Species Fact Profile: Hellbender (Cryptobranchus alleganiensis)

Hellbender

Cryptobranchus alleganiensis (Daudin, 1803)

Range: Eastern United States
Habitat: Freshwater Streams
Diet: Crayfish, Aquatic Insects, Fish, Smaller Amphibians
Social Grouping: Solitary, Territorial
Reproduction: Breed in early to mid autumn.  Males guard nest sites underneath rocks, where female comes to lay 150-450 eggs.  Male fertilizes eggs externally, then chases the female off.  Females may mate with multiple males during a breeding season.  Eggs hatch after 45-80 days.  Young are independent immediately after birth, sexually mature at 5-8 years old.
Lifespan: 30 Years (more commonly 10-15 years)
Conservation Status: IUCN Near Threatened, CITES Appendix II,

• Largest North American salamander species, measuring 29-69 centimeters long and weighing 400-1000 grams.  Closest relatives are the Chinese and Japanese giant salamanders of Asia.
• Flattened body, head is flat and broad, tail is large and muscular.  Thick folds of skin along the side of the body.  Lack the eyelids or feathered gills seen in many salamanders.
• Males and females look alike with brown or black skin, occasionally with some reddish spotting.  Albinos occur rarely
• Other common names for the species throughout its range include "snot otter", "Allegheny alligator" and "lasagna lizard"
• Active at night.  Spend days under large flat rocks which their territories are centered around.  Territories are approximately 120 square meters, may overlap
• Poor sense of vision.  Communicate with pheromones to signal readiness to breed.  Detect prey using lateral line to sense movement in the water.
• Larval hellbenders are preyed upon by fish, including some introduced sport fishing species.  Adults may prey upon smaller hellbenders.  Primary defense is camouflage.  If seized, can secrete irritants from their skin
• Two subspecies recognized - the nominate subspecies and the Ozark subspecies, C. a. bishopi of Missouri 
• Populations declining due to pollution, degradation, and silting of the streams where they live; hellbenders are very sensitive to water quality.  Also impacted by chytrid fungus
• In recent years, some state governments have begun head-starting hellbenders, while zoos have been developing captive-breeding techniques for reintroduction into the wild.