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Adult 1, San Luis Obispo County |
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Adult 2, San Luis Obispo County
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A comparison of an adult salamander (adult 2) that is probably Batrachoseps minor shown on the left with a small specimen of the sympatric Black-bellied Slender Salamander, Batrachoseps nigriventris, which was found well outside of the range of B. minor. ( B. nigriventris adults grow larger than this specimen.) You can see that B. minor has distinctly larger hands and feet.
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Adult 1, shown in the top row, was the first live specimen of B. minor found in more than ten years. It was discovered by Tim Burkhardt, a major contributor to this website, with Samantha Winegarner in February of 2001. Chemical analysis by the University of California at Berkeley confirmed the species. More information here.
Adult 2 was found in February 2003 in the same location where adult 1 was found. It is not possible to positively differentiate B. minor from B. nigriventris by sight, only chemical analysis is definitive. Adult 2 was tentatively identified by its body and limb size and this was confirmed through photographs by David Wake, but it was not identified through chemical analysis, so there is still a slight possibility that Adult 2 is not B. minor but an abnormal B. nigriventris.
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Habitat |
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Habitat, San Luis Obispo County |
Habitat, San Luis Obispo County
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Description |
Size |
| Adults are 1 - 2 3/10 inches long (2.5 - 5.8 cm) from snout to vent. |
| Appearance |
A small, slim salamander, the smallest of the Slender Salamanders, with 17-18 costal grooves, a short body, fairly long legs, and a broad head with a distinct neck. The small size, narrow head, long slender body, long tail, and conspicuous costal and caudal grooves create a worm-like appearance typical of Slender Salamanders. 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.) There are 9-12 costal folds between adpressed limbs. Color is blackish brown, sometimes with a tan dorsal stripe with pinkish or apricot highlights, most noticable on the tail.
B. minor is distinguished by its more robust body, broader head and longer and larger limbs with more conspicuous toes than B. nigriventris. |
| Behavior and Natural History |
A member of family Plethodontidae, the Plethodontid or Lungless Salamanders.
Lungless Salamanders breathe through their skin which requires them to live in damp environments on land and to move about on the ground only during times of high humidity. (In California, they do not inhabit streams or bodies of water, but they are capable of surviving for some time if they fall into water.)
Lungless salamanders are distinguished by their naso-labial grooves, which are vertical slits between the nostrils and upper lip that are lined with glands used in chemoreception. All California Lungless Salamanders lay eggs in moist places on land. The young hatch from the egg directly into a tiny terrestrial salamander with the same body form as an adult. (They do not hatch in the water and begin their lives as tiny swimming larvae breathing through gills, as occurs with other types of salamanders.)Active on rainy or wet nights when temperatures are moderate, fall through spring. Retreats underground when the soil dries or when air temperature drops to near freezing. Found under rocks, logs, bark, and other debris.
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.
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| Diet |
| Most likely eats a variety of small invertebrates. |
| Reproduction and Young |
Little is known about the breeding behavior and egg-laying habits of this species.
Reproduction is terrestrial. Other female Slender Salamanders lay eggs in moist places underground.
Young hatch fully formed. |
| Range |
| Endemic to California. Found only in a small area in the southern Santa Lucia Mountains of San Luis Obispo county. |
| Habitat |
| Inhabits moist locations in forests of mixed oak, tanbark oak, sycamore and laurel above 1,300 ft. (400 m). |
| Taxonomic Notes |
Prior to its description in 2001, B. minor was recognized as B. pacificus which has been split into ten species as the result of molecular studies.
"B. minor is now genuinely rare. We (Arden Brame and I) once found 25 salamanders in an area near York Mountain Winery. They could be sorted into two piles of 10 and 15. The B. minor were small but robust, with distinctly larger hands and feet in individuals of the same length, and these also had a somewhat broader head and a "neck", altough the latterfeature is subtle. When examined osteologically the two also differed in one important character, presence or absence of a tibial spur. This is what convinced me that there were two species. It took many years to finally get the genetic information that demonstrated that the two rather similar species are distinct and not even close relatives."
David B. Wake, public internet forum correspondence.
Here's a Diagram of the Batrachoseps Complex showing the relationships between species. |
| Conservation Issues (Conservation Status) |
| Previously more common, B. minor is now difficult to find, and is greatly outnumbered by B. nigriventris with which it co-exists. Similarities in appearance with B. nigriventris make it difficult to survey for and estimate current numbers of this species. |
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Taxonomy |
| Family |
Plethodontidae |
Lungless Salamanders |
| Genus |
Batrachoseps |
Slender Salamanders |
Species
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minor |
Lesser Slender Salamander |
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Original Description |
Elizabeth L. Jockusch, Kay P. Yanev, and David B. Wake ''Molecular phylogenetic analysis
of slender salamanders, genus Batrachoseps (Amphibia: Plethodontidae), from central coastal
California with descriptions of four new species.'' Herpetological Monographs, #15 2001.
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Meaning of the Scientific Name |
Batrachoseps: Greek - amphibian, frog lizard - describes lizard-like appearance. minor: probably referring to the small size of this salamander compared
to other Batrachoseps species
from Scientific and Common Names of the Reptiles and Amphibians of North America - Explained © Ellin Beltz
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Alternate Names |
Formerly recognized as Batrachoseps pacificus - Pacific Slender Salamander
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Similar Neighboring Salamanders |
Batrachoseps incognitus
Batrachoseps nigriventris
Batrachoseps gavilanensis
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More Information and References |
Natureserve Explorer
California Dept. of Fish and Game
AmphibiaWeb
Elizabeth L. Jockusch, Kay P. Yanev, and David B. Wake ''Molecular phylogenetic analysis of slender salamanders, genus Batrachoseps (Amphibia: Plethodontidae), from central coastal California with descriptions of four new species.'' Herpetological Monographs, #15 2001. Stebbins, Robert C., and McGinnis, Samuel M. Field Guide to Amphibians and Reptiles of California: Revised Edition (California Natural History Guides) University of California Press, 2012.
Stebbins, Robert C. California Amphibians and Reptiles. The University of California Press, 1972.
Stebbins, Robert C. A Field Guide to Western Reptiles and Amphibians. 3rd Edition. Houghton Mifflin Company, 2003.
Behler, John L., and F. Wayne King. The Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Reptiles and Amphibians. Alfred A. Knopf, 1992.
Powell, Robert., Joseph T. Collins, and Errol D. Hooper Jr. A Key to Amphibians and Reptiles of the Continental United States and Canada. The University Press of Kansas, 1998.
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.
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The following status listings come from the Special Animals List which is published by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife.
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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) |
None |
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| California Department of Fish and Wildlife |
None |
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| Bureau of Land Management |
None |
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| USDA Forest Service |
None |
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| Natureserve Global Conservation Status Ranks |
G1G2 S1S2 |
Critically Imperiled |
World Conservation Union - IUCN Red List
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IUCN:DD |
Data Deficient |
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Range in California: Red
