Ensatina eschscholtzii Gray, 1850

Common Names

Eschscholtz Salamander (Ensatina eschscholtzii: Stebbins, 1951, Amph. W. North Am.: 87).

Eschscholtz's Salamander (Ensatina eschscholtzii: Schmidt, 1953, Check List N. Am. Amph. Rept., Ed. 6: 42).

Redwood Salamander (Ensatina eschscholtzii: Schmidt, 1953, Check List N. Am. Amph. Rept., Ed. 6: 42).

Ensatina (Ensatina eschscholtzii: Conant, Cagle, Goin, Lowe, Neill, Netting, Schmidt, Shaw, Stebbins, and Bogert, 1956, Copeia, 1956: 174; Stebbins, 1966, Field Guide W. North Am. Rept. Amph.: 44; Collins, Huheey, Knight, and Smith, 1978, Herpetol. Circ., 7: 6; Liner, 1994, Herpetol. Circ., 23: 12; Frank and Ramus, 1995, Compl. Guide Scient. Common Names Amph. Rept. World: 31; Collins, 1997, Herpetol. Circ., 25: 6; Liner and Casas-Andreu, 2008, Herpetol. Circ., 38: 31; Tilley, Highton, and Wake, 2012, in Crother (ed.), Herpetol. Circ., 39: 26; Highton, Bonett, and Jockusch, 2017, in Crother (ed.), Herpetol. Circ., 43: 27).

Common Ensatina (Ensatina eschscholtzii: Collins and Taggart, 2009, Standard Common Curr. Sci. Names N. Am. Amph. Turtles Rept. Crocodil., ed. 6: 12).

Cape St. Lucas Triton (Ensatina eschscholtzii croceater: Yarrow, 1882, Bull. U.S. Natl. Mus., 24: 21).

Sierra Salamander (Ensatina croceater: Slevin, 1928, Occas. Pap. California Acad. Sci., 16: 63).

Yellow-blotched Salamander (Ensatina eschscholtzii croceater: Bishop, 1943, Handb. Salamanders: 295; Schmidt, 1953, Check List N. Am. Amph. Rept., Ed. 6: 42; Conant, Cagle, Goin, Lowe, Neill, Netting, Schmidt, Shaw, Stebbins, and Bogert, 1956, Copeia, 1956: 174; Stebbins, 1966, Field Guide W. North Am. Rept. Amph.: 45).

Yellow-blotched Ensatina (Ensatina eschscholtzii croceater: Storer, 1925, Univ. California Publ. Zool., 27: 43; Bishop, 1943, Handb. Salamanders: 295; Collins, Huheey, Knight, and Smith, 1978, Herpetol. Circ., 7: 6; Frank and Ramus, 1995, Compl. Guide Scient. Common Names Amph. Rept. World: 31; Collins, 1997, Herpetol. Circ., 25: 6; Crother, Boundy, Campbell, de Queiroz, Frost, Highton, Iverson, Meylan, Reeder, Seidel, Sites, Taggart, Tilley, and Wake, 2001 "2000", Herpetol. Circ., 29: 22; Stebbins, 2003, Field Guide W. Rept. Amph., Ed. 3: 177; Tilley, Highton, and Wake, 2012, in Crother (ed.), Herpetol. Circ., 39: 17; Collins and Taggart, 2009, Standard Common Curr. Sci. Names N. Am. Amph. Turtles Rept. Crocodil., ed. 6: 12; Tilley, Highton, and Wake, 2012, in Crother (ed.), Herpetol. Circ., 39: 26; Highton, Bonett, and Jockusch, 2017, in Crother (ed.), Herpetol. Circ., 43: 27).

Red Salamander (Ensatina eschscholtzii: Slevin, 1928, Occas. Pap. California Acad. Sci., 16: 60; Ensatina eschscholtzii eschscholtzii: Bishop, 1943, Handb. Salamanders: 297).

Oregon Salamander (Ensatina eschscholtzii eschscholtzii: Storer, 1925, Univ. California Publ. Zool., 27: 43; Bishop, 1943, Handb. Salamanders: 297).

Monterey Salamander (Ensatina eschscholtzii eschscholtzii: Schmidt, 1953, Check List N. Am. Amph. Rept., Ed. 6: 42; Conant, Cagle, Goin, Lowe, Neill, Netting, Schmidt, Shaw, Stebbins, and Bogert, 1956, Copeia, 1956: 174; Stebbins, 1966, Field Guide W. North Am. Rept. Amph.: 44; Crother, Boundy, Campbell, de Queiroz, Frost, Highton, Iverson, Meylan, Reeder, Seidel, Sites, Taggart, Tilley, and Wake, 2001 "2000", Herpetol. Circ., 29: 22).

