Family: Ambystomidae, Mole Salamanders view all from this family

Description 4 1/2-7" (11.4-17.8 cm). Head and mouth tiny. Dark brown to black above, with many gray to grayish-yellow lichenlike patches, some unmarked. Belly black, often with tiny flecks. Costal grooves, 14-15.

Breeding Late January to April, in streams, pools, and flooded ditches. Female lays up to 700 eggs, singly or in small clusters, attached to sticks, grass, or undersides of flat stones propped against bank. Larvae hatch at 1/2" (13 mm); transform May to June at about 1 5/8" (40 mm).

Habitat Moist pine woodlands and deciduous forest bottomlands to tallgrass prairie and farming areas; subterranean, near temporary ponds, along streams.

Range Ohio south to the Gulf, west to Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas.

Discussion When disturbed, the Small-mouthed raises its tail and waves it back and forth. A shy and sensitive animal, it shares breeding pools with Spotted and Marbled salamanders.