Its natural habitat is wooded mountainous countryside where it hides under rocks and logs in swift flowing streams, pools, and wet ditches.

The colour is variable but the upper parts are usually pale or medium brown with an indistinct pattern of paler markings.

The female lays clusters of eggs in or just beside small fast flowing streams, in moist crevices, and among wet leaves in the splash zone.

[2] The population of black mountain salamanders seems to be stable or in slight decline although detailed studies have not been performed.

Road building and strip mining have caused an increase in silting in some areas and in West Virginia the salamander is probably now rare.