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Gyrinophilus porphyriticus

(Green, 1827)

Spring Salamander

G5Secure Found in 94 roadless areas NatureServe Explorer →
G5SecureGlobal Rank
Least concernIUCN
MediumThreat Impact
Identity
Unique IDELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.100971
Element CodeAAAAD06020
Record TypeSPECIES
ClassificationSpecies
Classification StatusStandard
Name CategoryVertebrate Animal
IUCNLeast concern
Endemicoccurs (regularly, as a native taxon) in multiple nations
KingdomAnimalia
PhylumCraniata
ClassAmphibia
OrderCaudata
FamilyPlethodontidae
GenusGyrinophilus
COSEWICDD,T
Other Common Names
Salamandre pourpre (FR) spring salamander (EN)
Concept Reference
Frost, D. R. 1985. Amphibian species of the world. A taxonomic and geographical reference. Allen Press, Inc., and The Association of Systematics Collections, Lawrence, Kansas. v + 732 pp.
Taxonomic Comments
Some authors include Gyrinophilus subterraneus in this species (Blaney and Blaney 1978). Fouquette and Dubois (2014) suggested that three tree shown in Bonett et al. (2014 "2013") suggests that Gyrinophilus palleucus, G. gulolineatus, and G. porphyriticus are conspecific (apparently under the reproductive species concept), when the tree topology is also consistent with the G. porphyriticus (sensu lato) being a species complex. For this reason the taxonomic novelties of Fouquette and Dubois (2014) are not followed (Frost 2020).
Conservation Status
Rank MethodExpertise without calculation
Review Date2015-06-05
Change Date2001-10-24
Edition Date2002-03-25
Edition AuthorsHammerson, G.
Threat ImpactMedium
Range Extent200,000-2,500,000 square km (about 80,000-1,000,000 square miles)
Number of Occurrences81 to >300
Range Extent Comments
Southern Quebec and southern Maine to northern Georgia, Alabama, and northeastern Mississippi (Conant and Colins 1991).
Occurrences Comments
Many occurrences.
Threat Impact Comments
Deforestation and its impacts on stream conditions are the primary potential threats, but in general this species is secure throughout most of its range.
Ecology & Habitat

Habitat

Small, clear upland streams; clear springs; caves; shaded seepages; occasionally in swamps and lake margins. Sometimes also in forested wet areas away from streams, especially during rainy periods. Often under rocks, logs, leaves, or moss in or near water. Eggs usually are attached to undersides of rocks in running water.

Adams and Beachy (2001) documented morphological variation among populations in the southern Appalachian Mountains and found patterns "consistent with the hypothesis that large rivers restrict sizable gene flow."

Ecology

In experimental stream communities, Resetarits (1991) found that brook trout negatively affected both growth and survival of the salamander GYRINOPHILUS PORPHYRITICUS; the presence of GYRINOPHILUS had no affect on relative condition or fecundity of SALVELINUS. SALVELINUS and GYRINOPHILUS affected the growth of the two-lined salamander EURYCEA and the crayfish CAMBARUS BARTONII. SALVELINUS caused CAMBARUS and EURYCEA to alter their activity levels and habitat; EURYCEA and CAMBARUS were able to avoid predation by SALVELINUS and GYRINOPHILUS but at a significant cost to growth.

Reproduction

Eggs laid in spring, summer, or fall, depending on local conditions. Clutch size often 20-60, up to 100+. Female stays with eggs until hatching (about 3 months). Aquatic larvae metamorphose after about 2-4 years; sexually mature probably within 1 year after metamorphosis.
Palustrine Habitats
FORESTED WETLANDRiparian
Other Nations (2)
CanadaN3
ProvinceRankNative
QuebecS3Yes
United StatesN5
ProvinceRankNative
MaineS3Yes
South CarolinaS5Yes
VirginiaS5Yes
New JerseyS3Yes
MarylandS4Yes
New HampshireS4Yes
OhioSNRYes
MassachusettsS3Yes
West VirginiaS5Yes
Rhode IslandS1Yes
New YorkS5Yes
North CarolinaS5Yes
GeorgiaS4Yes
VermontS4Yes
KentuckySNRYes
ConnecticutS2Yes
TennesseeS5Yes
MississippiS1Yes
AlabamaS4Yes
PennsylvaniaS5Yes
Threat Assessments
ThreatScopeSeverityTiming
1 - Residential & commercial development——High (continuing)
1.1 - Housing & urban areas——High (continuing)
1.2 - Commercial & industrial areas——High (continuing)
4 - Transportation & service corridors——High (continuing)
4.1 - Roads & railroads——High (continuing)
5 - Biological resource use——High (continuing)
5.3 - Logging & wood harvesting——High (continuing)
9 - Pollution——High (continuing)
9.3 - Agricultural & forestry effluents——High (continuing)

