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- Hellbenders are members of a very old family of salamanders which are somewhat similar to the first terrestrial vertebrates that left the water and began living on land. In evolutionary terms, they can help to illustrate the transition from fish towards diverse forms like dinosaurs, crocodilians and mammals.
www.smithsonianmag.com › science-nature › giving-them-hellbenders-at-saint-louis-zoo-180963417What the Heck Is a Hellbender—And ... - Smithsonian Magazine
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Jun 1, 2017 · Hellbenders are members of a very old family of salamanders which are somewhat similar to the first terrestrial vertebrates that left the water and began living on land. In evolutionary terms...
- Hellbender Facts at A Glance
- Meet The Hellbender: Introduction
- How to Recognize A Hellbender
- Hellbender Family and Related Species
- Hellbender Metamorphosis
- Do Hellbenders Breathe Air?
- Where Does The Hellbender Live?
- Hellbender Behavior
- Hellbender Diet
- Hellbender Life Cycle
Other Name(s):Hellbender salamander, mud devil, devil dog, snot otterScientific name: Cryptobranchus alleganiensisType of Animal:AmphibianAnimal Family:CryptobranchidaeThe hellbender is a large salamander found in fast-flowing rivers and streams in the eastern United States. Reaching up to 29 inches (74 cm) in length, the hellbender is the largest amphibian in North America, and the fourth-largest in the world. (The only amphibians larger than the hellbender are the Chinese giant salamander, the Japanese giant sa...
An average adult hellbender is between 12 and 15 inches (30 to 38 cm) in length. The hellbender is easily distinguished from other salamanders due to its large size and the flattened shapeof its body and head. The tail is long and paddle-like. The hellbender’s skin is various shades of brown / copper-brown, and has a mottled appearance. The skin is...
The hellbender is a salamander. Salamanders make up an order (group) of amphibians called Urodela. The hellbender is in the family Cryptobranchidae, which is otherwise known as the ‘giant salamanders’. There are only three species in this family: the hellbender, the Japanese giant salamander (Andrias japonicus) and the Chinese giant salamander (And...
Like most amphibians, the hellbender undergoes a process called metamorphosisthat sees its body change from its infant into its adult form. Hellbenders undergo metamorphosis when they are around 18 months old. Most amphibians begin life as aquatic animals (i.e. animals that live in the water) equipped with gills. During metamorphosis an amphibian’s...
Unlike some salamanders, hellbenders are fully aquaticand never (or, at least, very rarely) leave the water. Although they have lungs, mature hellbenders obtain most of the oxygen they need through their skin. However, the lungs are functional, and are used when the hellbender can’t obtain enough oxygen from the water. Studies have found that hellb...
The hellbender is endemic to (i.e. only found in) the United States. It is found in the east of the country. The hellbender is present in the following states: Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Vi...
The hellbender is most active at night. During the day it spends most of the time sheltering under boulders and rocks. Under the cover of darkness it emerges from its hiding place in order to hunt. The hellbender is territorial, and will defend its patch from other hellbenders throughout the year.
The hellbender is a predator. Its main prey is crayfish, but it will also eat fish, insects, snakes, tadpoles, toads. The hellbender is cannibalistic, and will prey on other hellbenders and also on hellbender eggs.
In late summer / early fall, the male hellbender excavates a round hole underneath a flat rock or submerged log. When a female approaches, he will shepherd her into the nest he has created. The female lays between 100 and 500 eggs in the nest before leaving. The eggs are between 0.7 and 0.8 in. (1.8 to 2 cm) in diameter and are laid in double stran...
The hellbender—sometimes called a “snot otter”—is a large, fully-aquatic amphibian with a flat head, wrinkled body, and paddle-shaped tail. Its body is usually dark gray or brown with irregular dark spots along the back. Although sometimes confused with mudpuppies, hellbenders are easily distinguished by their lack of external gills.
They are "sit-and-wait" (ambush) predators and conceal themselves beneath rocks on the streambed with only their head protruding to seize crayfish and other small aquatic prey that swim by. At the Smithsonian's National Zoo, hellbenders are fed a diet of crayfish, shrimp, smelt and earthworms.
Hellbenders are the largest salamanders in North America. The scientific name of hellbenders, Cryptobranchus means “hidden gills.”. Hellbenders lose their gills around 1.5 to 2 years of age when the gills are absorbed into the body. As adults, they breath through blood vessels in their skin.
Jan 6, 2022 · What is a hellbender salamander? It is a large amphibian that lives in the Appalachian mountains and breathes through frills of skin along its body. Why are hellbenders called hellbenders? Some people claim that the European settlers who came upon the animal said it looked like it was from hell and was bent on going back there.
Aug 7, 2013 · They are also called “mud cats,” “devil dogs” and “snot otters” — named for the mucus they secrete through their skin when threatened. Fossil records date the existence of hellbender ...
