Sunday 8:00-12:10 pm: 15 new dead newts, no live newt!
I walked with Ross.
Weather - sunny. Cold at first, then warm. No rain. Rain MTD 0.77 in, YTD 9.74 in per http://www.weathercat.net/wxraindetail.php
I documented a total of 15 new dead newts on the entire road, 1 of them was a juvenile. All were dry, most of them already detached.

Other roadkills: one moth and one caterpillar, millipede, spider, bee.
Coverage: from the parking lot to Aldercroft.
Traffic:
North section: 49 cars, 3 motorcycles, 20 bikes, 61 pedestrians, and 117 cars parked by the road and in the parking lots (7 in the farther lot).
South side: 26 cars, 27 bikes, 11 pedestrians, and 5 cars parked by the road.
I haven't seen the HTH team.
A link to my observations - https://www.inaturalist.org/observations?on=2021-02-28&place_id=any&subview=grid&user_id=merav&verifiable=any

0 dead newts, 0 live newts.
March 3rd, 2021 (Wednesday), 10:00-11:30am
Weather: Partly clear, 53F.
Other roadkill: 1 large millipede
Rainfall: MTD 0.0in, YTD 9.74in (per http://www.weathercat.net/wxraindetail.php?year=2021)
Traffic: 14 moving vehicles, 4 parked, 4 pedestrians.
Midpen study: Pit traps that I checked were empty and there were no roadkill newts in their road sections.

Quietest day ever! Has been completely dry, with cold nights, so I guess the newts have been sheltering in place. I did find a single incredibly adhered-to-the-road formerly-living thing, but there was no texture, color, or bone left so I can't really positively ID what it was.

As we head into the last 4-6 weeks of the Pacific newt migration season, I'd like to send out my thanks and deepest gratitude to the Newt Roadkill Survey Team (@merav, @sea-kangaroo, @newtpatrol, @anudibranchmom, @joescience1, @karangattu, @tyap, @biohexx1) for your work at Lexington Reservoir during the 2020-2021 migration season.

The last month is possibly the most difficult. Volunteers are exhausted both mentally & physically from taking pictures of thousands upon thousands of dead creatures on the road. Just when you think the carnage might be over, it rains and more newts brave the road only to have the life snuffed out of them. It weighs you down. It's difficult and dangerous work. Not many people appreciate your efforts. It's so discouraging when the powers-that-be won't do anything to stop the carnage.

But look how much you've accomplished! Especially Merav, who deserves special recognition for the phenomenal amount of work she's done on the longevity study as well as routine surveys, training, collaborating with partners, developing a web site, and leading the team.

Team, please know that I and individuals at key agencies (UC Davis Road Ecology Center, CA Fish & Wildlife, USGS Ecology, Audubon Society, Sierra Club, Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District, Peninsula Open Space Trust and others) truly appreciate the work you've done.

Fraser Shilling, Ph.D., director of the UC Davis Road Ecology Center at UC Davis recently said, "I don't think there has been a study anywhere in the world that has found a higher density of amphibian mortality from traffic than this one."

You all have contributed to a landmark study. Thank you for your time and effort.

Conducted survey of North side from 9:50 am - 1:00 pm. Weather was 50F, sunny.

Documented 125 Newts, of which 2 were juveniles. No live newts seen :(
Other documented roadkill: None observed.

Midpen study: Pit traps were emptied before I arrived and there were no roadkill newts in their road sections.

Documented Human Activity:
Cars: 233
Motorcycles: 4
Bikes: 56
Pedestrians: 38
Parked Cars: 106

Notes:
To be honest, I was kind of envious of Merav's and Cynthia's low numbers in the past week and was hoping I will get to experience the same joys, but fate had other plans. It did rain on Friday night, so I was naïve in assuming I would be let off the hook easy. I got a late start to the day because it was 39F when I was supposed to leave for my bike ride. The time I started the survey couldn't have been worse.
Even before reaching HTH study site #1, I had counted 100+ cars. It seemed COVID-19 vaccines were being distributed on Alma Bridge road considering the heavy traffic.

One family stopped and asked what I was doing, and I went through the entire TED talk and then the lady said " Oh, so you are saving the environment!" to which I responded with an awkward yes.

Two bikers asked me what the time was.

Link to my observations for today: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations?on=2021-03-07&place_id=any&q=roadkill&user_id=karangattu&verifiable=any

March 3, 2021 (Wednesday), 1:15pm - 2:30pm
Coverage: Jones parking to second stop sign

4 dead newts, none juveniles

Weather: 60sF, clear, dry, hadn't rained in a while

Traffic: 22 moving cars, 12 parked cars, 4 quarry trucks, 4 bikes, 1 pedestrian

A quick walk this time, hardly any newts. I did have a longish conversation with a cyclist who was curious and had many questions, so it was fun to engage with someone in that way.

