Atlas of Amphibians in Tennessee - Austin Peay State University
Wikipedia
Joyce Sun & Theodora Pinou - Western Connecticut State University
University of Michigan Museum of Zoology
AmphibiaWeb - University of California
Hellbenders.org - Jeff Humphries
Tennessee Amphibians & Reptiles - Matthew Niemiller
And you thought the amphiuma was scary-looking. Hellbenders, for all their hideousness, are completely harmless. Unfortunately a lot of fishermen don't know this and will sacrifice their tackle rather than handle one that they've accidentally caught.Hellbenders have historically occurred all across Tennessee east of the Tennessee River, but they seem to be declining rapidly from a lot of areas. The best place to find them at this point is in some of the streams in the Smokies, although I have yet to see one in the wild. If you want to get a good look at one, your best bet is the Nashville Zoo.
The Hellbender is closely related to the Japanese Giant Salamander, which is the largest salamander in the world. Our little guys don't get that big, but, as American salamanders go, I think they're still pretty impressive :-)
Photos by Todd Pierson (top) & Matthew Niemiller (bottom)
I've spent quite a few hours snorkeling Citico Creek in the CNF for these guys...The closest I've gotten to seeing one there was a huge Black-Bellied Salamander under a big rock in fairly deep water, which I initially thought was an immature Hellbender. I actually snorkeled a few hours in the Little River in the Smokies (known to have Hellbenders) this past Tuesday...but no luck :( I have seen Mudpuppies in that stream, which are cool, but not quite Hellbenders. I'm hoping to try snorkeling at night with a waterproof flashlight next Summer, and maybe I'll get lucky and find one out foraging.
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