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Eastern Red Backed Salamander
Plethodon cinereus
41.9034, -78.6489
Field Notes
Description:
The red back salamander is a small (5.7 to 10.0 cm) terrestrial salamander which usually lives in forested areas under rocks, logs, bark, and other debris.[2] It is one of the most numerous salamanders throughout its range.[2] The red back salamander exhibits color polymorphism and two color variations are common: the nominate 'red back' variety has a red dorsal stripe that tapers towards the tail, and the darker variety, known as the 'lead back phase', lacks most or all of the red pigmentation.[2] The red back phase is not always red, but may actually be various other colors (e.g., stripe colored yellow, orange, white, or a rare erythristic morph, in which the body is completely red).[2] Both morphs have speckled black and white bellies.[2]
The skin of red back salamanders was found to contain Lysobacter gummosus, an epibiotic bacterium which produces the chemical 2,4-diacetylphloroglucinol and inhibits the growth of certain pathogenic fungi.[3]
Habitat:
Red-backed salamanders are terrestrial, and live in deciduous forests throughout their geographic range. They are found in the leaf litter on the ground as well as under rocks, logs, or in small burrows. They must live in a moist environment, as they lack lungs and require moist skin for respiration. One habitat factor affecting red-backed salamanders is soil pH. P. cinereus, like many other amphibians, is negatively effected by high levels of acidity. Red-backed salamanders have been shown to exhibit the same primary response to acidic substrate as do amphibian larvae exposed to acidic water, disruption of their sodium balance. The chronically lethal pH level for P. cinereus is between 3 and 4, and they are rarely found on soils with a pH of 3.7 or lower. (Frisbie and Wyman 1991, Harding and Holman 1992, Horne 1988)
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