This intriguing species is the third largest salamander in the world. It's the Hellbender Salamander. The Hellbender has only two subspecies; the Eastern Hellbender and the Ozark Hellbender. Hellbenders are only found in the United States.
Hellbender salamanders vary in color from grayish to olive brown and the occasional black. Several loose flaps of thick, wrinkled skin run along each side of it. Hellbenders are well adapted to their swift flowing stream habitats with their flattened head and body, short legs, long rudder-like tail, and very small beady eyes. They blend in well to their habitat. Only juveniles have predators such as water snakes, snapping turtles and large predatory fish.
A hellbender is perfectly at home in clear, fast moving streams with rocky bottoms and debris for cover. They are very territorial and, once they have found a home, never stray too far from it. Hellbenders will also protect it from other hellbenders. They never come out of the water, being strictly aquatic. They live individually and only come together for the fall mating season.
These large salamanders are threatened due to water pollution, agricultural runoff, and damming of rivers and streams for recreation and power plants. Also, cannibalism (the male eats many of the eggs before they hatch) has played a role in their decline. If you would like to donate and help save the hellbender salamander, you can visit http://www.worldwildlife.org/ogc/species_SKU.cfm?gid=48.
Hellbender Salamander Fun Facts:
- Scientific Name: Cryptobranchus Alleganiensis (Eastern Hellbender); Cryptobranchus Alleganiensis Bishopi (Ozark Hellbender)
- Threat Level:
- Eastern Hellbender: Near Threatened
- Ozard Hellbender: Endangered
- Length: 1-2.5 ft. (Eastern); 2 ft. (Ozark)
- Lifespan: 30 years in wild; over 50 years in captivity
- Typical Diet: Primarily crayfish; will eat small fish and/or will sometimes be cannibalistic
- Hellbenders have lungs but breath through their skin
- A home for them means and clear, fast flowing stream with many large rocks, logs, and debris such as leaves
- Unlike other animals with skin folds, the hellbender salamanders skin is slimy
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