1. Eastern Tiger Salamander McKenzie Walters February 11, 2014 Period 3

2. Eastern Tiger Salamander • Ambystomatigrinum

3. 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

4. Physical characteristics • Biggest recorded was 13 inches long • size ranges between seven and eight inches • long tail • dark brown • yellow to olive colored blotches • Ambystomamaculatum 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

5. 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

6. 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

7. 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

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

9. 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

10. Predators, Parasites & Diseases • Bullfrog • eaten by badgers, snakes, bobcats, owls. • Larvae are eaten by aquatic insects, the larvae of other salamanders, and snakes.

11. 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

12. Status (DE & Federal) • DE: Endangered • Federal: Not listed

13. Conservation Management Needs • Breeding ponds • Wetlands • Soil

14. Impacts to ecosystem if eliminated • Increase in worms, insects, frogs

15. Photos

16. 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, Ambystomatigrinum. 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.