Amphibians
Rich Mountain Salamander
Plethodon ouachitae · also called Rich Mountain salamanders
Beneath a rotting log along a ridge of the Ouachita Mountains straddling the Arkansas-Oklahoma border, a Rich Mountain salamander forages through damp leaf litter, its scientific name a direct nod to the very mountain range that defines its entire narrow range.
Overview
The Rich Mountain salamander, Plethodon ouachitae, is a lungless amphibian native to forested mountain habitat along a ridge of the Ouachita Mountains straddling the Arkansas-Oklahoma border. Its geographically literal scientific name, naturally narrow ridge-bound range, and complete dependence on skin-based breathing make it a fitting namesake for the broader Ouachita salamander diversity it represents.
The salamander that named the mountains its own
Few species carry a scientific name as directly tied to their home range as the Rich Mountain salamander, whose species name essentially spells out the Ouachita Mountains as both its identity and its entire world.
Status
Near Threatened, present across suitable forested habitat within its naturally narrow Arkansas-Oklahoma border range, with logging and forest disturbance an ongoing risk given how limited that range is.
Rich Mountain Salamander: common questions
Why is the Rich Mountain salamander's scientific name tied to the Ouachita Mountains?
This species carries the scientific species name ouachitae, a direct reference to the Ouachita Mountain range it calls home, an unusually literal geographic naming choice among its close relatives that reflects how central this specific mountain range is to the species' entire known distribution.
Where is the Rich Mountain salamander found?
This species is known from a relatively narrow stretch of ridge within the Ouachita Mountains straddling the Arkansas-Oklahoma border, a naturally limited range even among the region's already range-restricted salamander species.
Why is the Rich Mountain salamander considered near threatened?
This species depends on a naturally narrow range of forested ridge habitat straddling the Arkansas-Oklahoma border, and logging or other significant forest disturbance within that specific area poses an ongoing risk given how limited the species' total range is, even though populations remain present across suitable habitat within that range.
How does the Rich Mountain salamander breathe without lungs?
This species breathes entirely through its moist skin and the lining of its mouth, an adaptation shared by all members of its family, which requires it to stay in consistently damp forest conditions in order to absorb enough oxygen through its skin surface to survive.