A Previously Undocumented Locality of Eastern Hellbenders (Cryptobranchus alleganiensis alleganiensis) in the Elk River, Carter County, TN

Abstract

Abstract Cryptobranchus alleganiensis alleganiensis (Eastern Hellbender) is a large, imperiled aquatic salamander found in rocky upland streams from New York to Alabama. Although widespread, many Hellbender populations are now highly fragmented by impoundments and degraded habitats. Hellbenders likely require specific stream habitats with relatively low anthropogenic impacts in order to maintain population viability. The Elk River is a small (5th order), high-gradient tributary of the Watauga River drainage that originates in Avery County, NC and flows northwest to Watauga Reservoir in northeastern Tennessee. Although the Elk River's headwaters are heavily impacted by development in the resort towns of Banner Elk and Sugar Mountain; its lower reaches flow through portions of the Pisgah and Cherokee National Forests and over several large waterfalls before reaching the reservoir. Hellbender presence was undocumented in the Elk River prior to 2010. We learned that Hellbenders were likely present in the lowe...