Monterey Ensatina (Ensatina eschscholtzii eschscholtzii: Collins, Huheey, Knight, and Smith, 1978, Herpetol. Circ., 7: 6; Liner, 1994, Herpetol. Circ., 23: 12; Frank and Ramus, 1995, Compl. Guide Scient. Common Names Amph. Rept. World: 31; Collins, 1997, Herpetol. Circ., 25: 6; Stebbins, 2003, Field Guide W. Rept. Amph., Ed. 3: 174; Tilley, Highton, and Wake, 2012, in Crother (ed.), Herpetol. Circ., 39: 17; Collins and Taggart, 2009, Standard Common Curr. Sci. Names N. Am. Amph. Turtles Rept. Crocodil., ed. 6: 12; Tilley, Highton, and Wake, 2012, in Crother (ed.), Herpetol. Circ., 39: 26; Highton, Bonett, and Jockusch, 2017, in Crother (ed.), Herpetol. Circ., 43: 27).

Klauber's Blotched Salamander (Ensatina eschscholtzii klauberi: Schmidt, 1953, Check List N. Am. Amph. Rept., Ed. 6: 42).

Large-blotched Salamander (Ensatina eschscholtzii klauberi: Conant, Cagle, Goin, Lowe, Neill, Netting, Schmidt, Shaw, Stebbins, and Bogert, 1956, Copeia, 1956: 174; Stebbins, 1966, Field Guide W. North Am. Rept. Amph.: 45; Highton, Bonett, and Jockusch, 2017, in Crother (ed.), Herpetol. Circ., 43: 27).

Large-blotched Ensatina (Ensatina eschscholtzii klauberi: Collins, Huheey, Knight, and Smith, 1978, Herpetol. Circ., 7: 6; Liner, 1994, Herpetol. Circ., 23: 12; Frank and Ramus, 1995, Compl. Guide Scient. Common Names Amph. Rept. World: 31; Collins, 1997, Herpetol. Circ., 25: 6; Crother, Boundy, Campbell, de Queiroz, Frost, Highton, Iverson, Meylan, Reeder, Seidel, Sites, Taggart, Tilley, and Wake, 2001 "2000", Herpetol. Circ., 29: 22; Stebbins, 2003, Field Guide W. Rept. Amph., Ed. 3: 177; Tilley, Highton, and Wake, 2012, in Crother (ed.), Herpetol. Circ., 39: 17; Tilley, Highton, and Wake, 2012, in Crother (ed.), Herpetol. Circ., 39: 26; Ensatina klauberi: Liner and Casas-Andreu, 2008, Herpetol. Circ., 38: 31; Collins and Taggart, 2009, Standard Common Curr. Sci. Names N. Am. Amph. Turtles Rept. Crocodil., ed. 6: 12).

Oregon Triton (Ensatina eschscholtzii oregonensis: Yarrow, 1882, Bull. U.S. Natl. Mus., 24: 21).

Northern Pacific Red Salamander (Ensatina eschscholtzii oregonensis: Schmidt, 1953, Check List N. Am. Amph. Rept., Ed. 6: 42).

Oregon Salamander (Ensatina eschscholtzii oregonensis: Conant, Cagle, Goin, Lowe, Neill, Netting, Schmidt, Shaw, Stebbins, and Bogert, 1956, Copeia, 1956: 174; Stebbins, 1966, Field Guide W. North Am. Rept. Amph.: 44),

Oregon Ensatina (Ensatina eschscholtzii oregonensis: Collins, Huheey, Knight, and Smith, 1978, Herpetol. Circ., 7: 6; Frank and Ramus, 1995, Compl. Guide Scient. Common Names Amph. Rept. World: 31; Collins, 1997, Herpetol. Circ., 25: 6; Crother, Boundy, Campbell, de Queiroz, Frost, Highton, Iverson, Meylan, Reeder, Seidel, Sites, Taggart, Tilley, and Wake, 2001 "2000", Herpetol. Circ., 29: 22; Stebbins, 2003, Field Guide W. Rept. Amph., Ed. 3: 175; Tilley, Highton, and Wake, 2012, in Crother (ed.), Herpetol. Circ., 39: 17; Collins and Taggart, 2009, Standard Common Curr. Sci. Names N. Am. Amph. Turtles Rept. Crocodil., ed. 6: 12; Tilley, Highton, and Wake, 2012, in Crother (ed.), Herpetol. Circ., 39: 26; Highton, Bonett, and Jockusch, 2017, in Crother (ed.), Herpetol. Circ., 43: 27).

