The many-lined salamander (''Stereochilus marginatus'') is a species of

salamander Salamanders are a group of amphibians typically characterized by their lizard-like appearance, with slender bodies, blunt snouts, short limbs projecting at right angles to the body, and the presence of a tail in both larvae and adults. All ten ...

in the family Plethodontidae. It is the only species of the

monotypic In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unispec ...

genus ''Stereochilus''. It is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...

to the United States.

Physical description

''Stereochilus marginatus'' are small salamanders, generally ranging from in overall length, with a thin, sharp head and a tail shorter than average salamanders in the plethodontids. According to Dirk J. Stevenson, "the basic color pattern is brown or dull yellow with narrow, alternating light and dark longitudinal lines along the lower sides of the body that break up on the tail into a netlike pattern."

Habitat and distribution

This species of salamander is commonly found in the lower Atlantic Coastal Plain of Georgia. It occurs on the Atlantic coastal plain from northeastern Florida to southeastern Virginia. The species is "unusually aquatic for a plethodontid," inhabiting "forested swamps fringing slow-moving blackwater streams, shallow ditches choked with aquatic vegetation, and mucky seepage areas." ''Stereochilus marginatus'' is also likely to be found under natural cover, such as '' Sphagnum'' moss or the decaying remains of leaves and other natural materials left behind in riverbeds; they can also sometimes be found underneath the remains of trees in drier environments.

Life history

''Stereochilus marginatus'' are one of about 35 species of Plethodontidae that lay aquatic eggs that hatch as swimming larvae.Zug, George R. "Lungless Salamander (family Plethodontidae)." Esbcohost.com. Encyclopædia Britannica, Sept. 2014. Web. 6 Dec. 2015. The larvae period lasts around 1–2 years. It generally takes 3–4 years to mature for breeding, and males reach sexual maturity earlier than females. Unfortunately, not much is known about their expected life-span.

Diet and interspecific interactions

Both adults and larvae's diets tend to consist of small invertebrates, including

arthropod Arthropods (, (gen. ποδός)) are invertebrate animals with an exoskeleton, a Segmentation (biology), segmented body, and paired jointed appendages. Arthropods form the phylum Arthropoda. They are distinguished by their jointed limbs and Arth ...

s and worms. It is common to find '' Desmognathus auriculatus'' (southern dusky salamanders) and ''

Pseudotriton montanus The mud salamander (''Pseudotriton montanus'') is a bright red salamander of the family Plethodontidae. It is found in streams, seeps and swamps and underneath logs, rocks and leaves. It is endemic to the eastern half of the United States with one ...

'' (mud salamanders) in the same environments. Predators of the ''Stereochilus marginatus'' may include larger aquatic fauna or insects.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q967178 Plethodontidae Amphibians described in 1856 Endemic amphibians of the United States Taxa named by Edward Hallowell (herpetologist) Taxonomy articles created by Polbot