| San Marcos Salamander | |
|---|---|
| Conservation status | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Amphibia |
| Order: | Caudata |
| Family: | Plethodontidae |
| Genus: | Eurycea |
| Species: | E. nana |
| Binomial name | |
| Eurycea nana Bishop, 1941 |
|
The San Marcos Salamander (Eurycea nana) is a small species of aquatic, lungless salamander native to the United States. Endemic to Spring Lake and a small region of the headwaters of the San Marcos River near Aquarena Springs, in Hays County, Texas. It is a 1-2 inches long, with a slender body and external gills, and is a reddish-brown in color.
The San Marcos Salamander has been federally listed as a threatened species since 1980. Due to its extremely limited geographic range, it poses threats from a number of things, but primarily from the contamination of ground water sources and heavy dependence of Central Texas cities upon the Edwards Aquifer for water.