The rare Eastern Hellbender, the only giant salamander native to North America, made its debut at the Bronx Zoo over the weekend.
Because the two-foot-long amphibians prefer to hide under rocks whenever possible, their public unveiling was not the most exciting event. It took zoo photographers two days to capture images of the elusive creatures.
The creatures, listed as “near threatened” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and as “a species of special concern” by New York state, were raised from eggs collected in 2014 and have been growing in a secure, controlled environment inside the zoo until the young salamanders were large enough to fend for themselves in the wild.
One hundred and three of the wrinkly-skinned salamanders were raised, and will be reintroduced to their native habitat, freshwater streams from northern Georgia to upstate New York.
