in coloration
and also rough.
That helps them stay camouflaged
in this forest environment.
Now, the California Newt goes through multiple life stages,
from egg, to larva, to adult stage.
And these ones, right here, are in their adult stage,
living a mostly aquatic life.
Now, they do breathe air,
and we've seen them coming up to the surface,
taking a gulp, and then diving back down.
They can stay under water for a considerable amount of time,
but like all animals that breathe air,
they have to come out of the water at some point.
Now, at the beginning of the episode,
I told you that I was going to be handling
one of the most poisonous animals in the United States,
which in fact, these newts are.
However, I don't have to worry about that poison
by just handling them.
I'd actually have to physically eat one of these newts
for it to cause me any harm.
Now, scientists have done research and found
that just a single newt contains enough neurotoxin
to kill almost 15 hundred lab rats.
That's insane how toxic these little guys are.
Now, let's say a predator comes into this environment
and doesn't know any better when it comes to eating newts.
If this newt feels extremely threatened,
what it will do is actually turn its head
up in the air to expose its chin
and they will bend their tail
to expose this bright orange coloration on the underside.
Now, most animals that are poisonous
have some sort of bright coloration
to warn predators, don't eat me
because if you do, it may be the last meal you ever have.
Hiking throughout the course of the day,
I've literally seen hundreds of these California Newts.
Just in this pocket of water alone,
easily over 50, which tells me two things.
One, that this ecosystem is incredibly healthy,
and two, that the California Newt is certainly thriving
here on the West Coast.
I'm Coyote Peterson.
Be brave, stay wild.
We'll see you on the next adventure.
(upbeat music)
I can never recommend getting hands-on
with any poisonous plant or animal,
however, if you do head out to the forests
of Northern California, capture and handle a newt,
just make sure to wash your hands soon after.
As long as you don't eat any newts, you'll be just fine.
(gentle music)
Oh, man, what a day.
No muddy boots?
Oh, man.
(Coyote groaning) (somber music)
(bullet ant hissing)
(door slamming shut)
(gentle music)
Is that the Brave Wilderness Adventure Kit?
It is!
Oh, I gotta get it.
- Wait, it's booby-trapped!
- Oh, centipedes, bullet ants?
Legos!
I'm goin' for it anyways.
(Coyote squealing)
Why did it have to be Legos? (dramatic music)
(Legos bouncing on floor)
(Coyote groaning and sighing)
I made it!
All right, I've got a lizard in my pocket.
I'm gonna swap it out.
Here we go, ready?
One, two, (lizard slamming)
oh, yes, I got it!
The Brave Wilderness Adventure Kit, yes!
All right, I'm comin' back. (Coyote moaning)
- Toss it to me; I got it.
(Coyote squealing) Toss it here, toss it.
(Coyote groaning) I got it!
Toss it! - No, I can't trust you!
You're a bullet ant.
- I've never failed you before, Coyote.
Come on, toss it to me.
Come on. - All right, here we go.
Ready? - Yeah.
- One, two, three. (box clatters)
- Oh. - Now, haul me across.
- Yes. (bullet ant laughs maniacally)
I am the king of sting. (howling dramatically)
- No!
(gentle music) (snoring)
- Coyote, wake up. - Oh, oh!
- Are you sleeping? - Whoa, dude.
I just had the craziest dream.
We're filming an episode,
we came back, my boots were all muddy
and we walked into the office.
It was like a scene out of Indiana Jones.
And the Brave Wilderness Adventure Kit was there.
And I was tryin' to get it
and there were bullet ants, and centipedes,
and spider webs, and you were a bullet ant.
- What? - A bullet ant
and you stole the adventure kit from me.
- First of all, I would never do that to you,
but dude, it was only a dream.
Don't worry.
(gentle music)
- Oh, check that little guy out.
That is a common snapping turtle.
And it's actually the common snapping turtle
from the Brave Wilderness Adventure Kit,
Edition Number Two, Reptiles & Amphibians.
Now, the thing that I love about snapping turtles
is not only the camouflage that's on the carapace,
which as you guys know is the top of the shell,
look at the plastron.
It's so much smaller than other turtles.
You can see all that (mumbles) hangs out there
and that's why they've developed such a fierce disposition.
These turtles will let you know that they're angry
because they can tuck into their shells.
This guy's pretty cute, though, isn't he?
And because this isn't an actual wild animal,
it's gonna go right into my pocket, and home with me.
(upbeat music)
If you enjoyed this encounter,
make sure you go back and watch
as we get the cameras up close
with some of the planet's most fascinating animals.
And don't forget, subscribe and click the notification bell
so you can join me and the crew
on our next wild adventure.
That is so distinct looking.
Now, this is one of the only native aquatic turtle species
here in Arizona.
(wilderness sounds)