Barton Springs Salamander

Taxobox
name = Barton Springs Salamander
status = VU | status_system = IUCN3.1
trend = stable


regnum = Animalia
phylum = Chordata
classis = Amphibia
ordo = Caudata
familia = Plethodontidae
genus = "Eurycea"
species = "E. sosorum"
binomial = "Eurycea sosorum"
binomial_authority = Chippindale, Price and Hillis, 1993

The Barton Springs Salamander ("Eurycea sosorum") is an endangered salamander that only lives in the environs of Barton Springs in Austin, Texas (USA). Barton Springs Salamanders are average sized (adults grow to approximately 2.5 inches in length) and have mottled coloration varying from darkish purple to light yellow.

The species name is an acronym for "Save Our Springs", a group dedicated to preserving Barton Springs, plus a Latin genitive plural ending. Despite inhabiting an urban area, the salamander was not identified until 1993. It was put on the federal List of Threatened and Endangered Species in 1997.

The salamander's listing prevented the City of Austin from cleaning the pool as it had for 70 years: with high-pressure water and bleach, which can be fatal to salamanders. As a result, the City of Austin applied for and was issued an Incidental Take Permit under Section 10(a)(1)(b) of the Endangered Species Act by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in 1998. The permit has a term of 15 years and allows incidental taking of salamanders during pool cleaning and maintenance. As a mitigation measure, the City offered to direct 10 percent of revenue generated through pool entry fees into a conservation fund that is used for research and habitat enhancement.

References

* (1993): A new species of perennibranchiate salamander ("Eurycea", Plethodontidae) from Austin, Texas. "Herpetologica" 49: 242-259.
* (2000): Phylogenetic relationships of central Texas hemidactyliine plethodontid salamanders, genus "Eurycea", and a taxonomic revision of the group. "Herpetological Monographs" 14: 1-80.
* (2001): A new species of subterranean blind salamander (Plethodontidae: Hemidactyliini: "Eurycea": "Typhlomolge") from Austin, Texas, and a systematic revision of central Texas paedomorphic salamanders. "Herpetologica" 57: 266-280.
* Database entry includes a range map, a brief justification of why this species is vulnerable, and the criteria used