Spotted Salamander (Ambystoma maculatum)

Bright yellow spots distinguish this secretive amphibian. Spotted salamanders spend most of their lives hidden in dark, damp places.

Type                                                       : Amphibian

Diet                                                        : Carnivore

Average life span in the wild           : Up to 20 years

Size                                                        : 7 in (18 cm)

Did you know?

Spotted salamanders return to the same mating pool via the same route every year.

Despite being fairly large and having an extremely broad range, the spotted salamander is actually pretty hard to, well, spot.

They can reach 9 inches (23 centimeters) in length and are prevalent in mature deciduous forests from eastern Canada throughout the eastern and midwestern United States. But these secretive salamanders spend almost their entire lives hidden under rocks or logs or in the burrows of other forest animals.

They will populate upland forests and mountainous regions, but are most common in moist, low-lying forests near floodplains.

They emerge from their subterranean hiding spots only at night to feed and during spring mating. They will actually travel long distances over land after a heavy rain to mate and lay their eggs in vernal pools and ponds.

Visually striking, these stout salamanders are bluish-black with two irregular rows of yellow or orange spots extending from head to tail. Like many other salamanders, they secrete a noxious, milky toxin from glands on their backs and tails to dissuade predators. Their diet includes insects, worms, slugs, spiders, and millipedes.

Spotted salamanders' numbers are generally stable throughout their range, but they are very sensitive to changes in their ecology, and rising water acidity in certain habitats is negatively affecting their population. The pet trade and habitat loss also take a toll.

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Red-Eyed Tree Frog (Agalychnis callidryas)

The red-eyed tree frog flashes its brightly colored body parts when startled. It sleeps by day with its eyes closed and body markings covered, stuck to leaf-bottoms.

Type                                                       : Amphibian

Diet                                                        : Carnivore

Average life span in the wild           : 5 years

Size                                                        : 1.5 to 2.75 in (4 to 7 cm)

Group name                                         : Army

Did you know?

The red-eyed tree frog is also called the red-eyed leaf frog.

Many scientists believe the red-eyed tree frog developed its vivid scarlet peepers to shock predators into at least briefly questioning their meal choice.

These iconic rain-forest amphibians sleep by day stuck to leaf-bottoms with their eyes closed and body markings covered. When disturbed, they flash their bulging red eyes and reveal their huge, webbed orange feet and bright blue-and-yellow flanks. This technique, called startle coloration, may give a bird or snake pause, offering a precious instant for the frog to spring to safety.

Their neon-green bodies may play a similar role in thwarting predators. Many of the animals that eat red-eyed tree frogs are nocturnal hunters that use keen eyesight to find prey. The shocking colors of this frog may over-stimulate a predator's eyes, creating a confusing ghost image that remains behind as the frog jumps away.

Red-eyed tree frogs, despite their conspicuous coloration, are not venomous. They are found in tropical lowlands from southern Mexico, throughout Central America, and in northern South America. Nocturnal carnivores, they hide in the rain forest canopy and ambush crickets, flies, and moths with their long, sticky tongues.

Red-eyed tree frogs are not endangered. But their habitat is shrinking at an alarming rate, and their highly recognizable image is often used to promote the cause of saving the world's rain forests.

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Poison Dart Frog (Dendrobatidae)

Poison dart frogs, like this sapphire-blue species, are highly toxic. Their brilliant colors serve as warnings to potential predators to keep away.

Type                                                       : Amphibian

Diet                                                        : Carnivore

Average life span in the wild           : 3 to 15 years

Size                                                        : 1 in (2.5 cm)

Group name                                         : Army

Protection status                               : Threatened

Did you know?

The only natural predator of most of the poison dart frog family is a snake calledLeimadophis epinephelus, which has developed a resistance to the frogs' poison.

Poison dart frogs, members of the Dendrobatidae family, wear some of the most brilliant and beautiful colors on Earth. Depending on individual habitats, which extend from the tropical forests of Costa Rica to Brazil, their coloring can be yellow, gold, copper, red, green, blue, or black. Their elaborate designs and hues are deliberately ostentatious to ward off potential predators, a tactic called aposematic coloration.

