Species
Talladega seal salamander
Desmognathus cheaha
A stout seal salamander of rocky streams in north-west Georgia, the Piedmont around Atlanta and Alabama.
Photo Alex Stach (opens in a new tab) / iNaturalist, CC BY 4.0 (opens in a new tab)
At a glance
- Size
- Usually 8 to 14 cm long
- Habitat
- Rocky streams and their banks
- Diet
- Insects, worms and smaller salamanders
- In Georgia
- The north-west and the Piedmont, east to around Atlanta
- Rabies vector
- No
Identification
- Key marks
- Stout, grey-brown with a dark net-like pattern on the back; sharp-edged tail
- Told apart from
- Seal salamander by where it lives
- Where to look
- Under rocks along streams
Behaviour
It waits in bank burrows and darts out after prey.
Why they matter
It lives in streams that run through suburbs as well as woods, and was recognised as a species of its own only recently.
Reproduction and lifecycle
Eggs — Attached under rocks near water, guarded by the female
Hatching — In two to three months
Larvae — Aquatic for about a year
Maturity — At a few years
Lifespan — Many years
Breathing — Through the skin; no lungs
Living around people
- Keep silt out of rocky streams.
Misconceptions
- Salamanders live only in wilderness. This one lives in streams around Atlanta.
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 | Under rocks | Under rocks | Active | Active | Active | Laying eggs | Females guarding eggs | Guarding eggs | Larvae hatching | Active | Active | Under rocks |
Where it lives
Recorded in 2 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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