The southern red-backed salamander (Plethodon serratus ) is a species of salamander endemic to the United States. It is found in four widely disjunct populations: one in central Louisiana; one in the Ouachita Mountains of Arkansas and Oklahoma; one in central Missouri; and one from southeastern Tennessee, to southwestern North Carolina, western Georgia, and eastern Alabama. It is sometimes referred to as the Georgia red-backed salamander or the Ouachita red-backed salamander. It was once considered a subspecies of the red-backed salamander, Plethodon cinereus.
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NocturnalNocturnality is an animal behavior characterized by being active during the night and sleeping during the day. The common adjective is "nocturnal",...
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CarnivoreA carnivore meaning 'meat eater' is an organism that derives its energy and nutrient requirements from a diet consisting mainly or exclusively of a...
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InsectivoresAn insectivore is a carnivorous plant or animal that eats insects. An alternative term is entomophage, which also refers to the human practice of e...
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MolluscivoreA molluscivore is a carnivorous animal that specializes in feeding on molluscs such as gastropods, bivalves, brachiopods, and cephalopods. Known mo...
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VermivorousVermivore (from Latin vermi, meaning "worm" and vorare, "to devour") is a zoological term for animals that eat worms (including annelids, nematodes...
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FossorialA fossorial animal is one adapted to digging which lives primarily but not solely, underground. Some examples are badgers, naked mole-rats, clams, ...
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TerrestrialTerrestrial animals are animals that live predominantly or entirely on land (e.g., cats, ants, snails), as compared with aquatic animals, which liv...
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TerritorialA territory is a sociographical area that which an animal consistently defends against the conspecific competition (or, occasionally, against anima...
Oviparous animals are female animals that lay their eggs, with little or no other embryonic development within the mother. This is the reproductive...
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AestivationAestivation is a state of animal dormancy, similar to hibernation, although taking place in the summer rather than the winter. Aestivation is chara...
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HibernatingHibernation is a state of minimal activity and metabolic depression undergone by some animal species. Hibernation is a seasonal heterothermy charac...
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starts withThe southern red-backed salamander is typically gray or black in color, with a red-brown, fading stripe across the width of its back. It grows from 8 to 11 cm (3 to 4 in) in length. Similar to Plethodon cinereus, Plethodon serratus comes in several atypical color variations. The typical red backed phase with a red dorsal stripe consists of most individuals. The atypical variations include a lead backed phase with a dark grey stripe, a silver back phase with a light grey dorsal stripe, hypomelanistic (leucistic) varations of the red backed form, and the rare white backed, or ghost phase. Unlike P. cinereus, P. serratus has not yet been found to have an erythristic variation.
Mostly nocturnal, it is often found under ground debris in moist, forested areas. In dry seasons, it moves closer to permanent water sources. Its primary diet is small arthropods and mollusks.