Some species display unusual parenting habits, including carrying both eggs and tadpoles on their backs. Although this "backpacking" is not unique among amphibians, male poison arrow frogs are exceptional in their care, attending to the clutch, sometimes exclusively, and performing vital transportation duties.

Dendrobatids include some of the most toxic animals on Earth. The two-inch-long (five-centimeter-long) golden poison dart frog has enough venom to kill 10 grown men. Indigenous Emberá people of Colombia have used its powerful venom for centuries to tip their blowgun darts when hunting, hence the genus' common name.

Scientists are unsure of the source of poison dart frogs' toxicity, but it is possible they assimilate plant poisons which are carried by their prey, including ants, termites and beetles. Poison dart frogs raised in captivity and isolated from insects in their native habitat never develop venom.

The medical research community has been exploring possible medicinal uses for some poison dart frog venom. They have already developed a synthetic version of one compound that shows promise as a painkiller.

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Oriental Fire-Bellied Toad (Bombina orientalis)

Oriental fire-bellied toad

Type                                                       : Amphibian

Diet                                                        : Omnivore

Average life span in the wild           : Up to 20 years

Size                                                        : 1.5 to 2 inches (3.8 to 5.5 cm)

Weight                                                   : 1 to 2 oz. (28 to 56 g)

Did you know?

The pupils of the oriental fire-bellied toad are triangular-shaped.

Size relative to a tea cup:

From above, the oriental fire-bellied toad seems fairly nondescript—a green toad with black spots blending nicely with the verdant colors of its habitat. It’s not until it perceives a threat that this flashy amphibian reveals its true colors.

Oriental fire-bellied toads secrete toxins from their skin, and they want potential predators to know it. When threatened, they rise up on their front legs and arch their back, sometimes even flipping themselves over completely, to reveal the bright red-and-black coloration of their underside. This behavior, known as the unken reflex, warns predators, “Eat me, and you might croak.”

One of the most common amphibians in its primary range, oriental fire-bellied toads thrive in northeastern China, Korea, southern Japan, and southern parts of Russia. They are highly aquatic and usually found in slow-moving streams and ponds. When out of water, they stick to the region’s coniferous and broadleaved forests. They hibernate from late September to May, sheltering in rotting logs, leaf piles, and occasionally at the bottom of streams.

Oriental fire-bellied toads are medium-sized, growing to a length of about 2 inches (5.5 centimeters). Their backs, covered in spiky-looking warts, can be bright green to brownish gray, and their bellies are smooth.

Tadpoles survive on algae, fungi, and plants, while the adults eat a variety of invertebrates, including worms, insects, and mollusks.

Oriental fire-bellies are popular in the pet trade, but they are common throughout their range and have no special conservation status.

Readmore → Oriental Fire-Bellied Toad (Bombina orientalis)

Northern Leopard Frog (Rana pipiens)

Named for the spots across their green backs, northern leopard frogs will eat just about anything that crosses their paths.

Type                                                       : Amphibian

Diet                                                        :Carnivore

Average life span in the wild           : 2 to 4 years

Size                                                        : 3 to 5 in (7.6 to 12.7 cm)

Group name                                         : Army

Protection status                               : Threatened

Did you know?

A genetic mutation gives rise to the Burnsi leopard frogs, which have no spots.

Size relative to a tea cup

The northern leopard frog is perhaps most recognizable as the formaldehyde-soaked specimen in the high school lab tray.

Once the most abundant and widespread frog species in North America, leopard frogs were widely collected not only for dissection but for the food industry (frog legs) as well.

However, massive declines beginning in the early 1970s, particularly in Canada and the western United States, have significantly reduced their numbers. Scientists have not determined the cause of the declines, but it is likely a combination of ecological factors: pollution, deforestation, and water acidity.

