Hellbender

Cryptobranchus alleganiensis · The hellbender is a giant aquatic salamander endemic to the eastern and central United States, and it is the largest salamander in North America.

Also called Snot otter, Allegheny alligator, Hellbender salamander.

Hellbender
Photo: brian.gratwicke, CC BY 2.0
Hellbender
Photo: Brian Gratwicke, CC BY 2.0
Hellbender
Photo: Brian Gratwicke, CC BY 2.0

Taxonomy

KingdomAnimalia
PhylumChordata
ClassAmphibia
OrderUrodela
FamilyCryptobranchidae
GenusCryptobranchus
SpeciesCryptobranchus alleganiensis

Where it lives

Clear, rocky Appalachian and Ozark streams of the eastern US.

Fun facts

  • Instead of relying much on their lungs, hellbenders absorb oxygen straight through capillaries in the folds of their skin.
  • Hellbenders can reach a total length of 74 cm (29 in), making them the fourth-largest aquatic salamander species on Earth.
  • Adult hellbenders can weigh up to 2.5 kg (5.5 lb), ranking them the fifth-heaviest living amphibian in the world.
  • A single nest can hold as many as 1,946 eggs, since several females sometimes lay in one male's burrow.

Play it

The Hellbender was the creature in a regional daily on November 9, 2026. Can you identify tomorrow's from its photos? Every day brings a new creature to place from kingdom to genus, map and name.

Play today's creature or replay a past daily

Facts and taxonomy adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0).