Dicamptodon tenebrosus
Silhouette: T. Michael Keesey, from a photograph by Greg Schechter · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~90% in a week >90%
The coastal giant salamander (Dicamptodon tenebrosus) is a species of salamander in the genus Dicamptodon (Pacific giant salamanders). It is endemic to the Pacific Northwest of North America. There are three closely related species to this taxon: D. ensatus (California giant salamander), D. copei (Cope's giant salamander), and D. aterrimus (Idaho giant salamander).
The coastal giant salamander can reach up to 33 cm (13 in) in total length as a terrestrial adult, and 35.5 cm (14.0 in) in paedomorphic forms, making it the largest terrestrial salamander in North America. The coastal giant salamander has stout limbs with four toes on the front feet and five toes on the back feet. The species tail is around 40 percent of the total length of the salamander and is laterally compressed. The head, back, and sides have a marbled or reticulate pattern of dark blotches on a light brown or brassy-colored background. The head is broad with a shovel-like snout and a fold of skin across the throat called the gular fold. The eyes are medium in size and have a brass-flecked iris and a large black pupil. This species is one of the few salamanders capable of vocalizing. Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Redwood National Park | 🇺🇸 United States |
More parks will be added in future updates.
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Portland | 🇺🇸 United States |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Northwest Trek Wildlife Park | 🇺🇸 United States |
Likely
About 60% of wildlife watchers report a Coastal Giant Salamander sighting in Redwood National Park on a given day, based on 319 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the most-seen of the 14 amphibians we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 90%, and over a week to over 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.
July to October
In those months about 70% of wildlife watchers report a Coastal Giant Salamander in Redwood National Park on a given day, against about 40% in February, the lowest month. Those are among Redwood National Park's driest months, with about 45 mm of rain a month against 360 mm in January.
Between 10 am and 1 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Coastal Giant Salamander sightings with a recorded time, and about 7 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is seen both by day and at night.
Only Redwood National Park, in our data
Redwood National Park is the only park on Wallace's Line with enough records to rate Coastal Giant Salamander sightings: about 60% of wildlife watchers there report one on a given day.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Coastal Giant Salamander is recorded against all the amphibians logged in Redwood National Park (319 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
