Family: Ambystomidae, Mole Salamanders view all from this family
Description 4-6 5/8" (10-17 cm). Slender, with long toes. Dark brown to black above, with back stripe made of many light blotches. Belly sooty to dark brown. Tubercles on feet. Costal grooves, 12-13.
Endangered Status The Santa Cruz Long-toed Salamander, a subspecies of the Long-toed Salamander, is on the U.S. Endangered Species List. It is classified as endangered in California. This salamander was discovered in 1954, and its populations were probably already low at that time. It lives in only a few small ponds in Santa Cruz and Monterey Counties, and residential and agricultural development has adversely affected its habitat. Currently the Santa Cruz Long-toed Salamander lives in protected lands set aside as the Ellicot Slough National Wildlife Refuge, and is closely monitored by biologists.
Subspecies Western (A. m. macrodactylum), dull greenish
to yellowish back stripe, reduced to scattered flecks on head; wc. Oregon and w. Washington north to Vancouver Island.
Eastern (A. m. columbianum), fused bright yellow to tan blotches form back stripe, head spotted; w. Idaho, c. and e. Oregon and Washington north to se. Alaska.
Santa Cruz (A. m. croceum), black with series of yellow to orange markings on back; Santa Cruz and Monterey counties, California.
Northern (A. m. krausei), unbroken yellow back stripe, yellow spot on eyelids; e. Idaho and w. Montana north to se. British Columbia and sw. Alberta.
Southern (A. m. sigillatum), fused yellow blotches form broken back stripe, small spots on head; n. California and sw. Oregon.
Where the ranges of these subspecies overlap, intergradations of characteristics occur.
Breeding January to June, depending on latitude and elevation; sometimes before ice is out; in temporary or permanent ponds. Eggs laid singly on spike rushes near surface of water; or in small clusters adhering to vegetation or undersides of logs in deepest part of pond. Hatching larvae are 1/2" (11 mm) long; transform June to August or following summer, at 2-4" (48-98 mm).
Habitat Arid sagebrush communities to moist evergreen forests and alpine meadows; sea level to 9,000' (2,743 m).
Range Tuolumne County, California, to se. Alaska and northeast to w. Montana. Separate populations in Santa Cruz and Monterey counties, California.
Discussion Usually seen under logs or debris near pools, it sometimes shares breeding sites with the Northwestern Salamander. Long-toed's egg masses do not support the growth of algae; Northwestern's do.
