Species
One-toed amphiuma
Amphiuma pholeter
A small, rare, eel-like salamander of southwest Georgia's muck-filled swamps.
Photo Scott Allen Davis (opens in a new tab) / iNaturalist, CC BY 4.0 (opens in a new tab)
At a glance
- Size
- Usually 20 to 33 cm long
- Habitat
- Deep, organic muck in swamps, seepages and spring runs
- Diet
- Worms, insect larvae and small invertebrates
- In Georgia
- A few swamps in southwest Georgia; very rare
- Rabies vector
- No
Identification
- Key marks
- Small, eel-like, dark grey-brown; tiny legs each with a single toe
- Told apart from
- Two-toed amphiuma, which is larger with two toes on each leg
- Where to look
- Almost never seen; it lives buried in deep muck
Behaviour
It spends its life buried in liquid muck, feeding on small worms and larvae.
Why they matter
It is one of the rarest salamanders in the Southeast, known from only a few places.
Reproduction and lifecycle
Eggs — Little is known
Hatching — Little is known
Larvae — Probably like small adults
Maturity — Little is known
Lifespan — Little is known
Habits — Buried in muck
Living around people
- Its swamps are best left undisturbed.
Misconceptions
- Every eel-like animal in a swamp is an eel. This is a 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.
| 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 | In muck | In muck | Active | Active | Active | Breeding | Active | Active | Active | Active | In muck | In muck |
Where it lives
Recorded in 3 states and provinces. Each one links to the other animals there, and to the rehabilitators licensed for them.
If you found one
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