The purple color of young Spring Salamanders led to its former name, the Purple Salamander (Conn. Dept., 2000). Spring Salamanders are occasionally eaten by northern water snakes (Nerodia sipedon) and common garter snakes (Thamnophis sirta) (L.E.O., 2000).
The Spring Salamander is listed as a threatened species in the state of Connecticut (Conn. Dept., 2000). Threats to the Spring Salamander include pollution in the streams due to deforestation, agriculture, and the introduction of predatory fish such as trout (Environment Canada, 2000). Habitat modification and sedimentation in streams, because of stream bed and shore band alteration during road construction and canalization, is also a problem. In order to help save the habitat of the Spring Salamander, people can become involved in projects to restore shade trees and shrubs along stream banks that will help maintain water temperatures that are suitable for the salamander (Conn. Dept., 2000).
US Federal List: no special status
CITES: no special status
IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: least concern
Development - Life Cycle: metamorphosis
None.
None.
The Spring Salamander consumes a wide variety of food consisting of insects, crustaceans, centipedes, millipedes, earthworms, snails, spiders, and occasionally small frogs and salamanders, including those of their own species (Conn. Dept., 2000).
The Spring Salamander has an extensive range. It is found in and around the Applachian Mountains in eastern North America and north into the Adirondacks and just into Canada. Although it has the potential to be found anywhere within this range, its specific habitat requirements mean that actual distribution is spotty (Conant&Collins 1998).
Biogeographic Regions: nearctic (Native )
Spring Salamanders are semi-aquatic, spending a majority of their time in springs, wet caves, and cool, clear mountain brooks (Tenn. Aquarium, 1998). Spring Salamanders can also be found under stones and logs near stream edges (Wild Portraits, 2000). Because they are lungless, and must obtain oxygen through their skin, Spring Salamanders are limited to areas where there is adequate oxygen and moisture. The Northern Spring Salamander is not confined to the water, however, and has been noted to, in a nighttime downpour, leave their aquatic habitats and venture onto land in search of food (Tenn. Aquarium, 1998). During the winter, Spring Salamanders spend their time in wet soil close to a source of water where they remain somewhat active in burrows. The Spring Salamander can also be found among leaf litter in forests surrounding a brook or stream (Conn. Dept., 2000).
Terrestrial Biomes: forest
Aquatic Biomes: lakes and ponds; rivers and streams
Average lifespan
Status: captivity: 18.5 years.
The Spring Salamander is one of the largest species in the family of
lungless salamanders (Tenn. Aquarium, 1998), and can grow up to 21 cm in
length (Watkins-Colwell, 2001). The males often grow to be about 12-19 cm in length, and the females grow to be slightly smaller (Tenn. Aquarium, 1998).
As larvae, the Spring Salamander is 19 mm long when it hatches, and has the potential to grow to be 10.2 cm long, before it transforms into an adult. Larvae have a broad, elongated snout that is slightly upturned at the tip (Leary, 2001). The Spring Salamander has a stout body and a broad nose that ends abruptly. Its back and tail are light brownish-orange or salmon-red with small dark spots. The belly is a faded peach color, and the throat may be flecked with black. A light line, bordered below by a dark line, begins at the eye and extends to the nostril. As an adult, the Spring Salamander's tail has a prominent, knife-like keel on the top that enables it to swim in swift-moving water (Conn. Dep., 2000). Adults also have toxic, cutaneous secretions and red coloration that mimics more toxic species, for protection from terrestrial predators (Environment Canada, 2000).
Other Physical Features: ectothermic ; bilateral symmetry
Unlike many of the other larger salamander species that breed in the spring, the Spring Salamander breeds from mid-October through the winter months. During this time of courtship, the male and female push each other and roll around in the water. The male deposits sperm which is then picked up and stored by the female until the eggs are laid in the spring of the following year (Conn. Dept., 2000). The female salamander lays 11-100 eggs and attaches each one individually under stones in cool, clear water. The 19 mm long aquatic larvae hatch during the late summer and are often found in the water carefully hidden among the rocks. The larvae can grow to be 10.2 cm long before it transforms into an adult, which may take two to three years (Behler, 1996).
