ABSTRACT
Dusky salamanders (Desmognathus) inhabit small streams and seepage areas throughout much of the eastern US Currently 11 species are described, of which 8 are largely restricted and 5 are completely restricted to the Appalachian Mountains. Some species, especially quadramaculatus, welteri, and monticola are largely aquatic, but may forage far from streams on warm, moist, nights. Dusky salamanders can be marked by toe-clipping, but regeneration may obscure marks if recaptures are separated by more than a few months. Toe-clipping and other traumatic marking methods can be avoided in species such as ochrophaeus that have highly variable color patterns. The dorsal patterns of Desmognathus consist of a series of paired, depigmented areas that are most prominent in hatch-lings and are usually called “larval spots”.
