Amphibians
Pedernales Mountain Salamander
Eurycea pterophila · also called Pedernales mountain salamanders, fringe-limbed salamander
Beneath the clear water of a spring-fed central Texas stream, a Pedernales mountain salamander drifts along the gravel bottom, its feathery external gills swaying with the current, part of a population found nowhere else on the planet outside this single narrow drainage.
Overview
The Pedernales mountain salamander, Eurycea pterophila, is a fully aquatic amphibian known only from a small number of spring-fed streams within the Pedernales River drainage of central Texas. Its extremely restricted range, permanently aquatic neotenic life history, and sensitivity to groundwater conditions make it one of the more narrowly distributed salamanders found anywhere in North America.
A species defined by a single drainage
Confined entirely to the spring-fed streams of one river drainage, the Pedernales mountain salamander has no ability to relocate should the groundwater feeding its habitat ever be significantly reduced or contaminated.
Status
Vulnerable and decreasing, restricted to a small number of spring-fed streams and highly sensitive to groundwater depletion and pollution.
Pedernales Mountain Salamander: common questions
Why is the Pedernales mountain salamander so vulnerable?
This species is known only from a small number of spring-fed streams within the Pedernales River drainage of central Texas, and because it depends entirely on this narrow habitat, any reduction in groundwater quantity or quality from regional pumping or pollution poses a direct threat to its entire global population.
Does the Pedernales mountain salamander ever leave the water?
No, this species remains fully aquatic throughout its entire life and never undergoes metamorphosis into a terrestrial adult form, instead retaining prominent external gills into adulthood that allow it to stay permanently within its spring-fed stream habitat.
How does the Pedernales mountain salamander compare to other Texas spring salamanders?
Like several other central Texas spring salamanders such as the Barton Springs salamander and Jollyville Plateau salamander, this species is fully aquatic and restricted to a very narrow spring-fed range, though each of these species occupies its own separate spring system without overlapping populations.
What does the Pedernales mountain salamander eat?
This species feeds on small aquatic invertebrates found within the springs and streams it inhabits, foraging along the rocky and gravelly substrate that makes up its narrow spring-fed habitat.