Painted Salamander (Ensatina eschscholtzii picta: Bishop, 1943, Handb. Salamanders: 300; Schmidt, 1953, Check List N. Am. Amph. Rept., Ed. 6: 42; Conant, Cagle, Goin, Lowe, Neill, Netting, Schmidt, Shaw, Stebbins, and Bogert, 1956, Copeia, 1956: 174; Stebbins, 1966, Field Guide W. North Am. Rept. Amph.: 45).

Painted Ensatina (Ensatina eschscholtzii picta: Collins, Huheey, Knight, and Smith, 1978, Herpetol. Circ., 7: 6; Frank and Ramus, 1995, Compl. Guide Scient. Common Names Amph. Rept. World: 31; Collins, 1997, Herpetol. Circ., 25: 6; Crother, Boundy, Campbell, de Queiroz, Frost, Highton, Iverson, Meylan, Reeder, Seidel, Sites, Taggart, Tilley, and Wake, 2001 "2000", Herpetol. Circ., 29: 22; Stebbins, 2003, Field Guide W. Rept. Amph., Ed. 3: 175; Tilley, Highton, and Wake, 2012, in Crother (ed.), Herpetol. Circ., 39: 17; Collins and Taggart, 2009, Standard Common Curr. Sci. Names N. Am. Amph. Turtles Rept. Crocodil., ed. 6: 12; Tilley, Highton, and Wake, 2012, in Crother (ed.), Herpetol. Circ., 39: 27; Highton, Bonett, and Jockusch, 2017, in Crother (ed.), Herpetol. Circ., 43: 27).

Sierra Nevada Salamander (Ensatina eschscholtzii platensis: Schmidt, 1953, Check List N. Am. Amph. Rept., Ed. 6: 42; Conant, Cagle, Goin, Lowe, Neill, Netting, Schmidt, Shaw, Stebbins, and Bogert, 1956, Copeia, 1956: 174; Stebbins, 1966, Field Guide W. North Am. Rept. Amph.: 45).

Sierra Nevada Ensatina (Ensatina eschscholtzii platensis: Collins, Huheey, Knight, and Smith, 1978, Herpetol. Circ., 7: 6; Frank and Ramus, 1995, Compl. Guide Scient. Common Names Amph. Rept. World: 31; Collins, 1997, Herpetol. Circ., 25: 6; Crother, Boundy, Campbell, de Queiroz, Frost, Highton, Iverson, Meylan, Reeder, Seidel, Sites, Taggart, Tilley, and Wake, 2001 "2000", Herpetol. Circ., 29: 22; Stebbins, 2003, Field Guide W. Rept. Amph., Ed. 3: 177; Tilley, Highton, and Wake, 2012, in Crother (ed.), Herpetol. Circ., 39: 17; Collins and Taggart, 2009, Standard Common Curr. Sci. Names N. Am. Amph. Turtles Rept. Crocodil., ed. 6: 12; Tilley, Highton, and Wake, 2012, in Crother (ed.), Herpetol. Circ., 39: 27; Highton, Bonett, and Jockusch, 2017, in Crother (ed.), Herpetol. Circ., 43: 27).

Sierra Nevada Salamander (Ensatina sierrae [no longer recognized]: Bishop, 1943, Handb. Salamanders: 303).

Yellow-eyed Salamander (Ensatina eschscholtzii xanthoptica: Schmidt, 1953, Check List N. Am. Amph. Rept., Ed. 6: 42; Conant, Cagle, Goin, Lowe, Neill, Netting, Schmidt, Shaw, Stebbins, and Bogert, 1956, Copeia, 1956: 174; Stebbins, 1966, Field Guide W. North Am. Rept. Amph.: 44).

Yellow-eyed Ensatina (Ensatina eschscholtzii xanthoptica: Collins, Huheey, Knight, and Smith, 1978, Herpetol. Circ., 7: 6; Frank and Ramus, 1995, Compl. Guide Scient. Common Names Amph. Rept. World: 31; Collins, 1997, Herpetol. Circ., 25: 6; Crother, Boundy, Campbell, de Queiroz, Frost, Highton, Iverson, Meylan, Reeder, Seidel, Sites, Taggart, Tilley, and Wake, 2001 "2000", Herpetol. Circ., 29: 22; Stebbins, 2003, Field Guide W. Rept. Amph., Ed. 3: 175; Tilley, Highton, and Wake, 2012, in Crother (ed.), Herpetol. Circ., 39: 17; Collins and Taggart, 2009, Standard Common Curr. Sci. Names N. Am. Amph. Turtles Rept. Crocodil., ed. 6: 12; Tilley, Highton, and Wake, 2012, in Crother (ed.), Herpetol. Circ., 39: 27; Highton, Bonett, and Jockusch, 2017, in Crother (ed.), Herpetol. Circ., 43: 27).

