captivity in October and April. The females are reproductively mature at 35 mm in length and tend to be older than 3 years when they become mature. The males can breed around 30 mm long at about 2-3 years old. The females lay eggs in clutches of four to 11 eggs in tight clusters suspended by a stalk. These nests are found under the moss mats that cover conifer logs. The eggs are seen between mid-August to September and are between 2.6 and 6.5 mm in diameter. The offspring show direct development with little to no evidence of gills being visible once the egg has hatched. Some evidence indicates the females brood or guard the eggs. The females found at these nests were undernourished, which indicates they do not feed during their time guarding the eggs. The eggs laid by the females are dark in color due to pigmentation by melanophores. Conservation Larger populations of these salamanders appear to be stable. The populations are found on Grandfather Mountain and Rodgers Mountain. North Carolina and Virginia populations are believed to be declining. The current populations are isolated from each other, causing fragmentation to become a threat to these populations. The high altitude of the habitat helps protect the populations to some degree. Much of the salamander's range on Mount Rodgers is a national recreation area, and most of the land within the park is protected. The area around Grandfather Mountain is privately owned, but seems to be under stable protection. The populations of these salamanders are very isolated and the small number of individuals in each population makes those populations susceptible to extinction due to catastrophic events such as fires or more habitat degradation. The major threat to this species is habitat degradation and loss, mainly due to development and logging practices. See also List of endangered animal species References Further reading Adler, K. (2007). Contributions to the History of Herpetology, Volume 2. Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles. 400 p. Amphibians of the United States Plethodon Amphibians described in 1931 Taxonomy articles created by Polbot