Red-backed salamander: Where It Lives, Map & Facts

Where the red-backed salamander lives – recorded in 2 countries, with quick facts from Wikidata and an introduction from Wikipedia.

Scientific name	Plethodon cinereus
Group	Salamanders, newts & caecilians
Status	Least concern (Wikidata, IUCN category label)
Found in	2 countries
Continents	North America
Class	Amphibian
Order	Caudata
Family	Plethodontidae

Where does the red-backed salamander live?

Open-licence (CC0 / CC BY) wild records published on GBIF place the red-backed salamander in 2 countries and territories across North America.

Countries with at least a handful of records (a minimum share of the species’ records, to leave out vagrants and escapes). Records with coordinates only; captive and fossil records excluded.

Is the red-backed salamander endangered?

The red-backed salamander’s conservation status recorded in Wikidata is “Least concern” (an IUCN Red List category label). Source: Wikidata.

What kind of animal is the red-backed salamander?

The red-backed salamander (Plethodon cinereus) is an amphibian in the order Caudata and the family Plethodontidae, genus Plethodon. (Taxonomy from Wikidata.)

About the red-backed salamander

The red-backed salamander (Plethodon cinereus) is a small, hardy woodland salamander species in the family Plethodontidae. It is also known as the redback salamander, eastern red-backed salamander, or the northern red-backed salamander to distinguish it from the southern red-backed salamander (Plethodon serratus). The species inhabits wooded slopes in eastern North America, west to Missouri, south to North Carolina, and north from southern Quebec and the Maritime provinces in Canada to Minnesota. It is one of 56 species in the genus Plethodon. Red-backed salamanders are notable for their color polymorphism and primarily display two color morph varieties ("red-backed" and "lead-backed"), which differ in physiology and anti-predator behavior.

Text in “About” is quoted from the Wikipedia article Red-backed salamander (revision 1380255322), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: lead section excerpted verbatim, formatting removed. Quick facts, taxonomy and status: Wikidata Q1092717 (CC0). Countries and pin: GBIF.org occurrence records (CC0 / CC BY 4.0).