Salamanders of Virginia

[blastcat]

I am trying to find some Salamanders and it would be helpful if I new a few species in my area.

[boattailedgrackle]

online herping sites are often a good place to start! Heres one for Virginia
https://www.virginiaherpetologicalsociety.com/

[cthawley]

VA DWR has a pretty good short book on them that is not too expensive ($10): https://www.shopdwr.com/product.cfm?uid=2421219&context=&showInactive=N

[graytreefrog]

In your area (the Delmarva part of Virginia) there are the following species:

Ambystoma maculatum (Spotted Salamander) - very uncommon on Delmarva and restricted to forested areas near vernal pools and other ponds

Ambystoma opacum (Marbled Salamander) - also restricted to areas near vernal pools

Eurycea cirrigera/bislineata (Two-lined Salamander) - found in and around creeks
I think the specific identity of Two-lined Salamanders on the southern Delmarva Peninsula is still unclear.

Hemidactylium scutatum (Four-toed Salamander) - only found in forested areas near vernal pools and similar wetlands, often in association with Sphagnum moss

Notophthalmus viridescens viridescens (Red-spotted Newt) in and around permanent ponds

Plethodon cinereus (Red-backed Salamander) most forested areas

Most of those species are very uncommon in Delmarva and only occur in areas with a lot of undisturbed forest. Some of them may not actually be present in your area. There are a few other species that may occur (or have occurred historically) in your area, but haven’t been documented in either of Virginia’s Delmarva counties.

With salamanders (as well as just about all other wildlife), the more you look for them and get a sense of what habitat certain species occur in, the easier it will be to determine what places are likely to have certain species.

There are many good resources for information on salamanders. The book Salamanders of the Southeast is one good one (I can’t recall how expensive it is). There are many online resources as well, including the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources, AmphibiaWeb, and many others.

Winter is a good time to find many salamander species, so you don’t need to wait for warmer weather to start looking for them.

[earthknight]

If you make it over to Shenandoah NP and poke around in the streams and creeks at the base of the hills you’ll find quite a few. I saw them regularly when I worked there.