Sacramento Mountain salamander
species of amphibian
The Sacramento Mountain salamander (Aneides hardii) is a species of salamander in the family Plethodontidae. It is endemic to mountainous regions of New Mexico in the United States. Its natural habitat is temperate forests where it is threatened by habitat loss.
Distribution and habitat
The Sacramento Mountain salamander occurs in three separate mountainous areas in New Mexico, the Capitan Mountains, the Sierra Blanca range and the Sacramento Mountains. It is found at heights of at least 2,400 metres (7,900 ft) above sea level in mixed forests. It typically occurs on north or east facing slopes among Douglas fir, Engelmann spruce and white fir, often with an understory of Rocky Mountain maple. It often hides in the leaf litter or rotten logs, under rocks, fallen branches or vegetation. Above the tree line it is found in stony areas with mosses and lichens.
The only other salamander occurring in this area is the tiger salamander (Ambystoma tigrinum) and that is more of a lowland species and prefers grasslands, savannahs and woodland edges.
Biology
The Sacramento Mountain salamander feeds on small invertebrates such as ants, rove beetles, springtails, snails and spiders.
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This entry incorporates text from “Sacramento Mountain salamander” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.