Red-spotted Newt

Notophthalmus viridescens viridescens

Conservation Status:

State Status: Secure (NatureServe, 2025)

Global Assessment: Least Concern (IUCN, 2020)

Photographed by Christine Young in Sharon

Description

Red-spotted newts, also called eastern newts, grow up to four inches long (Watkins-Colwell, 2025). Adults are olive with black spots. They have a few orange spots encircled with a black border. They are aquatic and have a tail fin. Juveniles are terrestrial, and are orange with black-bordered orange spots.

Habitat

Adult newts can be found in permanent bodies of water or vernal pools. Terrestrial juveniles are commonly found in forests.

Behavior

Red-spotted newts eat invertebrates, like aquatic insects and snails. Breeding occurs in the early spring. Eggs are laid in clumps and will hatch into aquatic larvae. These larvae undergo metamorphosis, becoming terrestrial juveniles. After a few years, they will transform back into an aquatic stage as adults.

Range

References

iNaturalist. (2024). Observations. California Academy of the Sciences / National Geographic Society. https://www.inaturalist.org/observations?place_id=49&taxon_id=27805.

International Union for Conservation Of Nature and Natural Resources. (2020, December 21). Eastern Newt. https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/59453/193389835.

NatureServe. (2025, January 31). Notophthamus viridescens. https://explorer.natureserve.org/Taxon/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.106122/Notophthalmus_viridescens.

Watkins-Colwell, G. J. (2025). Red-spotted Newt - Notopthalmus viridescens. Yale Peabody Museum. https://peabody.yale.edu/explore/collections/herpetology/guide-amphibians-reptiles-connecticut.

Watkins-Colwell, G. J. et al. (2006). New Distribution Records for Amphibians and Reptiles in Connecticut, with Notes on the Status of an Introduced Species. Sacred Heart University. https://digitalcommons.sacredheart.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1058&context=bio_fac.

Page updated March 29, 2025