Ensatina eschscholtzii Ensatina
Subspecies I've seen:
E. e. croceater
Yellow-blotched Ensatina
E. e. eschscholtzii
Monterey Ensatina
E. e. klauberi
Large-blotched Ensatina
E. e. oregonensis
Oregon Ensatina
E. e. picta
Painted Ensatina
E. e. platensis
Sierra Nevada Ensatina
E. e. xanthoptica
Yellow-eyed Ensatina
Ensatina eschscholtzii croceater Yellow-blotched Ensatina
Erskine Creek, Kern County, CaliforniaApril 27, 2002
Yellow-blotched Ensatina (Ensatina eschscholtzii croceater)
This youngster was concealed under a log, as so many salamanders are. Bits of rotten wood are sticking to its moist skin.

This individual was found in an area of Kern County where both E. e. croceator and E. e. platensis occur. It might be an intergrade of the two, or it might be a "pure" E. e. croceator. Based on the color, it is very likely not a "pure" E. e. platensis.

Ensatina eschscholtzii eschscholtzii Monterey Ensatina
Little Sur Trail, Big Sur, Monterey County, CaliforniaNovember 27, 1998
Monterey Ensatina (Ensatina eschscholtzii eschscholtzii)
This is a nice big fat adult, maybe 6 or 7 inches total length. There were a variety of Monterey ensatinas under logs on Little Sur Trail that day, ranging from little tiny ones to this great big hulking fellow.
Del Monte Forest, Pacific Grove, Monterey County, CaliforniaDecember 13, 1998
Monterey Ensatina (Ensatina eschscholtzii eschscholtzii)
These four salamanders were under the same log. It's tempting to think of them as a little salamander nuclear family, but I really have no idea whether they're related or what genders they are.
Del Monte Forest, Pacific Grove, Monterey County, CaliforniaJanuary 21, 1999
Monterey Ensatina (Ensatina eschscholtzii eschscholtzii)
This one's even fatter than the big fat adult up above -- pregnant, maybe? One tell-tale way to recognize an Ensatina is by the constriction at the base of the tail, which you can see clearly in this picture.
Seeley Creek Trail, San Bernardino County, CaliforniaApril 19, 2009
Monterey Ensatina (Ensatina eschscholtzii eschscholtzii)
There is nothing particularly interesting about this salamander, except that it was the only salamander I saw on a six-week spring trip through parts of California, Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, and Utah. Also, it is perhaps the ugliest Monterey Ensatina in the history of the world. Thanks to Joshua Puhn for correcting my identification here; I had originally listed this as an Arboreal Salamander due to its coloration.
Ensatina eschscholtzii klauberi Large-blotched Ensatina
Cuyamaca Rancho State Park, San Diego County, CaliforniaMay 2, 2019
Large-blotched Ensatina (Ensatina eschscholtzii klauberi) Large-blotched Ensatina (Ensatina eschscholtzii klauberi)
I had seen all of the Ensatina eschscholtzii subspecies except E. e. klauberi when it occurred to me that an upcoming desert trip I had planned would take me close-ish to their range. If I had planned a trip specifically to find this salamander, I would have scheduled it for a more salamander-appropriate time of year, perhaps March or early April. But Southern California got more rain than usual this winter, so I had some hopes that some moisture would remain near the surface, giving me a chance on my klauberi quest. And sure enough, I uncovered this one within about ten minutes of searching. (Then I searched for another hour or so without finding any others, but we don't need to mention that.)

This subspecies is classified by some authorities as a distinct species, E. klauberi.

