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Smallmouth Salamander
Ambystoma texanum
Image by Jim Horton
Description
A mole salamander with a strikingly small head and mouth, dark-bodied with a dusting of pale lichen-like flecks along the sides. Widespread across Indiana's lowlands.
Stats
Size
4 – 5 ½ inches
Status
Common
Similar Species
Jefferson salamander and Streamside salamander
Diet
Earthworms and other invertebrates
Habitat
A fossorial species that burrows in loose soil and leaflitter. Found in or beneath rotting logs or stones.
Reproduction
Mating occurs in early spring when rain and temperatures reach 55 degrees. Breeding may occur January through early April. Mating takes place in shallow wetlands. 3 – 30 eggs are laid in a jellylike mass are deposited to twigs beneath the water. Larvae have external gills.
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