Dzenowski and Hembree (2014): Ambystoma opacum (marbled salamander) has a geographic range extending from New England to Florida and as far west as eastern Texas. The female constructs a nest in a dry vernal pool under moss or leaves and lays eggs sometime in late August through September. The bands of females tend to be gray, while those of males are more white.

The female lays eggs in small depression in the soil beneath leaves or logs. Many other species of salamander and frog use these vernal pools in … Megan made a great find as she and Melissa were turning over logs at the edge of a vernal pool, looking for salamanders – some viable Marbled Salamander eggs. Marbled salamanders breed in autumn (unlike most other mole salamanders which breed in winter) and migrate to wetlands during/before a good rain to court and mate. Marbled salamander eggs hatch in the early winter when the waters of the vernal pools rise enough to cover them with water. The marbled salamander, Ambystoma opacum, has a light on dark pattern that distinguishes it from all other New England salamanders.

They nest in leaf litter, debris and humus *945*. The eggs are laid in September or October under logs, moss, leaves, or debris along the margins of a vernal pool and are attended to by the female. Such temporary pools are safer for eggs and young as they are fish-free. Life history: Unlike the other members of this genus found in Ohio, the breeding season for the Marbled Salamander is in the autumn and courtship, breeding, and egg-laying all occur on land. Such temporary pools are safer for eggs and young as they are fish-free. One of the benefits of the ephemeral nature of their aquatic habitat is that there are few predators that consume the salamander larvae. The female lays eggs in small depression in the soil beneath leaves or logs. Adult marbled salamanders migrate to seasonal pools to court and mate in early fall rather than in the spring. The marbled salamander breeds from September to October in the northern part of its range and from October to December in the southern part of its range. Adults can grow to about 11 cm (4 in), small compared to other members of its genus. By spring, Skelly said they're bigger than other things in … Marbled salamanders (Ambystoma opacum, Urodela: Family Ambystomatidae) are a medium-sized chunky salamander reaching up to 4.25 inches in length (10.8 cm).As adults they have a variable number of white bars on the body. The marbled salamander mates and lays its eggs on land. J.G., 1981, On the evolution of nest site selection in the marbled salamander, Ambystoma opacum, Copeia, Vol. These pools that dry up each summer and are refilled each winter are known as vernal pools. The marbled salamander differs from the Jefferson and spotted salamanders in its reproductive cycle. The eggs are guarded by females and hatch after autumn rains inundate the nest sites forming temporary pools *945*. Diet: The marbled salamander feeds primarily on terrestrial invertebrates such as worms, spiders, snails, centipedes, and a variety of insects. the life span of A. opacum is around 4 years, most of which is spend underground in burrows. This species is the smallest of the ambystomatids, typically reaching adult sizes up to 11 cm in length. Like other ambystomatids, these salamanders spend most of their time underground in burrows and are infrequently seen outside of the breeding season. Females will lay about 30-100 eggs in a depression on land (usually beneath a log or leaf litter).

Although this normally happens in deciduous forest habitats, I have seen larval marbled salamanders in isolated roadside ditches containing no logs, suggesting that egg laying may take place in crawfish holes. These salamanders are occasionally can be found around dry hillsides, but never far from a moist environment. The marbled salamander – a member of the mole salamander family (Ambystomatidae) – tends to occupy drier, more sandy or gravelly habitat than most of Pennsylvania’s salamander species. Marbled Salamander eggs under log Two friends from the Museum, Megan and Melissa, invited me to tag along with them yesterday, as they did some fieldwork for a future workshop. Reproduction : Mating takes place on land, and then the females will move to dried vernal pools or other soon-to-be flooded areas to lay eggs. The female will lay 50 to 200 eggs on the bottom of the dry vernal pool. The female lays 50-200 eggs, one at a time, in a depression under a log or in a clump of vegetation that will fill with water when it rains. Adult marbled salamanders breed only in dried up pools, ponds, and ditches, and females lay their eggs under the leaves there. (Flank, 1999; Petranka, 1998) Unlike most other mole salamanders, this species does not breed in water. However, unlike most salamanders, which lay their eggs in the winter or spring, marbled salamanders lay their eggs in dried up pools in the fall. Marbled Salamander- USGS ... For egg-laying, marbled salamanders use temporary vernal pools that are dry, but will later be filled by rain. Habitat and range Description. This species is the smallest of the ambystomatids, typically reaching adult sizes up to 11 cm in length.