Eastern Red-backed Salamander
Plethodon cinereus
- Class
- Amphibian
- Rarity
- Common
- Observations
- 69,470
- Most observed in
- 🇺🇸 United States
- Conservation
- Least Concern
Description
The red-backed salamander is a small, hardy woodland salamander species in the family Plethodontidae. It is also known as the redback salamander, eastern red-backed salamander, or the northern red-backed salamander to distinguish it from the southern red-backed salamander. The species inhabits wooded slopes in eastern North America, west to Missouri, south to North Carolina, and north from southern Quebec and the Maritime provinces in Canada to Minnesota. It is one of 56 species in the genus Plethodon. Red-backed salamanders are notable for their color polymorphism and primarily display two color morph varieties, which differ in physiology and anti-predator behavior.
Summary adapted from the Wikipedia article “Red-backed salamander”.