The Korean clawed salamander is a salamander of cold, clear mountain streams that lives only on the Korean Peninsula, so it isn't found in the United States. It has only tiny, reduced lungs and breathes mainly through its skin. It is named for the small black claws on its toes.
Appearance
- Appearance
- About 5–7 in (12–18 cm) long, with a tail as long as or longer than the body. The back is yellowish to reddish or dark brown with small yellow spots, and the belly is pale and translucent.
Where it lives
- Typical habitats
- Mountain streams
- Streamside forest
- Range
- Mountains of South Korea, mainly the Baekdudaegan and Taebaek ranges, extending into North Korea. Not found in North America.
- Preferred conditions
- Adults breathe mainly through the skin. They hide under rocks and leaf litter in forest next to cool, clear streams and enter the water to breed.
Behavior
- Diet
- Aquatic insects in the water; earthworms, spiders, and insects on land.
- Activity
- Mostly active at night.
Life cycle
- Breeding season
- A study at Hwanseon Cave in Samcheok, where the species was first described, found two breeding periods a year: April–June and November–December.
- Nest
- Females attach a pair of egg sacs to rocks or roots in spring-fed headwaters and caves.
- Clutch size
- About 9–22 eggs per pair of egg sacs
- Larva
- Eggs hatch after about 3–5 months, and larvae spend 2–3 years in the stream before transforming.
Name and classification
- About the name
- Korean populations were long grouped with Onychodactylus fischeri of northeast China and the Russian Far East. They were recognized as a separate species in 2012, and the population at the southeastern tip of Korea was split off as the Yangsan clawed salamander (O. sillanus) in 2022.
Conservation
- IUCN Red List
- LCLeast ConcernLow risk of extinction
- Status
- Drought linked to climate change is altering high mountain streams where it lives.
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