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Adult, Santa Cruz County
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Adult, Santa Cruz County |
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Adult, Santa Cruz County |
Breeding pond, fall,
Santa Cruz County |
Breeding pond, winter,
Santa Cruz County |
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Breeding pond, late winter
Santa Cruz County
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Habitat, wildlife refuge,
Santa Cruz County |
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Description |
| Size |
| Adults are 1 3/5 - 3 1/2 inches long (4.1 - 8.9 cm) from snout to vent, 4 - 6 2/3 inches (10 - 17 cm) in total length. |
| Appearance |
| A small ambystomatid salamander. Black above with an orange dorsal stripe, broken into spots and bars. Sides sprinkled with whitish specks. Venter is grey or black. Stout body, broad rounded head, blunt snout, small protuberant eyes, no nasolabial grooves. Tail flattened from side to side to facilitate swimming. Transformed adults have lungs and 12 - 13 costal grooves. Can be neotenic or remained gilled adults. |
| Behavior |
| Transformed adults are most likely found under wood, logs, rocks, bark and other objects near breeding sites or on roads on rainy nights during the breeding migration to and from the ponds. At other times of the year they stay in rotten logs or moist places underground such as animal burrows. Larvae have broad heads, three pairs of bushy gills and broad caudal fins that extend well onto the back.
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| Diet |
| Eats small invertebrates. |
| Reproduction |
Migration to breeding ponds occurs during nights with heavy rain from October through February with breeding occuring in
January and February. Adults remain in the ponds from several days to more than a month. Eggs are attached singly or in loose clusters to aquatic vegetation or the undersides of logs and branches in water. Eggs incubate for 2 - 5 weeks. Larvae may not transform the first season.
Drying of ponds triggers transformation. Young remain at the pond sites until the first rains in the fall. |
| Range |
| This subspecies is endemic to California, inhabiting a very limited range with scattered populations around Monterey Bay in southern Santa Cruz County and the northern edge of Monterey County. |
| Habitat |
| Found in dense riparian vegetation such as willows, thick coastal scrub, and oak woodland. |
| Taxonomic Notes |
| Four subspecies of Ambysoma macrodactylum are recognized, two occur in California. |
| Conservation Issues (Conservation Status) |
| This subspecies is listed as federally endangered and heavily protected due to its limited range combined with loss of habitat to land development. |
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Taxonomy |
| Family |
Ambystomatidae |
Mole Salamanders |
| Genus |
Ambystoma |
Mole Salamanders |
| Species |
macrodactylum |
Long-toed Salamander |
Subspecies
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croceum |
Santa Cruz Long-toed Salamander |
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Original Description |
Ambystoma macrodactylum - Baird, 1849 - Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philadelphia, Ser. 2, Vol. 1, p. 292
Ambystoma macrodactylum croceum - Russell and Anderson, 1956 - Herpetologica, Vol. 12, p. 137
from Original Description Citations for the Reptiles and Amphibians of North America © Ellin Beltz
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Meaning of the Scientific Name |
Ambystoma: anabystoma - to cram into the mouth. Possibly derived from Amblystoma: Greek - blunt mouth.
macrodactylum: Greek: long toe
croceum: Latin - saffron colored, referring to the dull orange dorsal stripe.
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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Related or Similar California Salamanders |
Southern Long-toed Salamander
California Tiger Salamander
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More Information and References |
Natureserve Explorer
California Dept. of Fish and Game
AmphibiaWeb
Thelander, Carl G., editor in chief. Life on the Edge - A Guide to California's Endangered Natural Resources - Wildlife. Berkeley: Bio Systems Books, 1994.
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.
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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) |
FE |
Endangered |
| California Endangered Species Act (CESA) |
SE |
Endangered |
| California Department of Fish and Game |
DFG:FP |
Fully Protected |
| Bureau of Land Management |
None |
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| USDA Forest Service |
None |
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| Natureserve Global Conservation Status Ranks |
G5 |
Secure |
World Conservation Union - IUCN Red List
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