Sorry it took so long to get this posted! Not much of an excuse with only 4...

Sunday 8:45-12:00 pm: 139 new dead newts, no live newt!
Weather - Cold at first, then warm. It rained Friday night - heavy rain in San Jose, with puddles present at Lexington. Rain MTD 0.08 in, YTD 9.82 in per http://www.weathercat.net/wxraindetail.php
I documented a total of 139 new dead newts, a few juveniles. Some were fresh, some were already dry.
Other roadkills: millipedes, beetles, Jerusalem crickets.
Coverage: from Aldercroft Heights Rd to the first stop sign.
Traffic: 44 cars, 2 motorcycles, 21 bikes, 9 pedestrians, and 12 cars parked by the road.
I haven't seen the HTH team. I walked by #6 before they were there, and there were about 5-7 dead newts there. I only documented 2 of them, that were on the west side of the road. I didn't document the rest that were on the other side. By the time I was back, they were already gone. The 2 documented were added to the population study and not to this 2021 project.
A link to all my newt observations of the day - https://www.inaturalist.org/observations?on=2021-03-07&place_id=any&subview=grid&taxon_id=27816&user_id=merav&verifiable=any

March 10, 2021 (Wednesday), 1:15-2:45pm

53 dead newts (2 of which were juveniles), 2 live newts!
Other roadkill: 1 toad

Weather: Rained this morning and last night, a sprinkle when I started, partly cloudy and in the 50s the rest of the time, beautiful dramatic clouds.

Traffic: 25 moving vehicles, 8 parked, 4 quarry trucks, 1 bicycle, 1 jogger

Surprisingly few newts, given that it rained pretty well last night, mostly fresh. The two live newts were on the reservoir side of the road, moving away from the reservoir, and both appeared to be male.

March 10, 2021 (Wednesday), 8:30-10:10 am

60 dead newts (most larger than average size, many still with aquatic tails, very recently killed)
1 juvenile newt
Other roadkill: 1 Western Toad, 1 Sierran Tree Frog
Weather: Light rain during survey, steady rain the previous evening.
Traffic: 23 vehicles

Interesting human stuff:
1) A battalion of guys with multiple utility trucks laying fiber optic cable
2) Two HTH biologists checking their pit traps. Funny moment when the re-passed me on the road, suddenly stopping their truck and leaping out to help a LEAF cross the road. They were very embarassed that their mis-ID happened in front of me, but I assured them we'd all done it and their heart was in the right place. :-)

Interesting non-human stuff:
Golden Eagle soaring over the southern ridge

Conducted survey of North side from 7:33 AM - 10:00 AM. Weather was 45F, cloudy.

Documented 97 dead Newts, of which 1 was a juvenile. Was able to rescue 1 Adult and 1 Juvenile, both were going away from the reservoir towards the forest. They had almost made it halfway through, so I looked around and saw if anyone was judging me, then gave them a helping hand, but let them cross the finish line to give them the satisfaction.

Mid pen study: Documented 2 dead newts in their survey sites.
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/71275352
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/71275495
The pitfall traps were not emptied, and I did spot 1 adult and 1 juvenile in two of those buckets. I randomly peeked into about 6 buckets.

Documented Human Activity:
Cars: 119
Motorcycles: 0
Bikes: 7
Pedestrians: 19
Parked Cars: 75

Notes: Most Newts were dried up, with a few fresh ones.
Since I was really early to do the patrol, did not see a lot of people. Towards the tail end of the patrol, I was greeted by the procession of cars racing to drop their kids for the rowing class which starts at 10 am.

Link to my observations for today: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations?on=2021-03-14&place_id=any&q=roadkill&subview=table&user_id=karangattu&verifiable=any

Sunday 8:45-12:15 pm: 85 new dead newts, no live newt!
Weather - Cold. It rained on Wednesday and Thursday. Rain MTD 0.84 in, YTD 9.46 in per http://www.weathercat.net/wxraindetail.php
I documented a total of 85 new dead newts, possibly one juvenile. Most of them were very dry, a few were fresh.
Other roadkills: millipedes, centipedes, beetles, crickets, moths, earthworms.
Coverage: from Aldercroft Heights Rd to the first stop sign.
Traffic: 34 cars, 1 motorcycle, 12 bikes, 7 pedestrians, and 2 cars parked by the road.
2 out f 85 were found in front of HTH #6. They were very old. I was there before they checked their traps, and I saw them on the way there. I told them about the newts, but they only removed one. Maybe they didn't think the other was a newt? It was old, but clearly a newt.
The HTH team said that they'll be done soon - by the end of March.
A link to all my newt observations of the day - https://www.inaturalist.org/observations?nelat=37.23961004150027&nelng=-119.77119018488757&on=2021-03-14&place_id=any&swlat=36.635905112476756&swlng=-123.28681518488757&taxon_id=27816&user_id=merav&verifiable=any