Although I certainly like salamanders, as indicated by my previous salamander story, I don't usually keep up on them in the news. But when the already-impressive salamander biodiversity of North America increases by one, it's news that catches my attention. A new species of Plethodon salamander was recently "discovered" in the Siskiyou Mountains of northern Californian and southern Oregon. Genetic testing determined that this new species, named the Scott Bar Salamander (Plethodon asupak) is a valid species and not a subspecies of the Siskiyou Mountain Salamander (Plethodon stormi). It has a narrow distribution on rocky slopes in old-growth forests; conservation organizations had already petitioned to include all populations of the Siskiyou Mountains Salamader for listing under the Endangered Species Act last June. And to them I say "Good luck," as many species languish on the candidate list for years, especially under this administration, and there are just too many species going extinct before they have a chance to be legally protected.
This is not the only recent announcement of a newly discovered salamander. Although found two years ago in South Korean, the discovery of a new species, the Korean Crevice Salamander (Karesnia koreana) was just recently announced. This discovery is considered pretty sensational, since lungless salamanders of this type were not previously known from this region. The description was published in the 5 May 2005 issue of Nature.
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