Recovery Plan for the Northern Spotted Owl - DRAFT

and dart forward to snap up small invertebrates. During wet weather, theymay crawl over the surface of a talus slope (Nussbaum et al. 1983).Larch Mountain Salamander (Plethodon larsellWDistribution and habitat.-The Larch Mountain salamander has a veryrestricted range (Herrington and Larsen 1985). It is found only along a 35-milestretch of the Columbia River Gorge in Washington and Oregon and in otherlocations in southern Washington (Aubrey et al. 1987). It appears to havenarrow habitat requirements in stabilized talus ranging in size from one-thirdto 2 inches with soil deposits in the spaces. No data exist regarding populationdynamics of this species. The animals behave as most plethodontidsalamanders do; they are active at or near the surface whenever temperatureand moisture regimes permit, which could be any day of the year in the ColumbiaRiver Gorge (Herrington and Larson 1985, 1987).Herrington and Larsen (1985) make a case for a dependent relationshipbetween this salamander and old-growth forests based on one case. One oftheir sites (Mabee Mines Road in Skamania County, Washington) was comprisedof two talus slopes separated by a creek. One talus slope had beenclear-cut 10 years before their study and no P. larselli were found in theclearing. The talus slope directly across the creek from the cut slope containeda population of Larch Mountain salamanders.Ecology and management.-Herrington and Larson (1985) go on to state thatthe Columbia River Gorge is a geographic area with many potential uses, manyof which could affect populations of these salamanders. Any land use practicethat alters moisture regimes in suitable stabilized talus slopes may causeextirpation of populations of P. larseltL Logging, harvesting talus for roadbuilding, and housing developments may affect this species adversely, but it isnot well documented.The Larch Mountain salamander has an extremely limited range and narrowhabitat requirements. The species appears to be an old-growth obligate withinmost areas of its range (Beatty et al. 1991). Based upon the two points aboveand other factors, Herrington and Larson (1985) recommend that this speciesbe listed as threatened, despite their having discovered new populations inWashington. Clearly, this is an animal of special concern. Based on personalobservations by J. Beatty (Oregon State University, pers. comm.), it appearsthat this species must have protection of some kind (in terms of habitat preservation)if viable populations are to be retained. Every effort should be made toprovide stabilized talus areas in older forests within its range.Oregon Slender Salamander (Batrachoseps wripghDistribution and habitat.-The Oregon slender salamander occurs only inOregon along the forested west slopes of the Cascades from the Columbia Riversouth to southern Lane County and ranges in elevation from about 50 feet inthe Columbia Gorge to near 4,300 feet in the Cascade Mountains. The speciesrecently has been collected in Wasco County, Oregon, extending its distributioneast of the Cascades crest (Nussbaum et al. 1983, Stebbins 1985, Kirk1991).The Oregon slender salamander appears to be most common in mature Douglas-firforests on west slopes of the Cascades, but it also occurs in secondgrowthforest, and in fairly recent lava flows a few miles west of Santiam Pass,Linn County. It is seldom found in clear-cuts, but has been collected undersurface debris in open, second-growth forests during a damp spring. The393