Amphibians
Sequoia Slender Salamander
Batrachoseps kawia · also called Sequoia slender salamanders
Deep in a soil crack in the southern Sierra Nevada foothills, a thread-thin salamander waits out the dry summer, confined to a stretch of mountain forest so narrow that most visitors to nearby Sequoia National Park will never know it shares the area with them.
Overview
The Sequoia slender salamander, Batrachoseps kawia, is a small, lungless salamander native to mountain forest habitat within a limited area of the southern Sierra Nevada, including portions near Sequoia National Park. Its extraordinarily thin body, lungless respiration, and narrowly restricted range make it one of the more geographically specific members of California’s diverse slender salamander radiation.
A narrow range beneath towering trees
While the giant sequoias above draw visitors from around the world, this small, thread-thin salamander quietly persists in the soil below, confined to a stretch of forest habitat far smaller than the famous trees that share its name.
Status
Near Threatened — locally common but confined to a limited range within the southern Sierra Nevada foothills.
Sequoia Slender Salamander: common questions
How does the Sequoia slender salamander breathe without lungs?
The Sequoia slender salamander has no lungs at all, a trait shared by every member of the lungless salamander family, and instead absorbs oxygen directly through its moist skin, which is why the species depends so heavily on consistently damp forest microhabitats.
Where does the Sequoia slender salamander live?
This species is found only within a limited area of the southern Sierra Nevada foothills, including portions near Sequoia National Park, a range considerably more restricted than several of its more widely distributed slender salamander relatives.
Why is the Sequoia slender salamander's thin body an advantage?
Its notably thread-thin, elongated body lets it squeeze into narrow soil cracks and rock crevices that would be completely inaccessible to bulkier salamanders, giving it access to sheltered, moist microhabitats other species simply cannot reach.
Does the Sequoia slender salamander have an aquatic larval stage?
No, like other members of its family, it lays its eggs in moist terrestrial sites and skips the aquatic larval stage entirely, with young hatching directly as fully formed miniature adults.