The length of an adult is 17 to 33cm. The average mass of an adult is 9.4g. The black skin is covered with yellow spots, which can appear also tan or olive green. The belly is usually yellowish or olive. Adults live almost entirely terrestrial and return only during the breeding season in the aquatic freshwater. The eggs hatch within 20 to 50days. The larvae are yellowish green to olive. First tan spots emerge within few weeks.

Subspecies are named but not valid: • Ambystoma tigrinum californiense Gray, 1853 – invalid • Ambystoma tigrinum diaboli Dunn, 1940 – invalid – Gray Tiger Salamander • Ambystoma tigrinum mavortium Baird, 1850 – invalid – Barred Tiger Salamander • Ambystoma tigrinum melanostictum (Baird in Cooper, 1860) – invalid – Blotched Tiger Salamander • Ambystoma tigrinum nebulosum Hallowell, 1853 – invalid – Arizona Tiger Salamander • Ambystoma tigrinum stebbinsi Lowe, 1954 – invalid – Sonoran Tiger Salamander • Ambystoma tigrinum tigrinum (Green, 1825) – invalid – Eastern Tiger Salamander

Metamorphosis; The life expectancy is 12 to 15 years.

Tiger salamanders are common pets hold in aquariums. The larvae are used to feed fish in hatcheries. In the United States larvae are commonly used as live bait to catch freshwater fish, such as largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides), channel catfish (Ictalurus punctatus) (Picco & Collins, 2008).

The species is native in eastern North America and in south –central Canada. It occurs up to an elevation of 3,660m (IUCN/SSC, 2015). The terrestrial adults are found in in forests, grasslands, or marshy areas. Further habitat requirements are soil humidity. The species need to be able to burrow underground in order to seek the proper humidity levels. During the breeding season and for the metamorphosis access to small standing water bodies is required.

Sexual; oviparous; In late winter or early spring (usually after a warm rain) male and female adults migrate to ponds. Approximately 24-48 hours after the courtship and insemination females lay eggs on the ground of the pond. Each female produces anything from 100 to 1000 eggs per season.

The primary food source for adults consists of worms, snails, insects, and slugs. Larvae begin feeding on small crustaceans, and later on insect larvae. Several indices were found on cannibalism (Ryan et al., 2009).

Picco & Collins, 2008

Pathogen pollution The species is a commonly used bait in the US among anglers in freswater ecosystems. Ocasionally individuals escaped or were relesed by anglers. Species traded in bait shops outside their natural range were infected with Ranaviruses. Tiger salamander bait trade is a likely source of many pathogen pollutions (Picco & Collins, 2008). Hybridization Hybridization threatens native salamander species. A. tigrinum has been introduced to central California, where it has been found to hybridize with native A. californiense (AmphibiaWeb 2011, Ryan et al., 2009). Competition The species ipacts on the larval density and the time to metamorphosis of native the native Califirmia tiger salamanders. Larvae of he Pacific Chorus Frog (Pseudacris regilla) and the California Newt (Taricha torosa) are impacted by ybrid tiger salamander larvae (Ryan et al., 2009).

The movement and trade of the species is currently not relegated in most countries, where the species is traded (e.g. United States or Canada).