• Pigeon Mountain Salamander

    Pigeon Mountain Salamanders live on one side of a single mountain in Northwest Georgia — and that's it!
    The Amphibian Foundation is working with GA Department of Natural Resources and others to protect the species from potential threats, given the extremely small range of the species.
    The Amphibian Foundation relies on support in the form of annual and sustaining memberships. Our membership program provides the support needed to continue our conservation programs & gives members opportunities to get further involved!

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Species
Plethodon petraeus

Range
Pigeon Mountain Salamanders are a Georgia endemic species, that lives on one side of Pigeon Mountain in northwest GA — and that is the only place on earth!

Declines
Pigeon Mountain Salamanders are a state listed species and are considered stable throughout its extremely limited range in northwestern GA. Certain populations within its range may be declining, according to GA DNR.

Habitat
Plethodon petraeus occurs on damp rocky outcrops, rock crevices, caves, and cave openings on Pigeon Mountain.

Threats
This extremely small range is the only place on the planet to encounter this species, making them vulnerable to increasing threats, such as emergent infectious diseases like the chytrid (KIH-trid) fungi which are invasive species here in the United States and could be particularly lethal to Pigeon Mountain Salamanders. In 2013, a new species of chytrid was discovered after it was inadvertently introduced to northern Europe from Asia (Batrachochytrium salamandrivorans, or Bsal), and while it has yet to be detected in North America, it has the potential to be devastating as well.

Recovery Plan
The Amphibian Foundation's Conservation Research Bridge Program is working closely with GA DNR to establish captive propagation colonies of Plethodon petraeus. We hope to breed this species in captivity to build an assurance colony to protect the species from population or range-wide extinction. Bridge Program faculty and students will also be performing population surveys and disease surveillance on the mountain to help partners respond rapidly to population declines, or in the event of a positive test result from disease testing.


Learn More About the Conservation Research Bridge Program