Species: Dicamptodon copei
Cope's Giant Salamander
Species
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Encyclopedia of Puget Sound
Classification
Kingdom
Animalia
Phylum
Craniata
Class
Amphibia
Order
Caudata
Family
Dicamptodontidae
Genus
Dicamptodon
NatureServe
Classification
Informal Taxonomy
Animals, Vertebrates - Amphibians - Salamanders
Formal Taxonomy
Animalia - Craniata - Amphibia - Caudata - Dicamptodontidae - Dicamptodon - In geographic contact with D. TENEBROSUS in northern Oregon, but no hybridization occurs; see Good (1989) for information on relationships among DICAMPTODON species.
Ecology and Life History
Short General Description
An aquatic salamander that rarely reaches the adult stage.
Migration
true - false - false
Non-migrant
true
Locally Migrant
false
Food Comments
Feeds on a wide variety of aquatic organisms including: immature insects, fish eggs, small fish, frog's eggs and tadpoles. May eat its own larvae as well as the larvae of D. TENEBROSUS (Nussbaum et al. 1983).
Reproduction Comments
Apparently breeding and egg laying occur throughout spring, summer, and fall. Female guards eggs until they hatch. Clutch size is 25-115 (average 50, Nussbaum et al. 1983). Paedomorphic; few metamorphosed individuals have been found (Jones and Corn 1989).
Ecology Comments
The 1980 eruption of Mt. St.Helens eliminated some habitat. Predators: garter snakes, large larvae of DICAMPTODON, water shrews.
Length
19
Conservation Status
NatureServe Global Status Rank
G3G4
Global Status Last Reviewed
2002-03-29
Global Status Last Changed
2001-10-25
Other Status
LC - Least concern
Distribution
Conservation Status Map
<img src="http://www.natureserve.org/explorer/servlet/GetMapGif?US.OR=S2&US.WA=S3" alt="Conservation Status Map" style="width: 475px; height: auto;" />
Global Range
F - 20,000-200,000 square km (about 8000-80,000 square miles) - F - Olympic Peninsula, Washington, south through the southern Cascades and Willapa Hills to streams that drain into the Columbia River Gorge in northwestern Oregon (Nussbaum 1983, Stebbins 1985 and southeastward to Wasco County, Oregon, east of the Cascade crest (Jones and Corkran 2002). From near sea level to about 975 m (Leonard et al. 1993).
Global Range Code
F
Global Range Description
20,000-200,000 square km (about 8000-80,000 square miles)