Distribution

Southwestern British Columbia and Vancouver Island (Canada), south through mesic Washington, Oregon, and California (USA), to northern Baja California, Mexico, in the Sierra San Pedro Martír and Sierra Juárez and on the coastal San Quintín volcanic field; introduced population in the vicinity of the Tonto Creek State Fish Hatchery, Gila County, Arizona, USA. 

Geographic Occurrence

Natural Resident: Canada, Mexico, United States of America, United States of America - California, United States of America - Oregon, United States of America - Washington

Introduced: United States of America - Arizona

Comment

The status of the nominal subspecies (as well as the purported ring species) are controversial, some authors (e.g., Highton, 1998, Herpetologica, 54: 254–278) arguing for a multiplicity of species within the complex and others (e.g., Moritz, Schneider, and Wake, 1992, Syst. Biol., 41: 273–291; Jackman and Wake, 1994, Evolution, 48: 876–897; Wake and Yanev, 1986, Evolution, 40: 702–715; Wake, Yanev, and Brown, 1986, Evolution, 40: 866–868; Wake, Yanev, and Frelow, 1989, Otte and Endler (eds.), Speciation and its Consequences: 134–157; Wake and Schneider, 1998, Herpetologica, 54: 279–298; Wake and Jockusch, 2000, in Bruce et al., Biol. Plethodontid Salamanders: 97–99) considering the nominal species to have subspecies with discoverable historical relationships (although this requires application of a species concept unconcerned with lineages but only with reproductive potential). See Petranka, 1998, Salamand. U.S. Canada: 325–331, for account. See Highton, 2000, in Bruce et al., Biol. Plethodontid Salamanders: 215–260, for more discussion. See Petranka, 1998, Salamand. U.S. Canada: 326, and Highton, Tilley, and Wake In Crother, Boundy, Campbell, de Queiroz, Frost, Highton, Iverson, Meylan, Reeder, Seidel, Sites, Taggart, Tilley, and Wake, 2001 "2000", Herpetol. Circ., 29: 22, for readable summaries of the controversy in taxonomic application. Brown, 1974, Univ. California Publ. Zool., 98: 1–57, and Wake, 1997, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, 94: 7761–7767, discussed the issue of secondary contact and noted that only narrow hybrid zones exist between Ensatina eschscholtzii eschscholtzii and Ensatina eschscholtzii klauberi, Ensatina eschscholtzii xanthoptica and Ensatina eschscholtzii platensis. Clearly, the taxonomy of Ensatina is not going to remain stable and several to many cryptic and not-so-cryptic species will eventually be recognized. For this reason the distributions of the nominal races are presented here: Ensatina eschscholtzii eschscholtzii: Coastal region of southern California (USA) and adjacent Baja California del Norte, Mexico; inland in California to Sawmill Canyon, above Banning, San Bernardino County, and Lake Hemet, Riverside County. Ensatina eschscholtzii croceater: Tehachapi Mountains, Mt. Pinos, and vicinity of Fort Tejon, southern California, USA. Syntopic with Ensatina eschscholtzii klauberi, according to Stebbins, 1957, Evolution, 11: 265–270. Ensatina eschscholtzii klauberi: San Jacinto Mountains, Riverside County, south to vicinity of Descanso, San Diego County, California (USA), and the Sierra San Pedro Martir, in northern Baja California, Mexico, mostly in the transition life zone. Syntopic with Ensatina eschscholtzii croceater, according to Stebbins, 1957, Evolution, 11: 265–270. Ensatina eschscholtzii oregonensis: Southwestern British Columbia and Vancouver Island, south through Washington and Oregon, west of the Cascade Range, south in coastal California, exclusive of the range of Ensatina eschscholtzii picta, to northern Sonoma County, USA. Ensatina eschscholtzii picta: A narrow coastal area from the vicinity of Weott, Humboldt County, California, north through Del Norte County to Port Oxford, Curry County, Oregon. Ensatina eschscholtzii platensis: Western slopes of the Sierra Nevada, mainly in the Upper Sonoran and Transition zones, from northern Tehama County south to southern Tulare County, California. Ensatina eschscholtzii xanthoptica: Coast Range of California between the central valley and San Fransisco Bay, north to east central Sonoma County, and south to Pacheco Pass, western Merced County, and in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada from Calaveras County to Fresno County, mostly in the Upper Sonoran Life Zone. ; Stebbins, 2003, Field Guide W. Rept. Amph., Ed. 3: 174–177, provided a