Spotted Salamander
Ambystoma maculatum
Reptiles Alive Name:”Spot”
Hissstory: Spot was donated to us by a nature center.
RA Diet: Spot eats earthworms, crickets, and meal worms.
Natural Diet: Adults eat worms, slugs, millipedes, termites, and other insects. Larvae (tadpoles) eat aquatic insects including mosquito larva.
Range: Spotted salamanders are found in the eastern United States west to Texas and north to Canada. They are native to the Washington DC area.
Habitat: Spotted salamanders live in hardwood forests where vernal pools form each year.
Size: They can grow to 4-7.75 inches, record length is 9.75 inches.
Lifespan: Spotted salamanders can live to 20 years.
Reproduction: Spotted salamanders emerge from hibernation in late winter and early spring. They sometimes have to walk across snow to reach the vernal pools they breed in. After mating in the water, the female salamanders lay egg masses of consisting of around 100 eggs. The eggs hatch depending on the temperature in the water. Transformation (metamorphosis) takes places in 2 to 4 months.
Conservation: Acid rain can damage developing eggs, causing some populations to decline in certain areas. Many salamanders are killed each year as they migrate over roadways in search of the vernal pools they were born in. Spotted salamander populations in heavily urbanized areas have been mostly wiped out due to the destruction of the vernal pools they rely on for reproduction.
Cool Facts: Salamanders are an indicator species. Amphibians need a clean and healthy habitat in order to survive. Amphibians breathe through their skin, so toxins and pollution can easily kill them. When salamanders disappear, it means something is wrong with the habitat they live in! Salamanders can help scientists determine if an ecosystem is healthy or unhealthy.
I have just discovered one that has chewed through a window screen in order to be closer to the warmth of the house. What do I do for it in preparation for its winter hibernation? I am afraid if it stays there it may freeze.
I have a small garden pond which could freeze over during a hard freeze. Wouldn’t it be best to take it to an undisturbed area of moving water?
G. D. Webb
Locust Grove, VA
George,
Salamanders remain fairly active year round here in Virginia. They do not truly go through hibernation as we imagine bears do. Many are still quite active in the middle of January. Salamanders this time of year may be found quite far from water so proximity to your pond is unimportant. These amphibians need a damp area of leaves and fallen logs or rocks to hide under.
My suggestion; gently capture the salamander and move it to a part of your property where you will not be raking up the leaves. The salamander will be very happy cruising the leaves for yummy worms to eat.
It is easy to confuse damage done by one animal for another. Salamanders, which are amphibians, have no capability of chewing through anything, much less a screen. Lizards, which are reptiles, cannot chew through anything either. Assuming the animal you have found is actually a spotted salamander, the best place for him would be under a pile of leaves in soft soil in the woods. Please do not relocate him/her to far, because they visit the same vernal pool every year in the spring to breed. The closest spot to your house, maybe a wooded area with lots of fallen leaves that will be left all winter, would be best. A nearby wooded area could work also. But again, please do not relocate him to far. Good luck!