Range in California: Red
Range Map of Southern Sierra
Nevada Slender Salamanders
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Adult, Kern County |
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Adult, Kern County |
Adult, Kern County, 2,400 ft. |
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Adult, Kern County, 2,400 ft. |
Adult, Kern County, Cottonwood Creek |
Adult, Kern County, Cottonwood Creek |
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Juvenile, Kern County, 2,400 ft. |
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Habitat |
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Habitat, 1,500 ft., Kern County |
Habitat, 2,400 ft., Kern County |
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More pictures of Slender Salamanders from upper Kern Canyon.
Breckenridge Mountain Slender Salamander
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Description |
| Size |
| Adults are 1 5/8 - 2 1/5 inches long (4-5.5 cm) from snout to vent. |
| Appearance |
| A small slim salamander, with 20-21 costal grooves (with 7-9 costal folds between adpressed limbs.) Short limbs, a narrow head, long slender body, very long tail, and conspicuous costal and caudal grooves give this species the worm-like appearance typical of most Slender Salamanders. This species is relatively large and robust when compared with most Slender Salamanders, having a comparitively broader head, longer legs, broader feet, and larger toes. The sides and ventral surfaces are dark, and flecked with a lighter color. There may be a dorsal stripe. There are four toes on the front and hind feet, which is also typical of Slender Salamanders. (Other California salamanders have five toes on the hind feet.) |
| Behavior and Natural History |
Little is known about this species. Like all Slender Salamanders, it breathes through thin moist skin instead of lungs. Most Slender Salamander species are active on rainy or wet nights when temperatures are moderate, fall through spring, retreating underground when the soil dries or when air temperature drops to near freezing. At higher elevations, activity may be restricted to spring and early summer and early fall.
Typical of most Slender Salamanders, when disturbed, this salamander may coil up and remain still, relying on cryptic coloring to avoid detection. It might also uncoil quickly and spring away, repeatedly bouncing over the ground, or drop its tail to distract a predator. The tail is easily broken off, but it can be regenerated.
Feeding behavior is not well known, but other Batrachoseps species are sit-and-wait predators that use a projectile tongue to catch prey. |
| Diet |
| Probably eats a variety of small invertebrates. |
| Reproduction and Young |
Reproduction is terrestrial. Nothing is known of the reproduction of B. simatus within Kern Canyon. Like other low to mid- elevation Batrachoseps, it is assumed that this species lays eggs on land between December and February, depending on stimulation by rainfall, which varies year to year. Young presumably hatch in early spring, fully formed. A single hatchling was found on March 4th.
On June 13, at an elevation of 6300 ft. (1,920 m) on Breckenridge Mt., twenty-two slender salamanders (tentatively regarded as B. simatus) were found in a communal nest site with nearly 150 eggs. The taxonomic status of these salamanders is uncertain, and it is most likely they constitute a different species. |
| Range |
| Endemic to California. Batrachoseps simatus is found in the lower Kern River Canyon from Stork Creek, 1,476 ft. (450 m) to Erskine Creek, 3,937 ft. (1200 m). All known locality records appear to be from the south side (north face) of the canyon. Outpost localities include the Squirrel Meadow vicinity on Breckenridge Mt. (6300 Ft.) (these salamanders will most likely be described as a different species) as well as one puzzling low-elevation site at Cottonwood Creek at 656 feet (200 m). |
| Habitat |
| Favored habitat is north-facing riparian zones in narrow canyons shaded with willows and cottonwoods and wooded hillsides supporting oaks and pines, including wet creek margins, seeps, talus, and exposed chaparral. These areas typically do not get sun in winter and remain moist and cool into the spring.
