Species: Plethodon larselli

Larch Mountain Salamander
Species

    Articles:

    Larch Mountain Salamander (Plethodon larselli)

    This article was originally published by the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife as part of its annual report Threatened and Endangered Wildlife in Washington.

    Larch mountain salamander. Photo courtesy of Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife.
    Kingdom
    Animalia
    Phylum
    Craniata
    Class

    Amphibia

    Order

    Caudata

    Family

    Plethodontidae

    Genus

    Plethodon

    Classification
    Informal Taxonomy
    <p>Animals, Vertebrates - Amphibians - Salamanders</p>
    Formal Taxonomy
    Animalia - Craniata - Amphibia - Caudata - Plethodontidae - Plethodon - See also Howard et al. (1983) for information on genetic variation.
    Short General Description
    A small salamander.
    Migration
    <p>true - false - false - Even with this species&#39; small distribution, at least four populations have been shown to be genetically distinct, arguing that there is little gene flow between populations (Howard et al. 1983).</p>
    Non-migrant
    true
    Locally Migrant
    false
    Food Comments
    Feeds on a variety of invertebrates especially mites and collembolans. Diet of larger individuals is more varied and includes snails and earthworms, which are not eaten by juveniles (Nussbaum et al. 1983).
    Reproduction Comments
    Breeds mainly in fall. Eggs are laid in late winter-early spring. Clutch size is 2-12, average 7. Eggs hatch probably in about 4 months. Males are sexually mature in 3-3.5 years. Females deposit their first clutch at 4 years or older. Female reproductive cycle lasts 2 years or more.
    Ecology Comments
    Found in association with P. VEHICULUM in Washington and P. DUNNI in Oregon.
    Length
    10
    NatureServe Global Status Rank
    G3
    Global Status Last Reviewed
    2005-02-18
    Global Status Last Changed
    2001-11-09
    Other Status

    <p>NT - Near threatened</p>

    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
    E - 5000-20,000 square km (about 2000-8000 square miles) - E - Columbia River Gorge in southern Washington and northern Oregon and discontinuously northward in the Cascades to central Washington (to at least Snoqualmie Pass-Kachess Lake area) (Leonard et al. 1993, Petranka 1998, Stebbins 2003). Elevational range extends to around 3,900 feet (Stebbins 2003).<br><br>The southern end of the range is roughly defined by the towns of Hood River and Troutdale, Oregon. In Washington, the species occurs in the Western Cascades Physiographic Province, with the main distribution along a 58-km stretch of the Columbia River Gorge; additional, isolated populations occur in the Cascade Range; documented in Clark, Skamania, Lewis, King, Klickitat and Kittitas Counties; population distribution within the range is patchy (Hallock and McAllister 2002). <br>
    Global Range Code
    E
    Global Range Description
    5000-20,000 square km (about 2000-8000 square miles)
    ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.101047