Klamath black salamander
species of Caudata
The Klamath black salamander (Aneides klamathensis) is a species of salamander in the family Plethodontidae. It is endemic to the western United States.
Taxonomy
Previously, it was considered a population of the speckled black salamander (A. flavipunctatus). However, a 2019 study found A. flavipunctatus to represent a species complex and split multiple species off it, including the Klamath population, which was described as Aneides klamathensis.
Distribution
This species inhabits the Klamath Mountains in northern California and southern Oregon. It ranges from southeast-central Humboldt and Trinity counties in California north to southern Josephine and Jackson counties in Oregon.
Description
This species has a solid black base coloration overlaid by greenish-gray frosting that extends down the trunk. Its limbs are heavily spotted with white to cream-colored spots, but this are largely scattered on other dorsal surfaces.
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The date and method of observation matter as much as the stated conclusion, especially where classification or consensus has changed. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 30, 2025. The linked authority identifier is Q66314358. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 2019.
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This entry incorporates text from “Klamath black 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.