Ensatina
Ensatina eschscholtzii
- Class
- Amphibian
- Rarity
- Common
- Observations
- 18,487
- Most observed in
- 🇺🇸 United States
- Conservation
- Least Concern
Description
The ensatina (Ensatina eschscholtzii) is a species complex of plethodontid (lungless) salamanders found in coniferous forests, oak woodland and chaparral from British Columbia, through Washington, Oregon, across California (where all seven subspecies variations are located), all the way down to Baja California in Mexico. The genus Ensatina originated approximately 21.5 million years ago. It is usually considered as monospecific, being represented by a single species, Ensatina eschscholtzii, with several subspecies forming a ring species.
Summary adapted from the Wikipedia article “Ensatina”.