Dusky Salamanders

Desmognathus

Dusky Salamanders are small, slimy creatures that love to live in cool, wet places. They have smooth skin and can be found hiding under rocks or leaves in the forest.

Lebensraum: Forests

Aussehen

The Dusky Salamanders are typically brown to grayish-brown, often with a lighter stripe down their back. They have a stout body, robust limbs, and a distinctive keel-like tail that is compressed from side to side, making them visually distinct.

ReichAnimaliaStammChordataKlasseAmphibiaOrdnungCaudataFamiliePlethodontidaeGattungDesmognathus

Dusky Salamanders

Kategorie

Amphibien

Seltenheit

Common

Gefahr

1/5 · Sehr gering

Snaps

Mach den ersten Snap!

Interessante Fakten

Female Dusky Salamanders carefully guard their clutch of eggs for many weeks until they hatch.

Some Dusky Salamanders can live in very cold mountain streams, even under sheets of ice!

Their eyes are fixed in place, meaning they must move their whole head to look around!

Unlike most salamanders, the larvae of some Dusky species stay entirely in the water.

Besondere Fähigkeiten

Dusky Salamanders can breathe through their moist skin and mouth lining because they lack lungs as adults, helping them absorb oxygen.

Dusky Salamanders can drop their tail if a predator grabs it, allowing them to escape danger and grow a new one later.

Dusky Salamanders have a keeled, flattened tail that helps them powerfully propel themselves through fast-moving water.

Dusky Salamanders have strong, flexible toes that help them climb and cling to slippery rocks and stream banks.

Maße und Details

Länge: 7-15 cm
Gewicht: 0.003-0.02 kg
Lebenserwartung: 5-10 Jahre
Top Speed: 0.2 km/h
Gelegegröße: 10-30
Metamorphose: 180-730 Tage

Ernährung und Fütterung

These small hunters use keen senses to snap up tiny insects and other small creatures!

Altersunterschiede: Larvae eat microscopic aquatic invertebrates, while adults consume larger terrestrial and semi-aquatic prey.

Hauptnahrung

springtails
mites
earthworms
slugs
insect larvae
isopods

Nahrungssuche

Ambush

Ökologische Zusammenhänge

eaten by

Common Garter Snake

Thamnophis sirtalis

A common predator in their North American habitat.

eaten by

Masked Shrew

Sorex cinereus

Small mammals sometimes prey on these salamanders.

eats

Silky Ant

Formica fusca

Consumes various small ants found in moist habitat.

eats

Common Earthworm

Lumbricus terrestris

Feeds on small earthworms found in damp soil.

Merkmale

Einzelgänger

Einzelgänger leben den größten Teil ihres Lebens allein und interagieren mit Artgenossen nur zur Paarung oder zur Aufzucht der Jungen.

Insektenfressend

Dieses Merkmal kennzeichnet Organismen, deren Nahrung hauptsächlich aus Insekten und anderen kleinen Wirbellosen besteht.

Wald

Waldlebensräume sind terrestrische Lebensräume, die von dichtem Baumbestand dominiert werden und eine große Vielfalt an Pflanzen- und Tierarten beherbergen.