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Adult, Los Angeles County |
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Adult, San Diego County
Courtesy of Jeff Lemm |
Adult and juvenile, San Diego County |
Adult, San Diego County |
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Adult, Los Angeles County |
Underside of B. m. major |
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Comparison of B. m. major (bottom) and B. nigriventris.
Note the larger body and legs of B. m. major. B. nigriventris is black underneath, while B. m. major is light gray. |
Underside of B. nigriventris, for comparison. |
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Adult, Riverside County |
Comparison of B. m. major (left) and
B. gabrieli (collected with a permit.)
Note the darker color of B. gabrieli and larger feet and toes. |
Habitat, Los Angeles County |
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Coastal Sage Scrub habitat,
San Diego County
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Habitat, San Diego County |
Riverside County habitat |
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Description |
| Size |
| Adults are 1 1/4 - 2 1/3 inches long (3.2 - 5.9 cm) from snout to vent, and about twice that length with a full tail. |
| Appearance |
| An elongated slender salamander, with relatively short limbs, a narrow head, long slender body, very long tail, and conspicuous costal and caudal grooves, which give this species the worm-like appearance typical of most Slender Salamanders. 4 toes on front and hind feet, also typical of Slender Salamanders. (Other California salamanders have 5 toes on the hind feet.) Usually pale above, often with a reddish color on tail, snout and shoulders. Some populations are much darker (uplands of Peninsular Range), where as animals from near El Rosario, Baja California, are considerably paler. Dorsal stripe is often obscure. Belly is usually light grey with a weak network of melanophores. In darker populations, the belly is more densly marked. 17-21 costal grooves. 9-12 costal folds between adpressed limbs. |
| Behavior |
| Most Batrachoseps 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. Found under rocks, logs, bark, and other debris. Batrachoseps species, when disturbed, may coil up and remain still, then uncoil quickly and spring away, repeatedly bouncing over the ground. The tail is easily broken off, but it can be regenerated. Probably a sit-and-wait predator. |
| Diet |
| Feeds primarily on small arthropods and other small invertebrates. |
| Reproduction |
| Breeding occurs December to January; females lay strings of up to 10-20 eggs under stones or moist debris. There is no aquatic larval stage, young hatch as miniature adults, at approximately 19 mm. |
| Range |
| Endemic to California and northern Baja California. Found on Santa Catalina Island, and along Coastal Southern California from the foothills of the San Gabriel and San Bernardino Mountains, south into Baja California to the vicinity of El Rosario. Elevational range extends from sea level to around 4000 ft. on Mt. Palomar, San Diego County. B. m. major has been found at three desert localities: Cabezon and Snow Creek Village, Riverside County; and east of Jacumba, San Diego County. |
| Habitat |
| Habitat includes chaparral and oak woodland coastally, mixed coniferous forest at high elevations, and on north facing rocky slopes in desert localities. |
| Taxonomic Notes |
| B.m.major is allied to the pacificus group of slender salamanders. It had long been placed as a subspecies of B. pacificus, until recent studies showed it was distinct. B. major has been split into two subspecies, including B. m. aridus. It has been recommended that B. aridus should be synonymized with Batrachoseps major. |
| Conservation Issues (Conservation Status) |
| None apparent. |
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Taxonomy |
| Family |
Plethodontidae |
Lungless Salamanders |
| Genus |
Batrachoseps |
Slender Salamanders |
| Species |
major |
Garden Slender Salamander |
Subspecies
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major |
Garden Slender Salamander |
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Original Description |
Camp, 1915 - Univ. California Publ. Zool., Vol. 12, No. 12, p. 327
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Meaning of the Scientific Name |
Batrachoseps: Greek - amphibian, frog lizard - describes lizard-like appearance.
major: Latin - larger or greater (it was thought to be the largest Batrachoseps.)
from Scientific and Common Names of the Reptiles and Amphibians of North America - Explained © Ellin Beltz
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Alternate Names |
Batrachoseps major - Garden Slender Salamander
Formerly known as Batrachoseps pacificus
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Similar Neighboring Salamanders |
B. nigriventris
B. m. aridus
B. pacificus
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More Information and References |
Natureserve Explorer
California Dept. of Fish and Game
AmphibiaWeb
SDNHM
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.
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.
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Organization
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Status Listing
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| U.S. Endangered Species Act (ESA) |
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| California Endangered Species Act (CESA) |
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| California Department of Fish and Game |
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| Bureau of Land Management |
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| USDA Forest Service |
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| Natureserve Global Conservation Status Ranks |
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World Conservation Union - IUCN Red List
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