[2] Mud salamanders don’t generally live above 700 meters in elevation in the Appalachian Mountains, resulting in two geographically isolated populations.
The larvae of Pseudotriton montanus are slender and uniformly light in color, with brown pigmentation in small irregular blotches and flecks.
[5] Adult mud salamanders are known for their reddish-brown color, brown eyes, stocky girth, and short tails.
[6] Younger mud salamanders are typically bright red, orangish-brown, or crimson,[7] with unmarked stomachs and separated spots.
The mud salamander produces a proteinaceous skin toxin along the backside of its body that can induce symptoms such as extreme irritability, hypothermia, and physical weakness in their predators.
The males will produce sperm annually and try to mate between July and November, and the females will begin to oviposit in the fall.
[17] The mud salamander inhabits swamps in low elevations, bogs, seeps, springs, and streams that not only provide a muddy bottom, but also clean and clear water.
These amphibians spend most of their lives in close proximity to water, but also burrow into the soil of the surrounding area.
Both larval and adult mud salamanders go deep underground during the hottest months of the summer, especially in the small springs and seeps that dry up.
In this case, the muds venture into the main stream and can often be found in it because they are looking for more food outside of their smaller, more primary habitat.
Chances are an ideal muddy habitat is within walking distance from where the mud salamander was found in the stream.
[18] Although the only recorded predators of mud salamanders are snakes (garter or water snakes), Pseudotriton montanus exhibits anti-predator techniques such as curling the body, extending rear limbs, and raising its tail to its head to appear larger, as well as being able to release a toxic substance along its dorsum.The toxin released from the salamander has been reported to have a distint foul taste to humans.
[21] The coloration and defensive posture of the mud salamander has been hypothesized to mimic that of the red eft stage of the eastern newt (Notophthalmus viridescens) which emits a powerful neurotoxin in their skin compared to the mild toxin they produce.
In the larval stage, the small creatures tend to feed on equal-sized or smaller, aquatic invertebrates.
1 individual found in Eastern Kentucky on a survey of local species by Mr Torrey A. Stegall.
County not specified due to their rarity in the state, but it was made clear that the individual was found in the Daniel Boone National Forest.