Individuals are usually found beneath rocks, logs, bark and leaf-litter during periods of high moisture, typically November to March or April, but often only February and March. One B. simatus (found by T. Burkhardt and S.Winegarner) came from within the spray-zone of a waterfall. Available habitat is in small disjunct patches, suggesting that population sizes are small. Robert Hansen, 1988, determined that salamanders were found in only about 2 per cent of the available habitat (only about 17 acres.) Substantial genetic differences have been found between adjacent populations. This suggests that these populations have been isolated for a long time, and that the failure to find salamanders in areas between populations is not due to inadequate surveys. |
| Taxonomic Notes |
There has been no question as to the validity of this taxon since it was originally described. B. simatus is genetically and morphologically distinct from other members of the nigriventris-group. Animals from Erskine Creek; the east end of Squirrel Meadow, 6300 Ft. on Breckenridge Mt; and one low elevation site differ slightly from Kern Canyon populations, but are currently regarded as B. simatus. Future studies will probably separate some of these populations into separate species.
Breckenridge Mountain Slender Salamander.
Animals from the upper canyon in the Fairview area are distinct and may prove to be one or more new species.
Fairview Slender Salamander.
Slender Salamanders from upper Kern River Canyon are somewhat different from those in lower Kern River Canyon.
Animals from Cottonwood Creek (pictures shown above) are also different and are tentatively regarded as B. simatus. |
| Conservation Issues (Conservation Status) |
| Protected by California law. Long periods of drought in the area have made it difficult to find salamanders and to monitor their status, but it appears that salamander populations still exist at all known localities. Highway construction and cattle grazing have degraded salamander habitat. The development of water storage facilities in Kern Canyon could pose an additional threat. |
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Taxonomy |
| Family |
Plethodontidae |
Lungless Salamanders |
| Genus |
Batrachoseps |
Slender Salamanders |
Species
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simatus |
Kern Canyon Slender Salamander |
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Original Description |
Brame and Murray, 1968 - Sci. Bull. Nat. Hist. Mus. Los Angeles Co., No. 4, p. 15
from Original Description Citations for the Reptiles and Amphibians of North America © Ellin Beltz
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Meaning of the Scientific Name |
Batrachoseps: Greek - amphibian, frog lizard - describes lizard-like appearance.
simatus: Latin - having the nature of a pug-nose, referring to the facial appearance.
from Scientific and Common Names of the Reptiles and Amphibians of North America - Explained © Ellin Beltz
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Alternate Names |
None
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Similar Neighboring Salamanders |
Batrachoseps relictus
Batrachoseps robustus
Batrachoseps stebbensi
Batrachoseps gregarious
Batrachoseps sp. Fairview/Upper Kern Canyon
Breckenridge Mountain Slender Salamander |
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More Information and References |
Natureserve Explorer
California Dept. of Fish and Game
AmphibiaWeb
Salamander Diversity in the Kern Valley Region
Stebbins, Robert C. A Field Guide to Western Reptiles and Amphibians. 3rd Edition. Houghton Mifflin Company, 2003.
Behler, John L., & F. Wayne King. The Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Reptiles and Amphibians. Alfred A. Knopf, 1992.
Bartlett, R. D. & Patricia P. Bartlett. Guide and Reference to the Amphibians of Western North America (North of Mexico) and Hawaii. University Press of Florida, 2009.
Bishop, Sherman C. Handbook of Salamanders. Cornell University Press, 1943.
Lannoo, Michael (Editor). Amphibian Declines: The Conservation Status of United States Species. University of California Press, June 2005.
Petranka, James W. Salamanders of the United States and Canada. Smithsonian Institution, 1998.
Thelander, C. G., ed. Life on the Edge: A Guide to California's Endangered Natural Resources Volume I: Wildlife.
Biosystems Books, Santa Cruz, California. 1994.
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The following status listings come from the Special Animals List which is published several times each year by the California Department of Fish and Game.
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Organization
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Status Listing
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| U.S. Endangered Species Act (ESA) |
None |
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| California Endangered Species Act (CESA) |
ST |
Threatened |
| California Department of Fish and Game |
None |
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| Bureau of Land Management |
None |
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| USDA Forest Service |
USFS:S |
Sensitive |
| Natureserve Global Conservation Status Ranks |
G2 S2 |
Imperiled |
World Conservation Union - IUCN Red List
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IUCN:VU |
Vulnerable |
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