Eastern Red-backed Salamander

Plethodon cinereus

A small, lungless woodland salamander that breathes through its skin and can drop its tail to escape.

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About the Eastern Red-backed Salamander

Eastern red-backed salamanders are 2 to 5 inches long. Some have an orange to red stripe down the back, and others, called lead-backs, are gray to black. They live in damp woods from Minnesota to North Carolina and across eastern Canada. They eat spiders, worms, snails, larvae and insects, and they can only hunt in moist places.^[1]

Quick facts

Scientific name: Plethodon cinereus^[1]
Size: 2 to 5 inches long.^[1]
Lifespan: About 25 years in human care.^[1]
Diet: Spiders, worms, snails, larvae and insects.^[1]
Habitat: Damp forests, under logs and rocks.^[1]
Where it lives: From Minnesota to North Carolina and Tennessee, and across eastern Canada.^[1]
Group life: Territorial.^[1]
Babies: Eggs laid in damp places; no water larva stage.^[1]
Conservation status: Least Concern (IUCN Red List, assessed 2020).^[2]

Fun facts

It has no lungs and breathes through its skin.^[1]
A regrown tail may be duller than the original.^[1]
Some are red-backed and some are gray 'lead-backs.'^[1]

Vocabulary

amphibian: A cold-blooded animal, such as a frog or salamander, that usually starts life in water and has moist skin.
lungless: Having no lungs; some salamanders breathe through their skin.
regenerate: To grow back a lost body part.
territory: An area an animal claims and defends.
least concern: A conservation label meaning a species is widespread and not at risk of dying out soon.

See it in person

Smithsonian's National ZooWashington, D.C. · Reptile Discovery CenterSee this animal on the zoo's website ↗

These zoos had this animal when we gathered our information, but animals sometimes move. Check the zoo's website or contact the zoo before you visit.

Sources

[1] Smithsonian's National Zoo & Conservation Biology Institute. “Eastern red-backed salamander.” https://nationalzoo.si.edu/animals/eastern-red-backed-salamander (accessed 2026-10-08)
[2] IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. “Plethodon cinereus (Eastern Red-backed Salamander).” https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/59334/193391260 (accessed 2026-10-08)

Facts last checked 2026-10-08.

More Salamanders

AxolotlAmbystoma mexicanumA Mexican salamander that keeps its feathery gills and stays in the water its whole life, famous for regrowing lost body parts.Barred Tiger SalamanderAmbystoma mavortiumOne of the longest land salamanders in North America, a striped burrower of western grasslands and deserts.California Tiger SalamanderAmbystoma californienseA big black salamander with yellow spots that lives in ground-squirrel burrows and breeds in seasonal pools in central California.Eastern NewtNotophthalmus viridescensA small newt with red, black-ringed spots that lives in water, then on land as a red 'eft,' then in water again.Emperor NewtTylototriton shanjingA highly toxic, black-and-orange newt with bony head ridges from the mountains of western China.HellbenderCryptobranchus alleganiensisThe largest salamander in the Americas, a flat, wrinkly river giant that breathes mostly through its skin.Japanese Giant SalamanderAndrias japonicusThe world's second-largest salamander, a 5-foot river dweller from Japan that can live more than 70 years.Long-tailed SalamanderEurycea longicaudaA yellow-orange salamander with black spots whose tail makes up about 60 percent of its length.Seal SalamanderDesmognathus monticolaA lungless stream salamander of the Appalachian Mountains that breathes through its skin and hides under rocks in shallow water.Shenandoah SalamanderPlethodon shenandoahOne of North America's rarest salamanders, found only on three mountaintops in Virginia's Shenandoah National Park.