Northwestern Salamander (Ambystoma gracile) inhabits the northwest Pacific coast of North America. These fairly large salamanders grow to 8.7 inches (220 mm) in length. It is found from southeastern Alaska on May Island, through Washington and Oregon south to the mouth of the Gulala River, Sonoma County, California. It occurs from sea level to timberline, but not east of the Cascade Divide.
Larch Mountain Salamander (Plethodon larselli) is a species of salamander in the family Plethodontidae. It is endemic to the United States. The Larch Mountain salamander occurs in the Cascade Mountains of southern Washington and northern Oregon. In Washington, it occurs from the Columbia River Gorge to just north of Snoqualmie Pass. Its natural habitats are temperate forests and rocky areas.
Van Dyke's Salamander (Plethodon vandykei) is a salamander in the order Caudata and the family Plethodontidae. Like most terrestrial salamanders Van Dyke's Salamander lives near lakes, rivers, and streams under various objects such as rocks, logs, and bark. Salamanders' habitat range from wide open lowlands up to heavily wooded mountains. It is in this wood that they lay their eggs. The species is endemic to the western portion of the state of Washington, northern Idaho, and northwestern Montana in the U.S. It is predominantly located in hilly or mountainous regions such as the Olympic Hills, the Willapa Hills and the Cascade Mountains.
Western Toad (Anaxyrus boreas) more commonly known as Bufo boreas (both names accurate) is a large toad species, between 5.6 and 13 cm long, of western North America. The range of western toad extends from western British Columbia and southern Alaska south through Washington, Oregon, and Idaho to northern Baja California, Mexico; east to Montana, western and central Wyoming, Nevada, the mountains and higher plateaus of Utah, and western Colorado.[14] In the Pacific Northwest, the western toad occurs in mountain meadows and less commonly in Douglas-fir forests.[15]
Cascades Frog (Rana cascadae) is a species of frog in the family Ranidae that is found in western United States and possibly Canada, mainly in the Cascade Range and Olympic Mountains. The Cascade frog was first discovered in the Cascade Mountains in the California regions. It can be found throughout the Cascade Mountains ranging from Washington through Oregon, and California. They concentrate heavily around the volcanic area of the peaks. Its natural habitats are temperate forests, temperate grassland, rivers, swamps, freshwater lakes, intermittent freshwater lakes, freshwater marshes generally between 665 m (2,180 ft) and 2,450 m (8,040 ft) elevation. The range may extend lower in Washington.
Rubber Boa (Charina bottae) are the most northerly of boa species. The distribution of Rubber Boas covers a large portion of the western United States, stretching from the Pacific Coast east to western Utah and Montana, as far south as the San Bernardino and San Jacinto Mountains east of Los Angeles in California, and as far north as southern British Columbia. Rubber Boas have been known to inhabit a wide variety of habitat types from grassland, meadows and chaparral to deciduous and conifer forests, to high alpine settings. They can be found at elevations anywhere from sea level to over 10,000 feet (3,000 m).[18]
Northwestern garter snake, (Thamnophis ordinoides), is a species of colubrid snake endemic to North America. In the United States it is found in Oregon, Washington, and California; in Canada it is found in British Columbia. It is the most common snake in the park. The northwestern garter snake is small, with adults averaging around 36–53 cm (14–21 in) in total length. It is most commonly found on the edge of meadows, surrounded by forest.
Wandering Garter Snake(Thamnophis elegans vagrans) is a subspecies of the Western Terrestrial Garter Snake, a species of colubrid snake residing only in Southwestern Canada, and Western United States. Seven subspecies are currently recognized. Most snakes have a yellow, light orange, or white dorsal stripe, accompanied by two stripes on its side of the same color. Some varieties have red or black spots between the dorsal stripe and the side stripes. This snake often inhabits coniferous forests, and is relatively aquatic.
Valley Garter Snake(Thamnophis sirtalis fitchi) is a subspecies of the common garter snake. It is a snake indigenous to North America. Most garter snakes have a pattern of yellow stripes on a brown background and their average length is about 1 to 1.5 metres (3.3 to 4.9 ft). The common garter snake is a diurnal snake. In summer, it is most active in the morning and late afternoon; in cooler seasons or climates, it restricts its activity to the warm afternoons.
Reptiles of Mount Rainier National Park
Northern Alligator Lizard
Rubber Boa
Northwestern Garter Snake
Wandering Garter Snake
Valley Garter Snake
Further reading
Ronald A. Nussbaum; Edmund D. Brodie (1983). Amphibians and Reptiles of the Pacific Northwest. Idaho Research Foundation. ISBN9780893010867.
Lawrence L. C. Jones; William P. Leonard; Deanna H. Olson, eds. (2005). Amphibians of the Pacific Northwest. Seattle Audubon Society. ISBN9780914516163.
Corkran, Charlotte C.; Thoms, Chris (2006). Amphibians of Oregon, Washington, and British Columbia. Lone Pine Publishing. ISBN9781551055664.
^ abStebbins, Robert C. (2003). A Field Guide to Western Reptiles and Amphibians (Peterson Field Guide Series) (3rd ed.). Boston: Houghton Mifflin. ISBN0-395-98272-3.
^Ferguson DE (1961). "The geographic variation of Ambystoma macrodactylum Baird, with the description of two new subspecies". The American Midland Naturalist. 65 (2): 311–338. doi:10.2307/2422958. JSTOR2422958.