The Western red-backed salamander is a woodland species and is small and slender. It has a wide stripe running from the head to the tip of the tail that can be yellow, orange, green or brown. Mature adults can grow up to just over four inches in total length.

Western red-backed salamanders live in humid coniferous forests with mild winters. They find cover in rocky substrates, including talus (rock fragment piles), boulders and rock outcroppings. They may also hide under or in rotting logs, leaf litter and other forest debris.

Like other woodland salamanders, this species breaths through its skin. During extreme cold, hot or dry weather, they move deep under talus, into logs, or move underground to avoid desiccation (extreme dehydration).

Photo by J. Maught, Flickr