spotted salamander eggs

From our trip to Reily, Ohio on April 2nd, 2009, we also found a lot of eggs in the area just off from the river. We were walking in little ephemeral ponds back into the forested area. The eggs were everywhere in these little bodies of water, attached to sticks and underwater plants. You couldn't miss them. These eggs are from a spotted salamander, Ambystoma maculatum. Spotted salamanders range from about 4.5 to 7.75 inches in length. Spotted salamanders are black with yellow or orange spots in two rows from the top of the head to the tip of the tail. They are found in deciduous forests and are most common in moist, low-lying forests near floodplains, where they spend most of their lives underneath the ground - sometimes in burrows of other animals. Females usually lay about 100 eggs at a time. The egges are clear, jelly-like round lumps and will hatch in 1 to 2 months, depending on the water temperature. Spotted salamanders range from eastern Canada throughout the eastern and midwestern United States.

Cliff Griffen
Miami University