The Sacramento Mountain salamander is somewhat mysterious. “That’s a big reason why it’s a good idea for us to be working with this species in captivity.” “With an isolated species like this, it’s very unlikely it would have a lot of immunity to a foreign disease like that,” said Steinberg. Bsal was born in Asia, and Steinberg said that although this deadly fungus hasn’t made its way to the States, that it’s “pretty much a matter of time.”īsal has a 96 percent mortality rate among some European salamanders, so its arrival could devastate the small populations of Sacramento Mountain or Jemez Mountain salamanders. “As it gets warmer, they have to get to higher and higher habitats and eventually, if you keep doing that, you’re going to fall of the mountain,” said Steinberg.Ī salamander-specific variation of the chytridiomycota (chytrid) fungus called Batrachochytrium salamandrivorans (Bsal) could also spell disaster for these salamanders-its sister strain is currently wreaking havoc on frog and toad populations all over the world. In the future, climate change and drought could add to the species’ vulnerability. The species’ main threats are logging and forest fires.
Officials discovered and collected the salamanders during a road expansion project at Ski Apache, located in the Ruidoso area of Southern New Mexico.Īlthough not federally listed as an endangered species, New Mexico considers the salamanders threatened. The zoo received 24 salamanders from the New Mexico Department of Fish and Game in 2013. These salamanders face a declining population, and the zoo is part of a special project to help safeguard them. The Sacramento Mountain salamander is one of New Mexico’s three salamander species, and one of two that are endemic to the state (the other is the Jemez Mountain salamander).
Finding a Sacramento Mountain salamander in the wild is somewhat like stumbling upon a unicorn-you have to be in the right place at the right time with the right environmental conditions.įor this reason, ABQ BioPark Zookeeper Clare Steinberg said it’s “magical” to encounter this slightly sun-glittery looking brown salamander in its home turf.Ĭhances are, most people will probably never encounter this cryptic species in the wild though-those who do will need to be near the top of one of the mountains in its range during the monsoon season and the individual will have just happened to peak underneath one of the salamander’s favorite hiding spots.
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