Spotted salamanders are a type of mole salamander. Even though they have mole in their name they don't actually burrow. Instead they use other animals dens and tunnels, such as shrews and moles.
These elusive salamanders are nocturnal and only mate for one week for the entire year, and are hard to find. Despite their secretive nature, these salamanders, will gather in the hundreds at vernal pools or ponds during the breeding season. The female salamanders can lay up to 200 eggs that are usually attached to an underwater object. During dry season when the vernal pools are dried up the larvae will start to grow faster.
The most obvious feature of the spotted salamander is its yellow or orange spots that run on either side of its spine. These spots aren't just for fashion, it's also a warning. During an attack it'll release a sticky secretion that is poisonous or just distasteful do the predator.
Fun fact: The Spotted Salamander egg clusters are coated in a sticky
slime and certain types of algae grow inside the eggs with the larvae.
When the larvae poops the algae will eat it and in turn it'll make oxygen.
-by Jonah Kim
The fantastic FLYING SQUIRREL
-by Gabriel Kim