California Reptiles & Amphibians

Aneides lugubris - Arboreal Salamander

Click on a picture for a larger view

Range in California: Red

Dot-locality Range Map.

Adult, Contra Costa County

Adult, Contra Costa County (missing the tip of its tail)

Adult male, Monterey County sand dunes

Adult, found on a building in downtown San Francisco, San Francisco County
© Jackson Shedd

Adult, Alameda County

Adult, Santa Cruz County

Juvenile, Santa Cruz County

Juvenile, Santa Cruz County
© Brad Alexander

Toes adapted for climbing

Adult, Sierra Nevada Mountains, Tuolumne County © Rick Staub

Adult, Orange County
© Jason Jones

Adult, Mendocino County

Adult, San Luis Obispo County
© Henk Wallays

Adult, San Luis Obispo county,
© Andrew Harmer

During the dry season, Arboreal Salamanders seek out cool moist areas underground or in trees to rest until the rainy season. Eric Boyer discovered this large group of estivating adult and juvenile Arboreal salamanders underneath some wood while remodeling a backyard in Santa Barbara County in June. © Eric Boyer

Typical oak woodland habitat,
Contra Costa County

A careful look underneath the fallen bark of this dead tree turned up one Arboreal Salamander, two Coast Range Newts, one Yellow-eyed Ensatina, and 12 California Slender Salamanders, illustrating how dead wood and bark on a forest floor is an important microhabitat for salamanders and other wildlife.

Habitat, Contra Costa County

Coastal sand dunes habitat, Monterey County

Urban backyard habitat, Oakland, Alameda County

Arboreal salamanders inhabit Southeast Farallon Island

Description

Size

Adults measure 2 1/4 - 4 inches long (5.7 - 10.1 cm) from snout to vent and up to 7 inches (18 cm) in total length.

Appearance

A medium sized plethodontid salamander which breathes through thin moist skin instead of lungs. Color is brown above with small cream to yellow spots. The number of spots varies with location - Sierra Nevada populations have weak spotting, Gabilan Mountains and Farallon Islands populations have large conspicuous spots. The venter is creamy white. The undersides of the tail and feet are dull yellow. Males have large triangular heads. Toe tips are expanded and squarish. Tail is prehensile, often coiled. Usually 15 costal grooves. Two nasolabial grooves. Young are dark, clouded with gray or brassy color. May squeak when caught. Capable of producing a painful bite.

Behavior

Lives in moist places on land. Active when soil moisture is high after the onset of fall rains, usually in November, to May. A sit-and-wait-predator, adults forage for small invertebrates and sometimes slender salamanders on the ground at night during wet weather. Adapted for climbing with long toes and rounded tail. Has been found up to 59 ft. (18 m) above the ground.

Diet

Eats a variety of small invertebrates and slender salamanders.

Reproduction

Breeding males have a heart-shaped mental gland. Females lay and brood eggs in summer in moist places, mostly in tree holes. Often large egg masses are laid with groups of salamanders. Young hatch fully formed.

Range

Endemic to California and northern Baja California. Occurs from Humboldt county, south along the coast and coast ranges into northern Baja California, and in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada Mountains from El Dorado County to madera County. Also found on South Farallon, Ano Nuevo, and Catalina Islands.

Habitat

Lives in moist places on land, mainly in oak woodland, but also found in pine and oak forests in the Sierra Nevada and other dryer habitats, including coastal sand dunes.

Taxonomic Notes

The population on South Farallon Island was at one time recognized as the subspecies A. l. farallonensis.

Conservation Issues (Conservation Status)

None

Taxonomy
Family	Plethodontidae	Lungless Salamanders
Genus	Aneides	Climbing Salamanders
Species	lugubris	Arboreal Salamander
Original Description
Hallowell, 1849 - Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philadelphia, Vol. 4, p. 126 from Original Description Citations for the Reptiles and Amphibians of North America © Ellin Beltz
Meaning of the Scientific Name
Aneides: Greek - lacking form or shape lugubris: Latin - gloomy, dark, possibly referring to dull coloration. from Scientific and Common Names of the Reptiles and Amphibians of North America - Explained © Ellin Beltz
Alternate Names
None
Related or Similar California Salamanders
Speckled Black Salamander Santa Cruz Black Salamander Wandering Salamander Clouded Salamander
More Information and References
Natureserve Explorer California Dept. of Fish and Game AmphibiaWeb 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. Bishop, Sherman C. Handbook of Salamanders. Cornell University Press, 1943. Petranka, James W. Salamanders of the United States and Canada. Smithsonian Institution, 1998. Jones, Lawrence L. C. , William P. Leonard, Deanna H. Olson, editors. Amphibians of the Pacific Northwest. Seattle Audubon Society, 2005.

Conservation Status
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. This salamander is not included on the Special Animals List, meaning there are no significant conservation concerns for it in California according to the California Department of Fish and Game.
Organization	Status Listing
U.S. Endangered Species Act (ESA)
California Endangered Species Act (CESA)
California Department of Fish and Game
Bureau of Land Management
USDA Forest Service
Natureserve Global Conservation Status Ranks
World Conservation Union - IUCN Red List