Listing
Oct 30, 2001
Oct 30, 2001 Listing
ETWP; Review of Plant and Animal Species That Are Candidates or Proposed for Listing as Endangered o…
- Publication type: CNOR
Item 1
FWS Focus
Overview
Characteristics
Overview
The Ozark hellbender is a large, aquatic salamander that occurs in cool, clear Ozark streams in southern Missouri and northern Arkansas. Cool and clear water is important because hellbenders breathe entirely through their skin, which contains numerous folds to increase oxygen absorption. Adult Ozark hellbenders spend most of their life under large, flat rocks that shelter them; whereas larval and juvenile hellbenders hide beneath large rocks and under small stones in gravel beds. Ozark hellbenders are one of two subspecies of hellbenders, with the eastern hellbender being the other subspecies.
In 2011, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service listed the Ozark Hellbender as endangered throughout its range. Though the species’ current range is largely the same as its historical range, abundance, or the number of individuals, in each of these rivers had dropped more than 70% since the 1970s. However, hundreds of young are being released into the wild each year in an attempt to reverse the population declines.
Scientific Name
Cryptobranchus alleganiensis bishopi
Common Name
Ozark Hellbender
FWS Category
Amphibians
Identification Numbers
Characteristics
Characteristic category
Physical Characteristics
Characteristics
Size & Shape
The Ozark hellbender is a large, strictly aquatic salamander found only in southern Missouri and northern Arkansas. Adults may grow up to 2 feet long. Its flattened body shape enables it to move in fast flowing streams. Hellbenders also have a large, keeled tail and tiny eyes. Numerous fleshy folds along the sides of their bodies provide surface area for respiration.
Characteristic category
Food
Characteristics
Food
Adults are nocturnal, remaining beneath cover (usually large, flat rocks) during the day and emerging to forage at night. They feed almost entirely on crayfish, but will also eat small fish, invertebrates and other hellbenders. They also scavenge for anything that smells good, which is why they are occasionally caught on fishing lines.
Characteristic category
Habitat
Characteristics
Habitat
These salamanders need cool, clear streams and rivers with many large rocks. Cool, clear water is important because hellbenders breathe entirely through their skin. They have lungs, but rely on thousands of capillaries found in the fleshy folds of their skin to get oxygen from the water. Larvae and small hellbenders hide beneath large rocks and also small stones in gravel beds. Adults spend most of their life under large, flat rocks that shelter them.
Characteristic category
Life Cycle
Characteristics
Reproduction
Ozark hellbenders are long-lived, becoming sexually mature at 5 to 8 years of age and surviving up to 30 years in the wild. They generally breed between September and November. Mating is by external fertilization, and males guard the fertilized eggs from predators and other hellbenders. Clutches vary in size with 140 to 450 eggs that hatch after 80 days.
Geography
Characteristics
Range
The White River watershed in Arkansas and Missouri is home to Ozark hellbenders. Within this watershed, they are found primarily in the North Fork of the White River, Bryant Creek, Spring River, Eleven Point River, and the Current River. Ozark hellbenders have declined throughout their range and no populations are stable.
Timeline
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