Species
Savannah slimy salamander
Plethodon savannah
A slimy salamander found only in a small area of east-central Georgia near the Savannah river.
Photo Caudatejake (opens in a new tab) / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0 (opens in a new tab)
At a glance
- Size
- Usually 11 to 16 cm long
- Habitat
- Moist hardwood ravines and floodplain woods
- Diet
- Small invertebrates
- In Georgia
- A small area of east-central Georgia; found nowhere else
- Rabies vector
- No
Identification
- Key marks
- Black with small white flecks
- Told apart from
- Other slimy salamanders by where it lives
- Where to look
- Rarely seen; under logs in damp ravines
Behaviour
It lives under logs and in leaf litter and hunts on the forest floor on wet nights.
Why they matter
It has one of the smallest ranges of any Georgia salamander, all within the state.
Reproduction and lifecycle
Eggs — Laid in moist cavities and guarded by the female
Hatching — As tiny copies of the adults
Young — No aquatic stage
Maturity — At a few years
Lifespan — Many years
Breathing — Through the skin; no lungs
Living around people
- Its ravines are best left shaded and undisturbed.
Misconceptions
- Rare animals live only in remote wilderness. This one lives in a small area near towns and farms.
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 | Active on mild wet nights | Active on wet nights | Active | Active | Active | Laying eggs | Underground in dry weather | Underground in dry weather | Young hatching | Active on wet nights | Active on wet nights | Active on mild nights |
Where it lives
Recorded in one state or province. 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