Plethodon serratus
Grobman, 1944
Southern Red-backed Salamander
G5SecureGlobal Rank
Least concernIUCN
UnknownThreat Impact
Identity
Unique IDELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.103304
Element CodeAAAAD12160
Record TypeSPECIES
ClassificationSpecies
Classification StatusStandard
Name CategoryVertebrate Animal
IUCNLeast concern
Endemicendemic to a single nation
KingdomAnimalia
PhylumCraniata
ClassAmphibia
OrderCaudata
FamilyPlethodontidae
GenusPlethodon
Other Common Namessouthern red-backed salamander (EN) Southern Redback Salamander (EN)
Concept ReferenceFrost, 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 CommentsNewman and Austin (2015) and Thesing et al. (2016) sequenced mtDNA from the same or nearby localities in most isolates of this species. They both found five divergent groups, but neither suggested changes in the taxonomy of the group (Crother 2017). Regarded as subspecies of P. cinereus prior to mid-1970s.
Conservation Status
Review Date2002-03-26
Change Date2001-10-31
Edition Date2011-05-06
Edition AuthorsHammerson, G.
Threat ImpactUnknown
Range Extent20,000-200,000 square km (about 8000-80,000 square miles)
Number of Occurrences81 - 300
Range Extent CommentsFour widely separated geographic isolates: eastern Oklahoma-Arkansas; southeastern quarter of Missouri; eastern Tennessee-western North Carolina-Georgia-eastern Alabama; central Louisiana (Petranka 1998).
Occurrences CommentsNumber of occurrences has not been determined, but the species appears to be represented by many and/or large occurrences throughout most of the range (Highton 1986).
Threat Impact CommentsIntensive harvest of mature forest greatly reduces salamander density in the logged area; population recovery occurs slowly (Herbeck and Larsen 1999).
Ecology & Habitat
Habitat
Found under rocks, rotten logs, and mosses in forested areas. In dry summer months it occurs in and near damp areas. Uncommonly found in twilight zone of caves. Eggs are laid in moss or rotten log, or under a rock or log.
Reproduction
In Georgia piedmont and Missouri (Herbeck and Semlitsch 2000), courtship and mating occur in winter or early spring. Lays a clutch of up to about 15 eggs (mean around 6) in June-July, or May or June in Missouri (Herbeck and Selmitsch 2000). Female stays with eggs until hatching. Larval stage passed in egg. Hatching occurs in late summer, 7-8 weeks after oviposition (Georgia), in September and October in Missouri (Herbeck and Semlitsch 2000). Reaches sexual maturity in about 2 years. Oogenic cycle apparently is annual in Georgia piedmont and in Ouachita Mountains (Camp 1988, Taylor et al. 1990), biennial in Missouri (Herbeck and Semlitsch 2000).
Terrestrial HabitatsForest - Hardwood
Other Nations (1)
United StatesN5
| Province | Rank | Native |
|---|
| Oklahoma | S3 | Yes |
| North Carolina | S4 | Yes |
| Texas | S1 | Yes |
| Alabama | S2 | Yes |
| Arkansas | S3 | Yes |
| Georgia | S5 | Yes |
| Tennessee | S3 | Yes |
| Louisiana | S1 | Yes |
| South Carolina | SU | Yes |
| Missouri | S5 | Yes |
References (20)
- 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.
- 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.
- Camp, C. D. 1988. Aspects of the life history of the southern red-back salamander Plethodon serratus Grobman in the southeastern United States. Am. Midl. Nat. 119:93-100.
- 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]
- Dundee, H. A., and D. A. Rossman. 1989. The amphibians and reptiles of Louisiana. Louisiana State University Press, Baton Rouge.
- Elliott, W. R. 2003. A guide to Missouri's cave life: 70 species brought to life. Missouri Department of Conservation. 37 pp.
- 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.
- 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
- Herbeck, L. A., and D. R. Larsen. 1999. Plethodontid salamander response to silvicultural practices in Missouri Ozark forests. Conservation Biology 13:623-632.
- Herbeck, L. A., and R. D. Semlitsch. 2000. Life history and ecology of the southern redback salamander, PLETHODON SERRATUS, in Missouri. Journal of Herpetology 34:341-347.
- Highton, R. 1986. Plethodon serratus. Catalogue of American Amphibians and Reptiles. 394:1-2.
- Highton, R. 2005. Declines of eastern North American woodland salamanders (<i>Plethodon</i>). Pages 34-46 in M. Lannoo, editor. Amphibian declines: the conservation status of United States species. University of California Press, Berkeley.
- Johnson, T.R. 1977. The Amphibians of Missouri. University of Kansas Museum of Natural History, Public Education Series 6: ix + 134 pp.
- Johnson, T. R. 2000. The amphibians and reptiles of Missouri. Second edition. Missouri Department of Conservation, Jefferson City. 400 pp.
- Mahoney, M. J. 2001. Molecular systematics of <i>Plethodon </i>and <i>Aneides </i>(Caudata: Plethodontini): phylogenetic analysis of an old and rapid radiation. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 18:174-188.
- Newman, C.E. and C.C. Austin. 2015. Thriving in the cold: glacial expansion and post-glacial contraction of a temperate terrestrial salamander (<i>Plethodon serratus</i>). PloS ONE: 10(7): p.e0130131.
- Petranka, J. W. 1998. Salamanders of the United States and Canada. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington, D.C.
- Redmond, W. H., and A. F. Scott. 1996. Atlas of amphibians in Tennessee. The Center for Field Biology, Austin Peay State University, Miscellaneous Publication Number 12. v + 94 pp.
- Taylor, C. L., R. F. Wilkinson, Jr., and C. L. Peterson. 1990. Reproductive patterns of five plethodontid salamanders from the Ouachita Mountains. Southwestern Naturalist 35:468-472.
- Thesing, B.D., R.D. Noyes, D.E. Starkey, and D.B. Shepard. 2016. Pleistocene climatic fluctuations explain the disjunct distribution and complex phylogeographic structure of the Southern Red-backed Salamander, <i>Plethodon serratus</i>. Evolutionary ecology 30(1): 89-104.