The mole salamander is an amphibian from the Ambystomatidae family that spends most of its life underground. It inhabits the forests of the southeastern United States and emerges to the surface mainly for breeding.
The mole salamander differs from related species by its ability to neoteny — reproduction at the larval stage without emerging onto land. It is important for nature as a predator that controls the population of invertebrates and as part of the food chain of forest water bodies.
Immature form that undergoes metamorphosis before adulthood.
Worker
head
Tail size
birth time
ambush
bottom
pursuit
Dogs, dolphins, lynx hang out for 9-25 years and party on their birthday three times a year
m
Map
will celebrate their {n} birthday
g
t
When your next jubilee falls in {name} life years
Human
days
Warm summer
How old you would be if you lived as {name}
crustaceans
Theoretical maximum lifespan estimated from the Dynamic Energy Budget (DEB) mathematical model. This value reflects a biological potential derived from metabolic parameters, not from direct observation — real recorded lifespans are often significantly shorter.
mollusks
small planktonic crustaceans — copepods, krill
Captures food by straining water or substrate through specialized structures.
adult
Maturity
insects
About health
When your next birthday would fall if you lived as {name}
Repro interval
results
earthworms
summer warm, winter not very cold
freshwater
Colors
Sex
Upcoming jubilees
Gremllins
mo
Uses an excavated underground tunnel or chamber for refuge or nesting.
Trophic type
Filters
Tail count
Upcoming birthdays
standing fresh waters — lakes, ponds, oxbow lakes
Truly long lives: 40-100 years. Bowhead whales, albatrosses, giant tortoises recall their birthday at most once a year
Lifespan
tongue
Limbs size
rains almost always, very humid
invertebrate
Age (juvenile)
Age (from birth to death)
Foraging occurs on the floor of aquatic or terrestrial habitats.
Age (embryo)
most of Europe and Asia, various forests, steppes and tundra
Wanderers
Jubilee = every 10th birthday
Warm summer and frequent rains
Draws prey or water into the mouth by creating negative pressure.
Earliest developmental stage inside an egg or womb.
Business sausages
Lifespan average
Rapidly swallows prey or food items whole without chewing.
Regeneration
summer warm, rains frequent
live amphibians, frogs, salamanders
What do they look like?
Maturity
emergence (insects)
amphibians
end of lifespan
How do they live?
fertilization / egg laying
How do they behave?
birth / hatching
metamorphosis / end of larval stage
end of acceleration
Share
swampy freshwater biotopes — peat bogs, marshes, river mangroves
live snails, mussels, oysters
Find a pet...
Mature, fully developed individual capable of reproduction.
Neotenic
hot, uneven rains, lots of grass and trees
gulping
Egg count
Actively hunting and capturing live prey.
Pets
Primary oral structure used to seize, manipulate, or ingest food.
Nearctic realm
whole swallow
lateral line
{name} jubilee
cm
Old-timers
Find an animal or breed...
mouth
turns
Rascals
olfaction
Flooded grasslands
Litter size
Tropical savanna
ponds
Map data sources: Ecosystem classification — IUCN Global Ecosystem Typology (Keith et al., 2022), indicative distribution maps Keith et al. (2020), https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.3546513; Large Marine Ecosystems — NOAA LME Program; Bathymetry — GEBCO Bathymetric Compilation Group (2026), GEBCO_2026 Grid, https://doi.org/10.5285/4f68d5c7-45eb-f999-e063-7086abc036fa; Climate data — Generated using Copernicus Climate Change Service information; Species occurrence data — GBIF.org, Derived dataset "all animals", https://zveriki.com/dataset/dataset.tsv; Terrestrial ecoregions — RESOLVE Ecoregions 2017 (Dinerstein et al., 2017), CC BY 4.0
How to care for them?
Limbs count
Living from 25 to 40 years. Orangutans, bald eagles, African elephants celebrate their birthday twice a year
°C
Not specified
Egg color
Where are they found?
forest floor
all rivers and lakes
Locomotion through water employed while searching for or capturing prey.
