Kansas Herpetofaunal Atlas

Image © Suzanne L. Collins, CNAH.
AMPHIBIA (Amphibians) CAUDATA (Salamanders) CRYPTOBRANCHIDAE (Giant Salamanders)

Hellbender
Cryptobranchus alleganiensis (Daudin 1803)
krĭp-tō-brānk-ŭs — ăl-ĕh-gā-nē-ĭn-sĭsh

Conservation Status:
State: None
Federal: Partial Status
NatureServe State: SNA - Not Applicable
NatureServe National: N3 - Vulnerable
NatureServe Global: G3 - Vulnerable
CITES: Appendix III
Diagnosis:
 The Hellbender is a relatively large, stout-bodied, obligate aquatic salamander. They may be brown, tan, gray, yellow, or black with darker (and/or lighter) small diffuse spots on the back. The belly is lighter in coloration and with few to no, diffuse small dark spots. The head is large and flattened; the eyes are dark and spaced widely apart. Loose folds of skin run down both sides of the body to the tail. Juveniles possess internal gills until they reach 4-5 inches in length (~18 months of age).
Hellbenders typically grow from 11 to 23 inches (280-570 mm) in length. The largest specimen from Kansas is unknown. The largest Hellbender recorded through its range is a female that was 29 1/8 inches (740 mm) long.
Distribution:
 This species has been reported from southeastern Kansas by anecdotal observations and two specimens (KU 23283, Labette County, Neosho River, 8 miles west of McCune; and KU 23282, Cherokee County, 1 mile north of Riverton). Both of these records were plotted by Smith (1950, 1956) and Collins (1974). These records subsequently have been discredited (Collins, 1982), as no other specimens of this large salamander exist throughout the Neosho River/Spring River/Shoal Creek system in Missouri or Oklahoma. The surface geology of the Labette County (low-water dam at ) locality is intriguing, as it consists primarily of large flat rocks, the preferred habitat of the Ozark Hellbender. However, the Hellbender relies on cool, clear, well-oxygenated water (not present at any historic site in Kansas currently) for cutaneous respiration.
(,   Museum Voucher) (,   Observation) (,   Literature Record) (,   iNat Record), (  Fossil)
Open icons are questionable records; Click on a marker to view details.
Full range depicted by light shaded red area. Export Google Earth (.kml)
  • Occurrence Summary:  
  • 2
    Records 
  • 2
    Museum Vouchers 
  • 0
    Other Observations 
Some county occurrences indicated below may be too imprecise to map above.
 County Breakdown: County Name (# occurrences):
 Cherokee (1); Labette (1);

Fossil History:
 Not known from Kansas.
Natural History:
 An obligate aquatic salamander, the Hellbender is essentially confined to the drainage basin in which it occurs. It is sensitive to environmental contamination and has disappeared from many localities throughout its range.
Occurrence Activity:
Remarks:
 The two existing specimens (KU 23283 and KU 23282) were first reported by Hall and Smith (1947) mapped by Smith (1950; 1956) and Collins (1974) who included it as a member of the Kansas herpetofauna. It was questioned by Nickerson and Mays (1973) and Rundquist and Collins (1977) questioned the Labette County specimen (KU 23283). Dundee (1971), Conant (1975), and Smith and Kohler (1977) questioned the validity of both specimens.
Branson (1966) pointed out the possible capture by the Neosho River of the Spring River drainage from the White River drainage of Arkansas and Missouri, based on correlations among their respective mussel faunas. Hellbenders occur in the White River drainage of both Arkansas and Missouri.
If the Hellbender ever persisted in the Spring River drainage, it is likely extirpated now. The Spring River (and tributaries) is heavily polluted by surface mining and agricultural runoff and industrial and municipal (sewage) waste (from Frontenac, Pittsburg, Joplin, Newton, Neosho, Wheaton, Monett, Pierce City, Orogano, Carthage, etc.).
Bibliography:
1933 Smith, Hobart M. The Amphibians of Kansas Thesis. University of Kansas, Lawrence. 383pp.
The first full accounting of the twenty-five species of amphibians known to occur in Kansas. Includes Ambystoma maculatum which is currently not included in the Kansas faunal list.
1934 Smith, Hobart M. The Amphibians of Kansas. American Midland Naturalist 15(4):377-527
The formal publication of Hobart Smith's Master's Thesis (Smith 1933), though there are several updated and additions. In addition to the species accounts for all twenty-five species, the paper includes a history of amphibian biology in Kansas and discussions on taxonomy and physiography. 
