Family:
Plethodontidae
(Lungless Salamanders)
The
family Plethodontidae is the largest and most diverse family of salamanders.
Lungless salmanders occupy a wide variety of habitats. In the Pacific
Northwest, there are four genera and twelve species (Leonard et al. 1993).
Idaho has a single representative of this family, the Couer d'Alene
Salamander (Plethodon idahoensis). Until recently this species
was considered a subspecies of the Van Dyke's Salamander (Plethodon
vandykei), in fact the species is listed as such in Amphibians and
Reptiles of the Pacific Northwest by Nussbaum et al. (1983). Characteristics
of Plethodontid salamanders are the presence of nasolabial grooves and
parasphenoid teeth |
![]() |