Amphibians and Reptiles

Rough-skinned newts use their bright orange underbellies as well as a poison secreted from their skin to protect themselves. They breed in ponds but usually live in the forest.

Amphibians

Walk through a rain forest valley on a damp spring day and look around at the mossy forest floor, or under the abundant, decaying downed trees. You may spot an amphibian. The ponds, lakes, streams and forests of Olympic National Park provide the ideal habitat for frogs, toads, newts, and salamanders. Some, like the rough-skinned newt, which sports a bright orange belly and bumpy brown skin, are common in the lowlands. Others, like the tailed frog, can live in cold, rushing mountain streams. Olympic is home to one endemic (found only locally) species, the Olympic Torrent Salamander (Rhyacotriton olympicus).

Throughout the world, many amphibian populations are declining. Though research has revealed Olympic seems to have fairly stable populations of most species, western toads could be declining. With life histories that include life in air and water, amphibians are susceptible to pollution from both sources, as well as being vulnerable to predation by introduced non-natives like bull frogs and eastern brook trout.

Reptiles

The cool, maritime climate in Olympic National Park is not ideal for reptiles. Nevertheless, there are some snakes and lizards that have been documented in the park. There are no venomous snakes on the Olympic Peninsula.

Species Inventory

Read the park's 2003 inventory report on amphibians and reptiles here: Olympic National Park amphibian and reptile inventory, with emphasis upon terrestrial herpetofauna (1999-2001).

Click here for a list of amphibians and reptiles that have been documented in the park.

 

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Species Attribute Definitions

Definitions

Occurrence

Occurrence values are defined below. One or more Occurrence Tags may be associated with each Occurrence value.

Present: Species occurs in park; current, reliable evidence available.

Probably Present: High confidence species occurs in park but current, verified evidence needed.

Unconfirmed: Species is attributed to park but evidence is weak or absent.

Not In Park: Species is not known to occur in park.

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Occurrence Tags

Adjacent: Species is known to occur in areas near to or contiguous with park boundaries.

False Report: Species was reported to occur within the park, but current evidence indicates the report was based on misidentification, a taxonomic concept no longer accepted, or other similar problem of error or interpretation.

Historical: Species' historical occurrence in park is documented. Assigned based on judgment as opposed to determination based on age of the most recent evidence.

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Abundance

Abundant:

• Animals: May be seen daily, in suitable habitat and season, and counted in relatively large numbers.
• Plants: Large number of individuals; wide ecological amplitude or occurring in habitats covering a large portion of the park.

Common:

• Animals: May be seen daily, in suitable habitat and season, but not in large numbers.
• Plants: Large numbers of individuals predictably occurring in commonly encountered habitats but not those covering a large portion of the park.

Uncommon:

• Animals: Likely to be seen monthly in appropriate habitat and season. May be locally common.
• Plants: Few to moderate numbers of individuals; occurring either sporadically in commonly encountered habitats or in uncommon habitats.

Rare:

• Animals: Present, but usually seen only a few times each year.
• Plants: Few individuals, usually restricted to small areas of rare habitat.

Occasional:

• Animals: Occurs in the park at least once every few years, varying in numbers, but not necessarily every year.
• Plants: Abundance variable from year to year (e.g., desert plants).

Unknown: Abundance unknown

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Nativeness

Native: Species naturally occurs in park or region.

Non-native: Species occurs on park lands as a result of deliberate or accidental human activities.

Unknown: Nativeness status is unknown or ambiguous.

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List Differences

The Checklist contains only those species that are designated as "present" or "probably present" in the park.

The Full List includes all the checklist species in addition to species that are unconfirmed, historically detected, or incorrectly reported as being found in the park. The full list also contains species that are "in review" because their status in the park hasn't been fully determined. Additional details about the status of each species is included in the full list.

The checklist will almost always contain fewer species than the full list.

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Olympic National Park

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Species attribute definitions

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