Pacific Northwest
Reptiles & Amphibians
Click on a picture for a larger view 
Western Red-backed Salamander - Plethodon vehiculum
(Cooper, 1860)
Alternate Name:
Western Redback Salamander
Related or Similar Northwest Salamanders:
Western Long-toed Salamander
Van Dyke's Salamander
Coeur D'alene Salamander
Dunn's Salamander
Larch Mountain Salamander
Del Norte Salamander
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| Adult, King County, Washington | Adult, King County, Washington | |
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| Adult, Lewis County, Washington | ||
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| Adult, Lewis County, Washington | ||
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| Adult, Lewis County, Washington | ||
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| Adult, Lewis County, Washington | ||
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| Adult, King County, Washington | ||
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| Adult, Pacific County, Washington | Adult, Mason County, Washington | Adult, Pacific County, Washington The stripe on top of the tail of the Western Red-backed Salmander extends to the end of the tail, unlike the stripe on Dunn's Salamander. |
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| Melanistic adult, Lewis County, Washington | Tan adult, Lewis County, Washington | |
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| Red adult, Lewis County, Washington | Yellow adult, Lewis County, Washington | |
All four of the Lewis County salamanders shown above were found at the same location in the Cascades mountains, along with other color types, illustrating how variable in appearance this species can be. |
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| This King County, Washington adult has unusual coloring with a broken line pattern on a dark back and most of the color on the tail. © Seth Erickson | Tan adult, King County Washington © Seth Erickson |
Tan adult, King County Washington © Seth Erickson |
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| Adult, Pierce County, Washington | Comparison of sympatric species: Reddish phase Plethodon vehiculum - Western Red-backed Salamander (top). Dark phase Plethodon vandykei, Van Dyke's Salamander (bottom). Both were found at the same locality in the Cascade Mountains, Lewis County, Washington. |
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| Habitat | ||
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| Habitat, Lewis County, Washington | Habitat, King County, Washington | Habitat, Pierce County, Washington |
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| Habitat, Pacific County, Washington | ||
| Short Video | ||
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| Western Red-backed Salamanders are discovered under rocks below a waterfall. | ||
Northwest Reptiles and Amphibians
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