Species
Many-lined salamander
Stereochilus marginatus
A small, brown salamander of southeast Georgia's acid swamps, marked with fine lines.
Photo Ashwin Srinivasan (opens in a new tab) / iNaturalist, CC BY 4.0 (opens in a new tab)
At a glance
- Size
- Usually 6 to 11 cm long
- Habitat
- Blackwater swamps, bogs and ponds with sphagnum moss
- Diet
- Small aquatic invertebrates
- In Georgia
- Southeast Georgia
- Rabies vector
- No
Identification
- Key marks
- Small, brown with fine dark lines along the sides; pale belly
- Told apart from
- Mud and red salamanders, which are larger and redder
- Where to look
- Among sphagnum and leaf litter in swamps
Behaviour
It lives in and around water in acid swamps, among moss and leaf litter.
Why they matter
It is a specialist of blackwater swamps, part of what makes southeast Georgia's wetlands distinctive.
Reproduction and lifecycle
Eggs — Attached to roots and moss near water
Hatching — In a few weeks
Larvae — Aquatic for one to two years
Maturity — Within a few years
Lifespan — Several years
Habits — Mostly aquatic
Living around people
- It is rarely met; its swamps are best left undrained.
Misconceptions
- All small brown salamanders are the same. Georgia has dozens, many hard to tell apart.
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.
| 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 | Breeding | Breeding | Active | Active | Active | Active | Active | Active | Active | Active | Active | Active |
Where it lives
Recorded in 3 states and provinces. Each one links to the other animals there, and to the rehabilitators licensed for them.
United States
If you found one
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