Eastern Red-backed Salamander vs. Northern Zigzag Salamander

Look at the armpit: a red or orange patch where the front leg meets the body means Zigzag, and Red-backed never has one. Then the edge of the stripe. Straight and clean means Red-backed; wavy, scalloped or lobed means Zigzag. It is a fine distinction on a photograph, so confirm with the belly: salt and pepper on Red-backed, mottled with orange on Zigzag. Both species also occur in a plain dark lead-backed form with no stripe at all.

Photographs via iNaturalist under Creative Commons licences; the photographers are credited on the sheet.

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