Northern leopard frogs are so named for the array of irregularly shaped dark spots that adorn their backs and legs. They are greenish-brown in color with a pearly white underside and light-colored ridges on either side of their backs. They are considered medium-size, reaching lengths of 3 to 5 inches (7.6 to 12.7 centimeters), nose to rump. Females are slightly larger than males.

Their range is most of northern North America, except on the Pacific Coast. They generally live near ponds and marshes, but will often venture into well-covered grasslands as well, earning them their other common name, the meadow frog.

Leopard frogs will eat just about anything they can fit in their mouths. They sit still and wait for prey to happen by, then pounce with their powerful legs. They eat beetles, ants, flies, worms, smaller frogs, including their own species, and even birds, and garter snakes.

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Mudpuppy (Necturus maculosus)

Mudpuppies spend their entire lives underwater and are distinguished as the only salamanders that make sound—a dog-like barking.

Type                                                       : Amphibian

Diet                                                        : Carnivore

Average life span in the wild           :11 years

Size                                                        : 8 to 13 in (20 to 33 cm)

Did you know?

Fishermen who hook mudpuppies will often cut their line rather than touch these extremely slimy amphibians, believing incorrectly that they are poisonous.

Size relative to a tea cup:

Mudpuppies, also called waterdogs, are one of only a few salamanders that make noise. They get their name from the somewhat embellished notion that their squeaky vocalizations sound like a dog's bark.

Among the largest of the salamanders, mudpuppies can exceed 16 inches (41 centimeters) in length, although the average is more like 11 inches (28 centimeters). Their range runs from southern central Canada, through the midwestern United States, east to North Carolina and south to Georgia and Mississippi.

Mudpuppies live on the bottoms of lakes, ponds, rivers, and streams, and never leave the water. They hide themselves in vegetation and under rocks and logs, emerging at night to feed on whatever prey they can catch, including crayfish, worms, and snails.

Mudpuppies are easily distinguishable by their bushy, red external gills, which they grow as larva and never lose. They have flat heads, wide tails, stubby legs, and feet with four distinct toes. Their bodies are gray or brownish-gray with blue-black spots.

Females lay large clutches of eggs and guard them until they hatch, a unique trait among salamanders.

Mudpuppies are common throughout their range and have no special conservation status. However, habitat loss and pollution is putting pressure on some local populations.

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Andean Condor (Vultur gryphus)

Producing only one chick every other year, survival of the endangered Andean condor relies on captive breeding programs.

Type                                       : Bird

Diet                                        : Carnivore

Size                                        : Body, 4 ft (1.2 m); wingspan, up to 10.5 ft (3.2 m)

Weight                                   : Up to 33 lbs (15 kg)

Protection status               : Endangered

Did you know?

The Andean condor has the largest wing area of any bird.

Size relative to a 6-ft (2-m) man

Andean condors are massive birds, among the largest in the world that are able to fly. Because they are so heavy (up to 33 pounds/15 kilograms), even their enormous 10-foot (3-meter) wingspan needs some help to keep them aloft. For that reason, these birds prefer to live in windy areas where they can glide on air currents with little effort. Andean condors are found in mountainous regions, as their name suggests, but also live near coasts replete with ocean breezes and even deserts that feature strong thermal air currents.

These condors are mostly black, but males have a distinctive white "collar" around their necks and some white markings on their wings as well. Like their relatives, the California condors, Andean condors have bald heads.

Condors are vultures, so they keep their sharp eyes peeled for the carrion that makes up most of their diet. They prefer to feast on large animals, wild or domestic, and in picking the carcasses, they perform an important function as a natural clean-up crew. Along the coasts, condors will feed on dead marine animals like seals or fish. These birds do not have sharp predator's claws, but they will raid birds' nests for eggs or even young hatchlings.

These long-lived birds have survived over 75 years in captivity, but they reproduce slowly. A mating pair produces only a single offspring every other year, and both parents must care for their young for a full year.

The Andean condor is considered endangered but is in far better shape than its California cousin. Perhaps a few thousand South American birds survive, and reintroduction programs are working to supplement that number.

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