Ensatina eschscholtzii oregonensis Oregon Ensatina
Sheep Dung Estates, Yorkville, Mendocino County, CaliforniaNovember 18, 1998
Oregon Ensatina (Ensatina eschscholtzii oregonensis)
This little tyke is very young, which accounts for its proportionally oversized head. There are seven subspecies of Ensatina eschscholtzii, and their ranges form a large ring around California's Central Valley. In a few places there are wide intergrade zones between the subspecies, so this taxon isn't very clear-cut. However, Yorkville is clearly within the range of only this one subspecies, which is lucky for me, since the young are more difficult to tell apart than the adults.
MacKerricher State Park, Mendocino County, CaliforniaFebruary 19, 2005
Oregon Ensatina (Ensatina eschscholtzii oregonensis)
Here are a possibly naughty pair of Ensatinas that were sharing the cover of the rotting log that they are pictured atop. The status of Ensatina subspecies has not cleared up over time. The taxonomy has gotten fuzzy enough that in the 2003 Stebbins field guide, the Oregon Ensatina has been demoted from a subspecies to a mere morphototype. "Morphotype" is loosely defined as an assemblage of individuals that have similar characteristics but whose genetic/evolutionary history is so uncertain that the term "subspecies" is too good for them. If there were salamander therapists, these poor guys would need them. I've continued to list them as a subspecies since my site follows the taxonomy given by the SSAR names book.

Stebbins goes so far as to claim that the large range in California of salamanders formerly known as Oregon Ensatinas is actually inhabited entirely by intergrades, and that the pure Oregon Ensatinas are only in Oregon and points north. But then, how "pure" can a morphotype be? Somebody needs to get out there and do some really serious state-of-the-art salamander studies on these guys. Maybe you?