Key Reproductive Features: gonochoric/gonochoristic/dioecious (sexes separate)
The spring salamander (Gyrinophilus porphyriticus) is a species of salamander in the family Plethodontidae (lungless salamanders). It is found in Canada and the United States. The genus, Gyrinophilus, means "tadpole lover" and refers to the long period of time it spends as a gilled larva before maturing. The specific epithet, porphyriticus, is Latin from Greek, meaning the color of porphyry, a purple stone,[2] and this salamander has also been called the purple salamander.[3]
Its natural habitats are temperate forests, rivers, swamps, freshwater marshes, freshwater springs, inland karsts, and caves. In addition to insects, worms, and other small invertebrates, the fairly large spring salamander may also consume smaller stream dwelling salamanders such as two-lined and dusky salamanders. They are considered salamander specialists in some areas, such as the mountains of North Carolina, where between 40 and 50% of their adult diets may consist of other salamanders.[4]: 13 [5]
Although deforestation is a potential threat, the spring salamander occurs in many protected areas and is not listed as threatened in the IUCN Red List.[1]
Like all members of the family Plethodontidae these salamanders have a nasolabial groove. The subspecies G. p. porphyriticus and G. p. duryi can be 4.75–7.5 in (12.1–19.1 cm) long. The record length is 9.125 in (23.18 cm). The light line from eye to nostril is bordered below by gray pigment, but the markings are not always conspicuous. The dorsal coloration varies from salmon or light brownish to pink or reddish. The ground color has a cloudy appearance, and the darker markings are vague. The subspecies G. p. danielsi and G. p. dunni can be 5–7.5 in (13–19 cm). The record length is 8.06 in (20.5 cm). Adults reach larger sizes at higher elevations as a consequence of delay in development to maturity after metamorphosis in high-level populations.[6] The white line from eye to nostril, bordered below by a conspicuous black or dark brown line, is distinctive. There also may be a dark line above the white line, often conspicuous. The dorsal coloration can be clear reddish, salmon, or orange-yellow marked with black or brown spots or flecks. 17 to 19 costal grooves. Larvae are aquatic and have stream-type morphology. Juveniles are typically more brightly colored than adults.[7]
This species is found in cool springs and mountain springs, but is also likely to be found in any wet depression beneath logs, stones, or leaves in the surrounding forest. They require being in areas that provide them with adequate oxygen and moisture because they conduct cutaneous respiration. During the colder months of the year, the salamanders will spend their time in wet soil close to a source of water where they remain somewhat active in burrows, or in the leaf litter near a stream or other body of water.[8]
Its distribution ranges from southern Quebec to northern Alabama and extremely northeast Mississippi. There is also an isolated colony in Hamilton County, Ohio. G. p. duryi is present in southern Ohio, eastern Kentucky, West Virginia, and western Virginia. The distribution range of G. p. danielsi is the southern Appalachian Mountains and the adjacent Piedmont from North Carolina to Alabama. G. p. dunni is distributed through the southern portion of the Blue Ridge Province and the Piedmont from southwest North Carolina to eastern to central Alabama. The nominate subspecies, G. p. porphyriticus, occupies the remainder of the geographical range of this species.
Spring Salamanders commonly breed in late summer into fall.[9] The courtship begins with the male sliding his head over the female's body. From there, a tail-straddle walk begins. This walk entails the female straddling the male's tail while both walk forward. From there, the male deposits the spermatophore on the substrate. The female then picks it up and will store it until ready to fertilize eggs. Once the spermatophore is deposited, the male walks forward with his tail standing straight up. He then proceeds to undulate his tail while the base of the tail touches the chin of the female. This causes the tail's base to rub over most of the female's chin.[10]
The females will lay eggs in the summer following their mating. The eggs are sticky when laid and will allow the egg mass to adhere wherever applied. The egg mass can contain between 16-160 eggs. The females will protect this egg mass until they hatch, usually in late summer or early fall. The larvae may stay around the mother after hatching but do not directly depend on her.[9] Larvae for this species remain in this larval stage for multiple years, some up to four years.[11] It takes the post-metamorphosis individual another four years before reaching sexual maturity.
Fish are the main predators of the spring salamander, including the Brook Trout (Salvelinus fontinalis). Survival of the spring salamander is reduced by over 50% in the presence of fingerling brook trout with an even greater reduction in the presence of adult fish. The growth of spring salamanders is reduced by as much as 90% in areas where spring salamanders and brook trout coexist.[12] Enemies include the Ocoee salamander, who is more likely to flee when it encounters the spring salamander. Other predators of this species include the Eastern Garter Snake (Thamnophis sirtalis) and the Northern Water Snake (Nerodia sipedon). Larger specimens of this species will also exhibit cannibalism of smaller individuals. This species will also put off a toxin through their skin to try and ward off predation.[9]
The IUCN Red List categorizes the Spring salamander as least concern, and the United States Federal list has no specific status noted for G. porphyriticus. However in the states of New Jersey, Connecticut, Mississippi, Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Texas, G. porphyriticus is listed as threatened. These state populations are threatened primarily due to deforestation, agriculture, and introduction of fish for sport such as trout.[13] The Adirondack / Appalachian population in Québec, Canada has been listed as threatened on Schedule 1 of the Species at Risk Act since 2017.[14]
The spring salamander (Gyrinophilus porphyriticus) is a species of salamander in the family Plethodontidae (lungless salamanders). It is found in Canada and the United States. The genus, Gyrinophilus, means "tadpole lover" and refers to the long period of time it spends as a gilled larva before maturing. The specific epithet, porphyriticus, is Latin from Greek, meaning the color of porphyry, a purple stone, and this salamander has also been called the purple salamander.
Its natural habitats are temperate forests, rivers, swamps, freshwater marshes, freshwater springs, inland karsts, and caves. In addition to insects, worms, and other small invertebrates, the fairly large spring salamander may also consume smaller stream dwelling salamanders such as two-lined and dusky salamanders. They are considered salamander specialists in some areas, such as the mountains of North Carolina, where between 40 and 50% of their adult diets may consist of other salamanders.: 13
Although deforestation is a potential threat, the spring salamander occurs in many protected areas and is not listed as threatened in the IUCN Red List.
