Kingdom Animalia Order Caudata Genus Plethodon Higher classification Woodland salamander | Phylum Chordata Family Plethodontidae Scientific name Plethodon shenandoah Rank Species | |
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Similar Salamander, Woodland salamander, Amphibians, Peaks of Otter salamander, Weller's salamander | ||
The Shenandoah Salamander (Plethodon shenandoah) is a species of salamander in the family Plethodontidae. It is endemic to the United States and the state of Virginia. It is only known from North facing talus slopes on three mountain tops inside the Shenandoah National Park. Its natural habitats are temperate forests and rocky areas.
Contents
Hawksbill mountain shenandoah salamander
Reproduction
Males and females typically establish separate feeding and/or mating territories underneath rocks and logs. Breeding occurs in fall and spring, with females attending clutches of eggs laid in crevices between rocks in their talus habitat.
Conservation
The Shenandoah salamander's range is entirely protected by the Shenandoah National Park, so habitat loss is unlikely to be a major threat, but the FWS identifies 1) defoliation of trees by gypsy moth, 2) its extremely restricted range size, and 3) competition with redbacked salamanders as reasons for its 1989 endangered listing under the Endangered Species Act. Subsequent to this listing, Climate change, and the deadly amphibian pathogen Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis have been suggested as possible threats to highly restricted mountain-dwelling Appalachian salamanders.
