Species

Lesser siren

Siren intermedia

A smaller siren of ditches and ponds, with front legs, feathery gills and no hind legs.

Photo Matthew Lumsden (opens in a new tab) / iNaturalist, CC BY 4.0 (opens in a new tab)

At a glance

Size: Usually 18 to 38 cm long
Habitat: Ponds, ditches, swamps and slow streams
Diet: Insects, worms, snails and crustaceans
In Georgia: The Coastal Plain and lower Piedmont
Rabies vector: No

Identification

Key marks: Eel-like, dark grey to black; feathery gills; front legs only
Told apart from: Greater siren, which is much larger with lighter spots
Where to look: Rarely seen; in dense water plants

Behaviour

Like other sirens it can wait out droughts buried in a mucus cocoon in the mud.

Why they matter

It is a common predator of small animals in southern wetlands and food for many larger animals.

Reproduction and lifecycle

Eggs — Laid in vegetation
Hatching — In a few weeks
Larvae — With a red band across the snout
Maturity — At two years or more
Lifespan — Several years
Habits — Aquatic

Living around people

It is harmless.

Misconceptions

It is a young eel. It is an adult salamander.

Related species

Seasonal activity

When this species is breeding, and when there are nests on the ground. Mowing during the shaded months is how most nests are found.

Breeding and active nests by month for this species
	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Breeding	Jan: no	Feb: no	Mar: no	Apr: no	May: no	Jun: no	Jul: no	Aug: no	Sep: no	Oct: no	Nov: no	Dec: no
Active nests	Jan: no	Feb: no	Mar: no	Apr: no	May: no	Jun: no	Jul: no	Aug: no	Sep: no	Oct: no	Nov: no	Dec: no
Notes	Active	Breeding	Breeding	Active	Active	Active	In mud in dry weather	In mud in dry weather	Active	Active	Active	Active

Where it lives

Recorded in 5 states and provinces. Each one links to the other animals there, and to the rehabilitators licensed for them.

United States

If you found one

Answer a few questions and you will get a specific answer for what you are looking at.

I found an animal