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Roadless Areas (94)
Alabama (2)
AreaForestAcres
Blue MountainTalladega National Forest4,986
Cheaha BTalladega National Forest741
Georgia (3)
AreaForestAcres
Big MountainChattahoochee National Forest1,974
Ken MountainChattahoochee National Forest527
Pink KnobChattahoochee National Forest12,127
Kentucky (1)
AreaForestAcres
WolfpenDaniel Boone National Forest2,835
New Hampshire (10)
AreaForestAcres
Carr MountainWhite Mountain National Forest17,110
Cherry MountainWhite Mountain National Forest8,766
Dartmouth RangeWhite Mountain National Forest9,233
Great Gulf Ext.White Mountain National Forest15,110
Kinsman MountainWhite Mountain National Forest8,999
PemigewassetWhite Mountain National Forest32,255
Pemigewasset ExtWhite Mountain National Forest15,840
Presidential - Dry River ExtWhite Mountain National Forest10,555
Sandwich RangeWhite Mountain National Forest16,797
Wild RiverWhite Mountain National Forest46,878
North Carolina (18)
AreaForestAcres
Bald MountainPisgah National Forest11,085
Balsam ConePisgah National Forest10,591
BearwallowPisgah National Forest4,113
Boteler PeakNantahala National Forest4,205
Cheoah BaldNantahala National Forest7,795
Chunky Gal (addition)Nantahala National Forest3,336
Craggy MountainPisgah National Forest2,657
Graveyard Ridge (addition)Pisgah National Forest1,958
Harper CreekPisgah National Forest7,325
Jarrett CreekPisgah National Forest7,485
Laurel MountainPisgah National Forest5,683
Linville Gorge AdditionPisgah National Forest2,809
Lost CovePisgah National Forest5,944
Mackey MountainPisgah National Forest5,934
Overflow CreekNantahala National Forest3,379
Sam Knob (addition)Pisgah National Forest2,576
South Mills RiverPisgah National Forest8,588
Wilson CreekPisgah National Forest4,863
Pennsylvania (2)
AreaForestAcres
Clarion RiverAllegheny National Forest3,821
Hearts ContentAllegheny National Forest221
South Carolina (1)
AreaForestAcres
Big MountainSumter National Forest2,337
Tennessee (8)
AreaForestAcres
Big Laurel Branch AdditionCherokee National Forest5,577
Brushy RidgeCherokee National Forest7,469
Flint Mill GapCherokee National Forest9,494
Rogers RidgeCherokee National Forest4,738
Sampson Mountain AdditionCherokee National Forest3,064
Slide HollowCherokee National Forest4,057
Stone MountainCherokee National Forest5,367
Sycamore CreekCherokee National Forest6,984
Vermont (3)
AreaForestAcres
Bread LoafGreen Mountain and Finger Lakes National Forests1,768
Griffith Lake 09084Green Mountain and Finger Lakes National Forests1,833
Wilder Mountain 09082Green Mountain and Finger Lakes National Forests8,759
Virginia (28)
AreaForestAcres
Adams PeakGeorge Washington National Forest7,135
Broad RunJefferson National Forest10,971
Brush MountainJefferson National Forest6,002
Crawford MountainGeorge Washington National Forest9,892
Elliott KnobGeorge Washington National Forest9,380
Gum RunGeorge Washington National Forest12,620
Kelley MountainGeorge Washington National Forest7,590
Laurel ForkGeorge Washington National Forest9,967
Little RiverGeorge Washington National Forest27,292
Little Walker MountainJefferson National Forest9,818
Mottesheard (VA)Jefferson National Forest2,596
Mountain Lake Addition AJefferson National Forest1,469
Mountain Lake Addition B (VA)Jefferson National Forest3,405
Mt. PleasantGeorge Washington National Forest8,933
New London Bridge BranchJefferson National Forest844
North MountainJefferson National Forest8,377
Oak KnobGeorge Washington National Forest10,882
Patterson MountainJefferson National Forest4,865
Peters Mountain Addition A (VA)Jefferson National Forest1,268
Price MountainJefferson National Forest9,119
Raccoon BranchJefferson National Forest4,388
Ramseys Draft AdditionGeorge Washington National Forest12,781
Seng MountainJefferson National Forest6,428
Shawvers Run AdditionJefferson National Forest1,927
SkidmoreGeorge Washington National Forest5,641
Southern MassanuttenGeorge Washington National Forest11,985
The PriestGeorge Washington National Forest5,737
Three RidgesGeorge Washington National Forest4,745
West Virginia (18)
AreaForestAcres
Canaan LoopMonongahela National Forest7,867
Cheat MountainMonongahela National Forest8,191
Cranberry AdditionMonongahela National Forest11,123
