Spotted Salamander

Taxobox
name = Spotted Salamander
status = LC
status_system = iucn3.1
trend = stable

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image_width = 250px


image2_width = 150px
regnum = Animalia
phylum = Chordata
classis = Amphibia
ordo = Caudata
familia = Ambystomatidae
genus = "Ambystoma"
species = "A. maculatum"
binomial = "Ambystoma maculatum"
binomial_authority = (Shaw, 1802)

The Spotted Salamander ("Ambystoma maculatum") is a mole salamander common in the eastern United States and Canada.

Description

A salamander that can be 4-7 inches long and has yellow spots on its dorsal surface, though some specimens have no spots at all. Their primary habitat are deciduous forests with fish-free ponds or vernal pools for egg laying and larval development. They feed primarily on invertebrates like earthworms and slugs also they will eat almost any insect they can get. They are primarily subterranean, though can be found beneath surface debris on cool, damp days.The species was first described by George Shaw in 1802 in his "General Zoology or Systematic Natural History". It is the State Amphibian of South Carolina.

Breeding

This species begins to mate as soon as the snow melts in March or April. The adults follow creeks in their migration to temporary or permanent pools of water which are free of predatory fish. Adults breed in the same pond throughout their lifetime, with females laying 25 to 200 eggs in compact masses of jelly attached to underwater plants. The eggs take 31 to 54 days to hatch, depending on temperature. Once the larvae emerge, they require an additional 61 to 110 days before they leave the pond.

Habitat

Spotted Salamanders prefer mature, moist woodlands with access to vernal pools for breeding. They spend most of the year in underground burrows, but are sometimes found under rotting logs or leaf litter. They are also found amongst rocks, in the roots of a growing tree on the side of a hill, and in dark rock mounds. They prefer dark moist areas to live. Small invertebrates, such as worms, insects, spiders, slugs, and snails are eaten.

Distribution

Its distribution ranges from central and southern Ontario, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, mainland New Brunswick and south through the United States to the Gulf of Mexico. This species is widespread throughout the Great Lakes region and is found as far north as Sudbury.

Mutualism

Eggs of "A. maculatum" can have a symbiotic relationship with a green alga, "Oophila amblystomatis". [http://www.biolbull.org/cgi/content/abstract/115/3/483] [http://www.hsu.edu/content.aspx?id=5910] Jelly coating prevents the spotted salamander eggs from drying out, however it inhibits oxygen diffusion (required for embryo development). The "Oophila" alga photosynthesizes and produces oxygen in the jelly. The developing salamander thus metabolizes the oxygen, producing carbon dioxide (which then the alga consumes).They are also saprophytes.

References

* Database entry includes a range map and a brief justification of why this species is of least concern

External links

* [http://calphotos.berkeley.edu/cgi/img_query?stat=BROWSE&query_src=photos_fauna_sci-Amphibian&where-lifeform=Amphibian&where-taxon=Ambystoma+maculatum&title_tag=Ambystoma+maculatum Ambystoma maculatum] at CalPhotos
* [http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Ambystoma_maculatum.html Ambystoma maculatum: Information] at ADW
*eol|17203903