FWS Focus

Overview

ESA status: not listed, at risk (May 2021)

The Shasta salamander (Hydromantes shastae) is a member of the family Plethodontidae, the Lungless Salamanders.  It has the smallest known range of any Pacific Northwest amphibian (Stebbins 1985). It is distributed patchily within its known range and can be locally abundant to very rare.

At present there are 61 known sites of occurrence and it is thought that these represent less than 20 populations of Shasta salamanders.

Shasta salamanders have been poorly studied because they are patchily distributed, rare throughout the landscape, and have a secretive life history. Known populations are few and far between, and are difficult to access when salamanders are active at the surface because of weather conditions that make many of the 4-wheel drive access roads and steep rocky terrain impassable.

In 2018, Hydromantes shastae was split into three different species: H. shastae, H. wintu and H. samweli. The three species are morphologically cryptic species, which means that you can't tell them apart by appearance in pictures or in hand. The only difference between them is the length of the longest digits on their toes.

Scientific Name

Hydromantes shastae
Common Name
Shasta Salamander
FWS Category
Amphibians
Kingdom

Location in Taxonomic Tree

Identification Numbers

TSN:

Geography

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