Eastern Tiger Salamander

McKenzie WaltersFebruary 11, 2014

Period 3

Eastern Tiger Salamander

• Ambystoma tigrinum

Life History

• spends most of its life underground• emerges from its burrow in February or March• migrate at night• eggs are laid in a mass• attached to twigs and weed stems under

water

Physical characteristics

• Biggest recorded was 13 inches long• size ranges between seven and eight inches• long tail• dark brown• yellow to olive colored blotches• Ambystoma maculatum smaller, confused,parallel lines. • large head, broad rounded snout• Males Longer• Fragile• live up to 25 years in captivity. • reached ages of 16 years without

Reproduction• 4-5 years to reach sexual maturity

• Hatch 19 to 50 days• adults at 2.5 to 5 months• Males arrive earlier than the females• happens during the night• other males may interupt• replaces the spermatophores with its own• Eggs 24-48 hours after• 100- 1000 eggs

Food and Water

• carnivorous• worms, snails, insects, and slugs – wild• smaller salamanders, frogs, newborn

mice,baby snakes- captivity• small crustaceans, insect larvae-baby• Tadpoles ,smaller salamander larvae, small

fish- big

Habitat

• sandy pine barren areas• temporary or permanent pools for breeding• may breed in man-made depressions filled

with water.• Long island• requirement seems to be soil

Distribution

• ranges along the east coast• southern New York to northern Florida• west from Ohio to Minnesota • southward through eastern Texas to the Gulf.

Ecology & Behavior

• Predators aqautic and subterranean • Prey :insect pests.• captured and sold for fish bait• ponds as the largest influences• very loyal to their birthplace

Predators, Parasites & Diseases

• Bullfrog• eaten by badgers, snakes, bobcats, owls.• Larvae are eaten by aquatic insects, the larvae

of other salamanders, and snakes.

Cause for listing• Loss of habitat• 90 breeding ponds• Pesticides• threat of development• Disturbance at ponds• introduction of predatory fish• expansion of bullfrog population• Recreational activities• off-road vehicles• Increased construction• loss of wetland• acid rain• pollution

Status (DE & Federal)

• DE: Endangered• Federal: Not listed

Conservation Management Needs

• Breeding ponds• Wetlands• Soil

Impacts to ecosystem if eliminated

• Increase in worms, insects, frogs

Photos

References• Bishop, S. C. 1943. Handbook of Salamanders. Cornell University Press,

Ithaca.Conant, R. and J. T. Collins. 1998. A Field Guide to Reptiles and Amphibians of Eastern and Central North America. Third Edition Expanded. Houghton Mifflin Co., Boston.Harding, J. H. 1997. Amphibians and Reptiles of the Great Lakes Region. The University of Michigan Press, Ann Arbor. 378 pp.Pfingsten, R. A. and F. L. Downs. 1989. Salamanders of Ohio. Bulletin of the Ohio Biological Survey. Vol. 7 No. 2. College of Biological Sciences The Ohio State University, Columbus.Petranka, J. W. 1998. Salamanders of the United States and Canada. Smithsonian Institute Press, Washington and London.Stine, C. J. 1984. The Life History and Status of the Eastern Tiger Salamander, Ambystoma tigrinum. Bulletin of the Maryland Herpetological Society. Vol. 20 No. 3.Vogt, R. C. 1981. Natural History of Amphibians and Reptiles of Wisconsin. The Milwaukee Public Museum, Milwaukee, Wisconsin.