Legendary longevity: over 100 years. Galapagos tortoises, Greenland sharks, ocean quahogs celebrate with family once every 4 years
Offspring
Elders
Bro
lakes and ponds
freshwater marsh and wetlands
Taxons
carnivore
External gills count
if born as {name}
Actively chases and captures mobile prey in open space.
age
Predator remains still and concealed before launching a sudden attack.
birth date
Palearctic realm
swimming
Close
water column
was
Career from 7 to 15 months. Dwarf hamsters, voles, field crickets celebrate their birthday twice a month
The basics
My weight?
Non-stop carnival: they only live a few days. Mayflies, rotifers, midges celebrate their birthday more than twice a day
primary food sources
teeth
burrow
Potential Habitat
suction
Very hot summer
d
In husbandry
Feeds while suspended in open water between surface and bottom.
On the go from 1.3 to 3.5 years. Forest mice, anoles, rainbow fish party on their birthday once a month
Feeding occurs in water bodies such as rivers, lakes, or oceans.
Mass
Mosquitoes, fruit flies, small crustaceans hustle for up to 7 months and throw a birthday party every week
Gestation
aquatic
vision
summer very hot, above +25…+30 °C
{name} birthday
Nearctic realm
No results found
North America and Greenland, from tundra to forests
On the map
lunge
all life stages
Female ♀
Body color
Map data sources: Ecosystem classification — IUCN Global Ecosystem Typology (Keith et al., 2022), indicative distribution maps Keith et al. (2020), https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.3546513; Large Marine Ecosystems — NOAA LME Program; Bathymetry — GEBCO Bathymetric Compilation Group (2026), GEBCO_2026 Grid, https://doi.org/10.5285/4f68d5c7-45eb-f999-e063-7086abc036fa; Climate data — Generated using Copernicus Climate Change Service information; Species occurrence data — GBIF.org, Derived dataset "all animals", https://zveriki.com/dataset/dataset.tsv; Terrestrial ecoregions — RESOLVE Ecoregions 2017 (Dinerstein et al., 2017), CC BY 4.0
Potential habitat modelled from GBIF occurrence data. Map © Zveriki.com, licensed under CC BY 4.0.
birth year
Maturity
terrestrial habitat, land surface outside water
sq mm
yr
External gills size
How similar?
Egg size
Male ♂
until the celebration
age as {name}
How do they breed?
On the go from 3.5 to 6 years. Hedgehogs, crows, lizards treat themselves to birthday snacks 6 times a year
What if eaten?
Neither
What do they eat?
Where do they live?
early young
Hard dental structures used to bite, tear, or scrape food.
water often floods the land, lots of grass
Freshwater
Temperate mixed forest
Duration
filter feeding
live insects
This is me
from 11 to 16 grams, 1.5 – 12 centimeters
freshwater
Always very wet
Gamers
How are they built?
External gills color
mm
Theoretical lifespan
ml
Stars
Link copied
My age?
wk
My size?
terrestrial
neotenic morph
Asexual
swap
freshwater environment — rivers, lakes, ponds, swamps
active predation
Rabbits, falcons, red-eared turtles hang out for 6-9 years and party on their birthday four times a year
Where do they take shelter?
Warm summer and lots of rain
Sensory system detecting water movements to locate prey.
celebrated their {n} birthday
Lungs count
When you would have been born if you lived as {name}
Daddies
Lifespan maximum
earthworms and soil oligochaetes
Hermaphrodite ⚥
Strawberry
Uses the tongue to locate, manipulate, or ingest food items.
North America and Greenland, from tundra to forests
Primarily detects and locates food using eyesight.
embryo
summer warm, many oaks, birches, maples
Length
kg
lots of rain, warm and pleasant summer
Rapid forward strike to seize prey.
Observations
◉{N} more on tap