1945 Lane, Henry H. A survey of the fossil vertebrates of Kansas, Part II. Amphibia. Transactions of the Kansas Academy of Science 48(3):286-316
1947 Hall, Henry H. and Hobart M. Smith. Selected records of reptiles and amphibians from southeastern Kansas Transactions of the Kansas Academy of Science 49(4):447-454
Report on certain Kansas specimens housed in the collection at what is now Pittsburg State University. Included are several species of dubious status today, including Cryptobranchus alleganiensis from the Neosho and Spring rivers (the only specimens from those significant drainages ever documented), Ambystoma maculatum from just north of Pittsburg, Crawford County, Heterodon nasicus from Crawford County, Opheodrys vernalis from Crawford County, Sonora episcopa from Crawford County, Agkistrodon piscivorus from Cherokee County, Crotalus atrox from Crawford County, and Crotalus viridis from Crawford County. They report several significant range extensions including Kinosternon flavescens from Turkey Creek in southeast Cherokee County, Graptemys geographica from just north of Pittsburg, Crotaphytus collaris from near Columbus, Cherokee County, Sceloporus consobrinus from just north of Pittsburg, Phrynosoma cornutum from Cherokee and Crawford counties, Heterodon platirhinos from Cherokee and Crawford counties, Haldea striatula from Crawford County, Sistrurus tergeminus from Crawford County, and a 402 lb Macrochelys temminckii in Cherokee County from just east of Chetopa (Labette County). They allude to the potential for Anaxyrus fowleri to occur in southeast Kansas and for native populations of Crotalus atrox in south central Kansas (in part from the disclosure that John R. Breukelman [then of ESU] had obtained three specimens in Woods County Oklahoma, 3/4 of a mile south of the Kansas line). None of the specimens the paper was based on, exist today.
1950 Smith, Hobart M. Handbook of Amphibians and Reptiles of Kansas. University of Kansas, Museum of Natural History, Miscellaneous Publication (2):336
The first modern herpetology of Kansas. Includes locality dot maps within individual species accounts. Reports 96 species from Kansas (table and text say 97 on p. 10) and 13 "probable but unverified" species and subspecies.
1951 Firschein, I. Lester. The range of Cryptobranchus bishopi and remarks on the distribution of the genus Cryptobranchus. American Midland Naturalist 45(2):455-459
1953 Schmidt, Karl P. A Check List of North American Amphibians and Reptiles. 6th Edition. University of Chicago Press, Chicago, Illinois. 280pp.
Schmidt's first edition of his standardized checklist to North American amphibians and reptiles. Includes several specific references to Kansas in the range descriptions.
1956 Smith, Hobart M. Handbook of Amphibians and Reptiles of Kansas. Second edition. University of Kansas Museum of Natural History Miscellaneous Publication (9):1-356
Hobart M. Smith's updated second edition of his first (1950) modern herpetology of Kansas. Includes locality dot maps within individual species accounts. Reports 96 species from Kansas (table says 97 on p. 10; text says 98 on p. 10) and 11 "probable but unverified" species and subspecies. The second edition has updated taxonomy, added Plestiodon laticeps, and removed Eurycea tynerensis.
1957 Brame, Arden H. A list of the world's recent caudata. Privately Published, Los Angeles, California.. 24pp.
1957 Brame, Arden H. A list of the world's Recent caudata. Privately Published, University of Southern California. 31pp.
1960 Conant, Roger. The queen snake, Natrix septemvittata, in the interior highlands of Arkansas and Missouri, with comments upon similar disjunct distributions. Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia 112(2):25-40
1966 Branson, Branly A. A partial biological survey of the Spring River drainage in Kansas, Oklahoma and Missouri. Part I, collecting sites, basic limnological data, and mollusks. Transactions of the Kansas Academy of Science 69(3/4):242-293
1969 Branson, Branley A., James Triplett, and Robert Hartmann. A partial biological survey of the Spring River drainage in Kansas, Oklahoma and Missouri. Part II: The fishes. Transactions of the Kansas Academy of Science 72(4):429-472
1971 Dundee, Harold A. Cryptobranchus, C. alleganiensis. Catalogue of American Amphibians and Reptiles (101):1-4
1974 Nickerson, Max A. and Charles E. Mays. The Hellbenders: North American Giant Salamanders. Milwaukee Public Museum Press, Milwaukee, Wisconsin. pp.
1974 Collins, Joseph T. Amphibians and Reptiles in Kansas University of Kansas Museum of Natural History Public Education Series (1):283 pp
Joseph T. Collins first Kansas herpetology. <Need to get species total and principal differences with previous 'version' (= Smith 1956)>
1974 Platt, Dwight R., Joseph T. Collins, and Ray E. Ashton, Jr. Rare, endangered and extirpated species in Kansas. II. Amphibians and reptiles. Transactions of the Kansas Academy of Science 76(3):185-192
The initial initiative to determine population and conservation status of Kansas' amphibians and reptiles based on our understanding at the time. A lot has changed regarding our increased knowledge on all the listed species.
