A federally endangered salamander restricted to the longleaf pine ecosystem. Down to a few hundred individuals at perhaps 10 sites due to longleaf pine loss.
§ Quick facts
§ Encyclopedia
The reticulated flatwoods salamander is a species of mole salamander, an amphibian in the family Ambystomatidae. The species is native to a small portion of the southeastern coastal plain of the United States in the western panhandle of Florida and extreme southwestern Georgia. The species once occurred in portions of southern Alabama but is now considered extirpated there. Its ecology and life history are nearly identical to its sister species, the frosted flatwoods salamander. A. bishopi inhabits seasonally wet pine flatwoods and pine savannas west of the Apalachicola River-Flint River system. The fire ecology of longleaf pine savannas is well-known, but there is less information on natural fire frequencies of wetland habitats in this region. Like the frosted flatwoods salamander, the reticulated flatwoods salamander breeds in ephemeral wetlands with extensive emergent vegetation, probably maintained by summer fires. Wetlands overgrown with woody shrubs are less likely to support breeding populations.
Source: Wikipedia — Reticulated flatwoods salamander Licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0
§ Identification
Field marks. Slender black to dark brown salamander with intricate fine net-like pattern of pale yellow lines on back and sides.
Similar species. Frosted Flatwoods Salamander (similar; sister species; range edge). Mole Salamander (different shape).
Voice. Silent.
§ Diet & behavior
Diet. Insects, small invertebrates.
Behavior. Federally endangered (listed 2009). Restricted to ephemeral wetlands in fire-maintained longleaf pine flatwoods of southeastern US. Habitat severely reduced and fragmented; fire suppression and altered hydrology are leading threats.
§ Range
Northwestern Florida, southern Alabama and Georgia
§ Habitat
Longleaf pine flatwoods with seasonal ponds
§ Threats
Loss of longleaf pine ecosystem (95% lost), fire suppression, pond drainage.
§ Conservation status
According to the IUCN Red List, the reticulated flatwoods salamander is currently classified as Endangered.
§ What helps
Support longleaf pine restoration. Donate to The Nature Conservancy's pine programs. Use prescribed fire.
§ Further reading
- Wikipedia — Reticulated flatwoods salamander
- www.fws.gov — authoritative profile of Ambystoma bishopi
- IUCN Red List · taxon 59057
- iNaturalist · taxon 27551
- GBIF occurrence records
- Encyclopedia of Life — Ambystoma bishopi
§ Sources cited
- USFWS Reticulated Flatwoods Salamander Recovery
- The Orianne Society
- The Nature Conservancy
- IUCN Red List 2014
