often near a seep or stream. Usually, the eggs are laid in communal nests. Such nests have been found with over 300 eggs which are estimated to have been deposited there by more than 18 females. Larger females tend to produce larger clutches, and the mean clutch size of females from the northern part of the range is 15.3 while that for the southern part is 7.3. Once laid, the eggs are not guarded by the mother, although male adults and young salamanders may continue to take refuge nearby. The eggs develop directly into miniature versions of the adult without there being an intervening larval stage. In the laboratory they take 65 to 73 days to hatch and they may take a similar length of time in the wild. Status The IUCN lists the gregarious slender salamander as being of "Least Concern". It occurs in a range of habitat types and the population seems to be stable. No particular threats have been identified for this species apart from the destruction of its habitat. References Slender salamanders Salamander Salamander Fauna of the Sierra Nevada (United States) Fauna of the California chaparral and woodlands Kern River Natural history of Tulare County, California Amphibians described in 1998 Least concern biota of the United States Taxonomy articles created by Polbot