Jughandle State Preserve, Mendocino County, CaliforniaFebruary 20, 2005
Oregon Ensatina (Ensatina eschscholtzii oregonensis)
Like many lizards, many salamanders can regenerate a broken tail. (Some salamanders can even regenerate a limb.) The second-generation tail on this Ensatina is currently only a small fraction of its eventual size.
Little River, Mendocino County, CaliforniaFebruary 24, 2005
Oregon Ensatina (Ensatina eschscholtzii oregonensis)
Here's a strikingly mottled Ensatina, the most beautiful individual I saw out of a couple dozen or so in a week spent in Mendocino county. This one looks more like a prototypical Painted Ensatina than a prototypical Oregon Ensatina, but it's considerably south of the small range of Painted Ensatinas.
Ashland, Jackson County, OregonNovember 23, 2008
Oregon Ensatina (Ensatina eschscholtzii oregonensis)
These two adult ensatinas were huddled together under a hunk of bark on a 45-degree day. Whether for love or for warmth, I cannot say.
Carl G. Washburne Memorial State Park, Lane County, OregonNovember 28, 2008
Oregon Ensatina (Ensatina eschscholtzii oregonensis)
This beautiful state park is far enough north to be outside of the large area of intergrade among various Ensatina subspecies. So this is a "pure" Oregon Ensatina, for what that's worth. Stebbins isn't impressed.
William Tugman State Park, Coos County, OregonJune 15, 2015
Oregon Ensatina (Ensatina eschscholtzii oregonensis)
I expected to see a goodly number of salamanders in two weeks or so of camping and hiking along the Oregon coast, but it turned out to be an unusually hot and dry year, and the salamander pickings were slim. Other than a couple of Rough-skinned Newts, this skinny Ensatina was the only salamander I laid eyes on.
Ensatina eschscholtzii picta Painted Ensatina
Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park, Humboldt County, CaliforniaJuly 23, 2001
Painted Ensatina (Ensatina eschscholtzii picta)
The adults of this subspecies are perhaps the most attractive of the Ensatinas. This youngster was under a piece of bark. Though this part of California receives gobs of rain annually, I was there in the dry season. I was lucky to still see several types of amphibians that day, including a Rough-skinned Newt, a few Coastal Giant Salamander larvae, a couple of California Slender Salamanders, a few small Sierran Treefrogs, several Northern Red-legged Frogs, and a fantastic swarm of tiny Western Toads.
Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park, Humboldt County, CaliforniaMarch 26, 2006
Painted Ensatina (Ensatina eschscholtzii picta) Painted Ensatina (Ensatina eschscholtzii picta)
It took me five years to return to the range of the Painted Ensatina. Happily, the return trip did not disappoint, and after a slow start I ended up seeing a couple dozen of these strikingly-marked salamanders. These are the first two I uncovered. The top picture is another tiny baby, about the size of the one I saw in 2001. The second picture is a juvenile, quite a bit larger but not yet full sized.
Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park, Del Norte County, CaliforniaApril 1, 2006
Painted Ensatina (Ensatina eschscholtzii picta) Painted Ensatina (Ensatina eschscholtzii picta) Painted Ensatina (Ensatina eschscholtzii picta) Painted Ensatina (Ensatina eschscholtzii picta) Painted Ensatina (Ensatina eschscholtzii picta) Painted Ensatina (Ensatina eschscholtzii picta)
Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park was teeming with Painted Ensatinas when we visited at the end of a very wet March. The pictures above show some of the variety of color and pattern of the adult Painted Ensatinas discovered in one afternoon.
Stony Creek, Del Norte County, CaliforniaNovember 24, 2008
Painted Ensatina (Ensatina eschscholtzii picta)
This was probably the smallest ensatina I've ever seen, certainly shorter than an inch in total length.
Alfred A. Loeb State Park, Curry County, OregonNovember 25, 2008
Painted Ensatina (Ensatina eschscholtzii picta)
The "pure" Painted Ensatinas have a small range on the northwestern tip of California and the southwestern tip of Oregon. Surrounding that range is a very large intergrade area. Alfred A. Loeb State Park is in the heart of this pure range, so this salamander, which appears to be doing not much at all, is actually gloating.
Ensatina eschscholtzii platensis Sierra Nevada Ensatina
Coy Flat, Tulare County, CaliforniaJune 3, 2005
Sierra Nevada Ensatina (Ensatina eschscholtzii platensis)
I was hoping to find some snakes in the Sierra on this summer day. Snakewise I was fairly unlucky, running across only a single Gopher Snake, but I was very happy to find my first Sierra Nevada Ensatina under a small hunk of bark. This is a young salamander, about half of its adult length.
Freeman Creek Trail, Tulare County, CaliforniaJune 4, 2005
Sierra Nevada Ensatina (Ensatina eschscholtzii platensis)
This was my second Sierra Nevada Ensatina, discovered one day after seeing my first. This one is a full grown adult, perhaps five inches long. It was spending the daylight hours napping under a log, as salamanders are so wont to do.
China Flat Campground, El Dorado County, CaliforniaJune 4, 2006
Sierra Nevada Ensatina (Ensatina eschscholtzii platensis) Sierra Nevada Ensatina (Ensatina eschscholtzii platensis)
At this young age, the various Ensatina eschscholtzii subspecies all tend to look alike. The biggest clue that these two little guys are E. e. platensis (other than location of course) is the presence of large but faint orange spots on the tail of the second salamander pictured here.
Ensatina eschscholtzii xanthoptica Yellow-eyed Ensatina
Rancho del Oso, Big Basin Redwoods State Park, Santa Cruz County, CaliforniaFebruary 25, 2001
Yellow-eyed Ensatina (Ensatina eschscholtzii xanthoptica)
The yellow-eyed subspecies has a comparatively restricted range that overlaps with adjacent subspecies eschscholtzii and oregonensis, but it is easily distinguished by the yellow spots on the eyes. You can see the yellow spots clearly in this photo -- those aren't reflected highlights.
Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park, Santa Cruz County, CaliforniaJuly 19, 2003
Yellow-eyed Ensatina (Ensatina eschscholtzii xanthoptica)
Mid-July is not a good season for salamander hunting, but I managed to come across one medium-sized individual in a couple hours of searching.
Butano State Park, San Mateo County, CaliforniaJuly 11, 2004
Yellow-eyed Ensatina (Ensatina eschscholtzii xanthoptica)
This youngster is in the classic Ensatina defensive pose: head down, tail up and curled, body high. I call it the classic Ensatina defensive pose because it is commonly mentioned in the salamander literature. However, I've seen hundreds of Ensatinas and this is the first one I've ever seen in the classic defensive pose. Maybe the young Ensatinas are getting one of them liberal educations and not learning the classics these days.
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