About Gyrinophilus palleucus McCrady, 1954
Gyrinophilus palleucus, commonly called the Tennessee cave salamander, is a species of salamander in the family Plethodontidae, endemic to the Appalachian Mountains of the United States. Its natural habitats are streams found inside caves. The species is currently threatened by habitat loss. The Tennessee cave salamander lives on the southern Cumberland Plateau within the U.S. Appalachian Mountains, and its documented range includes south-central Tennessee, western North Carolina, northeastern Alabama, northwestern Alabama, and northwestern Georgia. It inhabits cave systems, and it is likely present in some currently unexplored cave systems. The diet of the Tennessee cave salamander is made up of amphipods and other small aquatic invertebrates that live in caves. It can be found on sand, gravel, mud, or rock substrates in cave streams, rimstone pools, and isolated pools, and it prefers clear, sediment-free water. Individuals are occasionally spotted outside of caves, and this is thought to happen when they are accidentally washed out by floodwater. This species is usually paedomorphic, meaning it retains its larval form throughout its entire life. Paedomorphic Tennessee cave salamanders are able to breed while still in their larval state, though some individuals do continue developing and complete metamorphosis in the typical manner.