1975 Conant, Roger. A Field Guide to Reptiles and Amphibians of Eastern and Central North America. Houghton Mifflin Co, Boston. pp.
1976 Ashton, Ray E., Jr., Stephen R. Edwards, and George R. Pisani. Endangered and threatened amphibians and reptiles in the United States. Herpetological Circulars (5):65
1977 Rundquist, Eric M. and Joseph T. Collins. The amphibians of Cherokee County, Kansas. Kansas Biological Survey, Lawrence. 12pp.
1977 Smith, Hobart M. and A. J. Kohler. A survey of herpetological introductions in the United States and Canada. Transactions of the Kansas Academy of Science 80():42759
1978 Brame, Arden H., Jr. II, Ronald Hochnadel, Hobart M. Smith and Rozella B. Smith. Bionumeric codes for amphibians and reptiles of the world. I. Salamanders. Transactions of the Kansas Academy of Science 81(1):43-56
1980 Bury, R. Bruce, C. Kenneth Dodd, Jr., and Gary M. Fellers. Conservation of the Amphibia of the United States: A Review. Resource Publication 134. U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Washington, D. C. 34pp.
1981 Williams, R. David, J. Edward Gates, Charles H. Hocutt, and Gary J. Taylor. The Hellbender: A nongame species in need of managment The Wildlife Society Bulletin 9(2):94-100
Range showing the Hellbender ranging into extreme southeast Kansas, citing Neosho River specimen listed by Hall and Smith 1947).
1982 Collins, Joseph T. Amphibians and Reptiles in Kansas. 2nd edition. University of Kansas Museum of Natural History Public Education Series (8):
Joseph T. Collins second Kansas herpetology. <Need to get species total and principal differences with previous 'version' (= Collins 1974)>
1983 Ireland, Patrick H. and Ronald Altig. Key to the gilled salamander larvae and larviform adults of Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri, and Oklahoma. Southwestern Naturalist 28(3):271-274
1984 Altig, Ronald and Patrick H. Ireland. A key to salamander larvae and larviform adults of the United States and Canada. Herpetologica 40(2):212-218
1986 Layher, William G., Ken L. Brunson, J.Schaefer, Marvin D. Schwilling, and R. D. Wood. Summary of nongame task force actions relative to developing three species lists: Species in Need of Conservation, Threatened, and Endangered. Kansas Fish and Game Commission, Pratt. 27pp.
1991 Conant, Roger and Joseph T. Collins. Peterson Field Guide to Reptiles and Amphibians of Eastern and Central North America. 3rd ed. Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston, Massachusetts. pp.
1993 Collins, Joseph T. and Suzanne L. Collins. Amphibians and Reptiles in Kansas. Third Edition. University Press of Kansas, Lawrence, Lawrence. 397pp.
Joseph T. Collins third Kansas herpetology. <Need to get species total and principal differences with previous 'version' (= Collins 1982)>
1998 Conant, Roger and Joseph T. Collins. Peterson Field Guide to Reptiles and Amphibians of Eastern and Central North America. 3rd ed, expanded. Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston, Massachusetts. pp.
1998 Powell, Robert, Joseph T Collins, and Errol D Hooper Jr. A Key to Amphibians & Reptiles of the Continental United States and Canada. Univ Press of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas. 131pp.
2006 Taggart, Travis W. Distribution and status of Kansas herpetofauna in need of information. State Wildlife Grant T7. Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks, Pratt. vii + 106pp.
2008 Taggart, Travis W. KHS 2008 spring field trip. Journal of Kansas Herpetology (25):2-3
2010 Collins, Joseph T., Suzanne L. Collins, and Travis W. Taggart. Amphibians, Reptiles, and Turtles of Kansas Eagle Mountain Publishing., Provo, Utah. 400pp.
Joseph T. Collins fourth Kansas herpetology. <Need to get species total and principal differences with previous 'version' (= Collins 1993)>
2012 Powell, Robert, Joseph T Collins, and Errol D Hooper Jr. Key to the Herpetofauna of the Continental United States and Canada: Second Edition, Revised and Updated. Univ Press of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas. 152pp.
2016 Powell, Robert, Roger Conant, and Joseph T. Collins. Peterson Field Guide to Reptiles and Amphibians of Eastern and Central North America. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Boston. 494pp.
2019 Powell, Robert, Joseph T Collins, and Errol D Hooper Jr. Key to the Herpetofauna of the Continental United States and Canada. Third Edition. Univ Press of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas. 192pp.
2020 Daniel, Richard E. and Brian S. Edmond. Atlas of Missouri Amphibians and Reptiles for 2019. Privately printed, Columbia, Missouri. 86pp.
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Travis W. Taggart © 1999-2023 — w/ Sternberg Museum of Natural History, Fort Hays State University