Head to head
Caddo Mountain Salamander vs Rich Mountain Salamander
The Caddo Mountain salamander and Rich Mountain salamander are both lungless amphibians endemic to the Ouachita Mountains, part of a cluster of narrow-range species scattered across that same relatively small mountain range.
| Caddo Mountain Salamander | Rich Mountain Salamander | |
|---|---|---|
| Scientific name | Plethodon caddoensis | Plethodon ouachitae |
| Range | Small cluster of mountains, western Arkansas | Ridge straddling the Arkansas-Oklahoma border |
| Named after | The Caddo Mountains | The Ouachita Mountains as a whole |
| Conservation status | Vulnerable | Near Threatened |
| Population trend | Decreasing | Decreasing |
| Lungs | None, breathes through skin | None, breathes through skin |
| Habitat | Forest | Forest |
| Diet | Insectivore | Insectivore |
Caddo Mountain Salamander vs Rich Mountain Salamander: common questions
Which is more at risk, the Caddo Mountain salamander or the Rich Mountain salamander?
The Caddo Mountain salamander is classified as Vulnerable, a slightly more severe status than the Rich Mountain salamander's Near Threatened classification, reflecting its even narrower known range, a small cluster of mountains in western Arkansas, compared with the somewhat broader ridge the Rich Mountain salamander occupies along the Arkansas-Oklahoma border.
Why is the Rich Mountain salamander's scientific name tied to the whole Ouachita range?
This species carries the scientific species name ouachitae, a direct reference to the Ouachita Mountain range as a whole, an unusually literal geographic naming choice compared with the Caddo Mountain salamander, whose name instead references the more specific Caddo Mountains cluster where it is found.
Do the Caddo Mountain salamander and Rich Mountain salamander live in the same forest?
No, each occupies its own distinct part of the Ouachita Mountains, the Caddo Mountain salamander restricted to a small mountain cluster in western Arkansas and the Rich Mountain salamander to a ridge straddling the Arkansas-Oklahoma border, part of a broader pattern of fine-scale endemism among several closely related Ouachita salamander species.