AMPHIBIANS OF THE GREAT SMOKY MOUNTAINS

Species Richness

       A total of 31 salamanders and 13 frogs have been recorded from the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Note that common names are capitalized, and that species names (consisting of a genus and specific epithet) are italicized. Species codes allow data to be entered in shorthand format. To minimize data entry errors, species codes should be either all capitalized or all in lower case letters. Capitals and lower-case letters should not be intermixed. Using accepted and standardized common and scientific names (Crother, 2000), the amphibians are:

Common name Scientific name Suggested species code Salamanders Spotted Salamander Ambystoma maculatum AMA Marbled Salamander Ambystoma opacum AOP Mole Salamander Ambystoma talpoideum ATA Green Salamander Aneides aeneus AAE Hellbender Cryptobranchus alleganiensis CAL Seepage Salamander Desmognathus aeneus DAE Spotted Dusky Salamander Desmognathus conanti DCO Imitator Salamander Desmognathus imitator DIM Shovel-nosed Salamander Desmognathus marmoratus DMA Seal Salamander Desmognathus monticola DMO Ocoee Salamander Desmognathus ocoee DOC Black-bellied Salamander Desmognathus quadramaculatus DQU Santeetlah Salamander Desmognathus santeetlah DSA Pigmy Salamander Desmognathus wrighti DWR Three-lined Salamander Eurycea guttolineata EGU Junaluska Salamander Eurycea junaluska EJU Long-tailed Salamander Eurycea longicauda ELO Cave Salamander Eurycea lucifuga ELU Blue Ridge Two-lined Salamander Eurycea wilderae EWI Spring Salamander Gyrinophilus porphyriticus GPO Four-toed Salamander Hemidactylium scutatum HSC Common Mudpuppy Necturus maculosus NMA Eastern Red-spotted Newt Notophthalmus viridescens NVI Northern Slimy Salamander Plethodon glutinosus PGL Jordan’s Salamander Plethodon jordani PJO Southern Gray-cheeked Salamander Plethodon metcalfi PME Southern Appalachian Salamander Plethodon oconaluftee POC Southern Red-backed Salamander Plethodon serratus PSE Southern Zigzag Salamander Plethodon ventralis PVE Mud Salamander Pseudotriton montanus PMO Black-chinned Red Salamander Pseudotriton ruber PRU Frogs Northern Cricket Frog Acris crepitans ACR American Toad Bufo americanus BAM Fowler’s Toad Bufo fowleri BFO Eastern Narrow-mouthed Toad Gastrophryne carolinensis GCA Cope’s Gray Treefrog Hyla chrysoscelis HCH Spring Peeper Pseudacris crucifer PCR Upland Chorus Frog Pseudacris feriarum PFE American Bullfrog Rana catesbeiana RCA Northern Green Frog Rana clamitans RCL Pickerel Frog Rana palustris RPA Northern Leopard Frog Rana pipiens RPI Wood Frog Rana sylvatica RSL Eastern Spadefoot Scaphiopus holbrooki SHO

       Amphibian taxonomy and systematics within the southern Appalachians are topics of intense debate among biologists. Rationale for using the listed names is provided by Dodd (2004).

Habitats and Distribution

       Five major forest communities are recognized within the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, although 80 percent of the Park falls within the Eastern Deciduous Forest Ecosystem (Houk, 1993). Some botanists have further subdivided the vegetation into as many as 67 florally distinct communities. No one species of amphibian is associated entirely with a single forest community, although some of the high-elevation salamanders (Plethodon jordani, Desmognathus ocoee, D. wrighti) are more often found in the spruce-fir community than in other community types. Habitat structure, particularly one that retains moisture and high humidity, is important in shaping salamander distribution. The high-elevation coniferous forest appears ideal in providing shade, cover (in the form of coarse woody debris), and abundant surfaces for moisture condensation.

Figure 3.  Spruce-fir forest  at Indian Gap.

