California Tiger Salamander (adult) - in daytime!
I was part of a field class sitting next to a vernal pool discussing tadpole and fairy shrimp when this fellow decided to crawl out of a burrow in the ground right next to the instructor... much to the surprise of all of us sitting in a circle around the instructor!
The CA Tiger salamander is an endangered species endemic only to vernal pools along the central valley in California. Adults spend most of their time in burrows in upland areas, coming out mainly to breed and most often in the dead of night during rain. Spotting them is thus very difficult and rare, so to randomly find one in the open during the daytime is an extraordinary thing.