Cranberry Glades Botanical AreaMonongahela National Forest785
Dolly Sods Roaring PlainMonongahela National Forest13,392
Dry River (WV)George Washington National Forest7,331
East Fork Of GreenbrierMonongahela National Forest7,167
Falls Of Hills CreekMonongahela National Forest6,925
Gauley MountainMonongahela National Forest13,285
Glady ForkMonongahela National Forest3,239
Laurel ForkMonongahela National Forest1,172
Mcgowan MountainMonongahela National Forest10,504
Middle MountainMonongahela National Forest19,020
Mottesheard (WV)Jefferson National Forest3,964
Mountain Lake Addition B (WV)Jefferson National Forest557
Peters Mountain Addition A (WV)Jefferson National Forest343
Seneca CreekMonongahela National Forest22,287
Turkey MountainMonongahela National Forest6,421
References (20)
  1. Adams, D. C., and C. K. Beachy. 2001. Historical explanations of phenotypic variation in the plethodontid salamander Gyrinophilus porphyriticus. Herpetologica 57:353-364.
  2. Barbour, R. W. 1971. Amphibians and reptiles of Kentucky. Univ. Press of Kentucky, Lexington. x + 334 pp.
  3. Behler, J. L., and F. W. King. 1979. The Audubon Society field guide to North American reptiles and amphibians. Alfred A. Knopf, New York. 719 pp.
  4. Blackburn, L., P. Nanjappa, and M. J. Lannoo. 2001. An Atlas of the Distribution of U.S. Amphibians. Copyright, Ball State University, Muncie, Indiana, USA.
  5. Blaney, R. M., and P. K. Blaney. 1978. Significance of extreme variation in a cave population of the salamander <i> Gyrinophilus porphyriticus</i>. Proceedings West Virginia Academy Science 50:23.
  6. Bonett, R. M., M. A. Steffen, S. M. Lambert, J. J. Wiens, and P. T. Chippindale. 2014. Evolution of paedomorphosis in plethodontid salamanders: ecological correlated and re-evolution of metamorphosis. Evolution 68: 466-482.
  7. Brandon, R.A. 1967. Gyrinophilus porphyriticus. Catalogue of American Amphibians and Reptiles. 33:1-3.
  8. Conant, R. and J. T. Collins. 1991. A field guide to reptiles and amphibians: eastern and central North America. Third edition. Houghton Mifflin Co., Boston, Massachusetts. 450 pp.
  9. Crother, B. I. (editor). 2017. Scientific and standard English names of amphibians and reptiles of North America north of Mexico, with comments regarding confidence in our understanding. 8th edition. SSAR Herpetological Circular 43:1-104. [Updates in SSAR North American Species Names Database at: https://ssarherps.org/cndb]
  10. DeGraaf, R. M., and D. D. Rudis. 1983a. Amphibians and reptiles of New England. Habitats and natural history. Univ. Massachusetts Press. vii + 83 pp.
  11. Fouquette Jr., M.J., and A. DuBois. 2014. A Checklist of North American Amphibians and Reptiles. Seventh Edition. Volume 1—Amphibians. Xlibris LLC, Bloomington, Indiana. 586 pp.
  12. Frost, D. R. 1985. Amphibian species of the world. A taxonomic and geographical reference. Allen Press, Inc., and The Association of Systematics Collections, Lawrence, Kansas. v + 732 pp.
  13. Frost, D.R. 2020. Amphibian Species of the World: an Online Reference. Version 6.0. American Museum of Natural History, New York, USA. Online: http://research.amnh.org/herpetology/amphibia/index.html
  14. Green, N. B., and T. K. Pauley. 1987. Amphibians and reptiles in West Virginia. University of Pittsburgh Press, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. xi + 241 pp.
  15. Grover, M. C., and H. M. Wilbur. 2002. Ecology of ecotones: interactions between salamanders on a complex environmental gradient. Ecology 83: 2112-2123.
  16. Lowe, W. H., and D. T. Bolger. 2002. Local and landscape-scale predictors of salamander abundance in New Hampshire headwater streams. Conservation Biology 16:183-193.
  17. Mount, R. H. 1975. The reptiles and amphibians of Alabama. Auburn University Agricultural Experiment Station, Auburn, Alabama. vii + 347 pp.
  18. Petranka, J. W. 1998. Salamanders of the United States and Canada. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington, D.C.
  19. Resetarits, W. J., Jr. 1991. Ecological interactions among predators in experimental stream communities. Ecology 72:1782-1793.
  20. Species at Risk Branch. 2002. Species at risk range maps. Canadian Wildlife Service, Environment Canada. Online. Available: http://www.sis.ec.gc.ca/download_e.htm.