       The spruce-fir forest (fig. 3) is dominated by Red Spruce (Picea rubens) and Fraser Fir (Abies fraseri), and is found generally above 1,676 m (5,500 ft), although the community descends to 1,372 m (4,500 ft) in some locations and individual Red Spruce are found at even lower elevations. This is the Canadian Zone boreal forest of high moisture, cool or cold temperatures, and high humidity (Houk, 1993). Ground surface is often dense with fallen tree branches and trunks, and carpeted by thick layers of tree needles. Wet, rotten, woody debris and dense needle mats provide ideal hiding places for terrestrial salamanders. Streams originate in this habitat, usually beginning as small seeps and springs. As streams trickle through the dark-green forest, they gather momentum. Even at higher elevations, aquatic salamanders, particularly duskies (Desmognathus) and Blue Ridge Two-lined Salamanders (Eurycea wilderae), may be plentiful within the headwater streams.

Figure 4. Deciduous forest at Lynn Hollow.

At somewhat lower elevations (1,067-1,524 m; 3,500-5,000 ft), deciduous northern hardwoods (fig. 4) predominate, such as Sugar Maples (Acer saccharum), American Beech (Fagus grandifolia), and Yellow Birch (Betula alleghaniensis). Many terrestrial and aquatic salamanders reach their lower or upper distributional range within this community; frogs are scarce. Cove hardwoods, the third community, comprise the most diverse forest community in the Smokies, one that is endemic to the southern Appalachian Mountains. It occurs generally below 1,372 m (4,500 ft) in sheltered valleys, and is dominated by Tulip Poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera), Dogwood (Cornus florida), Red Maple (Acer rubrum), Sweetgum (Liquidamber styraciflua), White Basswood (Tilia americana var. heterophylla), Yellow Buckeye (Aesculus flava), and Black Birch (Betula lenta). Both hardwood communities have complex understory vegetation, often with much coarse woody debris, which provides cover for terrestrial salamanders. The streams through these hardwood forests are rocky and fast paced, and salamanders are very common along streamsides and in the water.

Figure 5. Hemlock forest at Chinquapin Knob.

       Two somewhat specialized forest communities are found in the Smokies. The hemlock community (fig. 5) is dominated by Eastern Hemlocks (Tsuga canadensis), commonly called spruce-pines by natives of the southern mountains, and is common between 1,067-1,524 m (3,500-5,000 ft) in elevation. Hemlocks descend to much lower elevations along cold mountain stream valleys, and overlap considerably with both hardwood forests and the spruce-fir forest of the higher elevations. Hemlocks are massive with tall, straight trunks. When they fall, they provide excellent habitat for salamanders, both in the rotting wood and under exfoliating bark (fig. 6).

       The pine-oak forest (fig. 7) occupies the drier areas of the Park, particularly the area west of Cades Cove and at mid-elevations on the North Carolina side of the Park. This forest is dominated by Southern Red (Quercus falcata), Northern Red (Q. rubra), Scarlet (Q. coccinea), Black (Q. velutina), and Chestnut (Q. prinus) Oaks, and by Pitch (Pinus rigida), White (P. strobus), and Table Mountain (P. pungens) Pines. Soils are dry, as is the leaf litter. Prior to human intervention, this community burned frequently in the western regions of the Park, and a fire-adapted vegetation community resulted. Terrestrial salamanders are few, and usually found only during cool, wet times of the year.

Figure 6. Coarse woody debris in Cove forest at Roaring Fork. Note the pink survey flags marking the position of transects.

Aquatic-breeding salamanders and frogs are found along streamsides, where they likely remain close to water. The bottomlands along Cane Creek and Abrams Creek likely formed a corridor from the Tennessee Valley into Cades Cove. As a result, amphibian species richness is surprisingly high, particularly for frogs.

       Amphibians are not uniformly distributed throughout the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. There are wide-ranging species, species restricted to specialized habitats, and species found in only one area of the Park. Monitoring programs will need to take the distribution of species into account to optimize time and financial resources. A few generalizations can be made about amphibian distribution and habitats within the Park.

Salamanders || Frogs