brief account, figures, and map. Grismer, 2002, Amph. Rept. Baja California: 56–57, provided accounts for the Mexican populations of Ensatina klauberi and Ensatina eschscholtzii. Peralta-García and Valdéz-Villavicencio, 2004, Herpetol. Rev., 35: 279, provided the southernmost locality (22 km south of Ensenada) of Ensatina eschscholtzii eschscholtzii in Baja California, Mexico. Kuchta, 2005, in Lannoo (ed.), Amph. Declines: 732–734, provided an account containing a detailed summary of the literature and range. Heim, Alexander, Valdéz-Villavicencio, Devitt, Hollingsworth, Soto-Centeno, and Mahrdt, 2005, Herpetol. Rev., 36: 330–331, discussed distribution and provided the first record of Ensatina eschscholtzii klauberi in the Sierra Juarez of northern Baja California. Alexandrino, Baird, Lawson, Macey, Moritz, and Wake, 2005, Evolution, 59: 1334–1347, found a very narrow hybrid zone between Ensatina eschscholtzii platensis and Ensatina eschscholtzii xanthoptica. Kuchta, Parks, and Wake, 2009, Mol. Phylogenet. Evol., 50: 240–255, reported on phylogeography, focused primarily on central coastal California, but with discussion of the entire complex. Kuchta, Parks, Mueller, and Wake, 2009, J. Biogeograph., 36: 982–995, discussed biogeography on the basis of a study of mtDNA. Powell, Collins, and Hooper, 2011, Key Herpetofauna U.S. & Canada, 2nd Ed.: 15, provided a key to the species they recognized (Ensatina klauberi and Ensatina eschscholtzii) and discussed briefly the taxonomic controversies. Monahan, Pereira, and Wake, 2012, BMC Biol., 10 (20): 1–22, reviewed the concept of ring species as applied to Ensatina eschscholtzii within the Biological Species Concept. Devitt, Baird, and Moritz, 2011, BMC Evol. Biol., 11(245): 1–14, also reported on a narrow hybrid zone between Ensatina eschscholtzii klauberi and Ensatina eschscholtzii eschscholtzi that suggests a species boundary. (This very arrow hybrid zone, dominated by F1s was characterized by Fouquette and Dubois, 2014, Checklist N.A. Amph. Rept.: 182–186, as evidence for the populations being considered conspecific within the confines of the biological species concept.) Raffaëlli, 2013, Urodeles du Monde, 2nd ed.: 415–419, provided brief accounts by subspecies, photograph, and range map as well as discussing the literature of the taxonomic controversy. (DRF: this is actually not an evidentiary controversy but one resting on whether to apply the biological species concept or the evolutionary species concept, one that appears to be applied to Ensatina and the other to Batrachoseps and Bolitoglossa by the same research groups.) Pereira and Wake, 2016, Mol. Ecol.: 5312–5314, discussed Ensatina within the framework of biological species. Valdéz-Villavicencio, Peralta-García, and Hollingsworth, 2016, Check List, 11(3: 1649): 1–3, provided a record of Ensatina eschescholtzii klauberi from the coast of Baja California del Nortein the San Quintín volcanic field. Devitt, Cameron Devitt, Hollingsworth, McGuire, and Moritz, 2013, Mol. Ecol., 22: 1650–1665, reported on molecular phylogeography of Ensatina eschescholtzii klauberi. Highton, Bonett, and Jockusch, 2017, in Crother (ed.), Herpetol. Circ., 43: 27, briefly summarized the various taxonomic ambiguities. Kuchta and Wake, 2017, Copeia, 2016: 189–201, discussed the ring nature of the components of Ensatina eschscholtzii (sensu lato) and the evidentiary complexity of this issue. Baldwin, 2019, Herpetol. Rev., 50: 95, noted an introduced population in central Arizona, USA. Raffaëlli, 2022, Salamanders & Newts of the World: 944–945, provided an account summarizing systematics, morphology, life history, population status, and distribution (including a polygon map). Raffaëlli, 2022, Salamanders & Newts of the World: 946–955, provided subspecies accounts (better considered species in DRF's opinion) summarizing systematics, morphology, life history, population status, and distribution (including a polygon map). Tighe, 2022, Smithson. Contrib. Zool., 654: 31, briefly discussed the current location and registration numbers of paratypes of Ensatina eschscholtzii xanthoptica.

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• For information on distribution, habitat, and conservation see the Map of Life
• For related information on conservation and images as well as observations see iNaturalist
• For access to available specimen data for this species, from over 350 scientific collections, go to Vertnet.