Vermont Reptile & Amphibian Atlas

Digital 2005 edition

This digital version of the atlas provides online the maps that comprise our printed version. Each map (available in both JPG and PDF format) shows where in Vermont a given species has been reported, how recently, and what kind of information has been reported. The atlas was updated in 2005, and is free to view or download. Feel free to print, distribute, or copy any of these maps, providing you give credit for it. The atlas was compiled by Jim Andrews, with cartography by Chris Davis. Technical assistance was provided by Erin Talmage, and web site updates by Kirsten Talmage.

This atlas is not designed to impress you with how much we know about the distribution of Vermont herps, but rather with how little we know and how easily you can help. We hope that it will motivate some of you to contribute new or more up-to-date records of Vermont's reptiles and amphibians. We have large gaps in our knowledge of the distribution of many species within Vermont and would very much appreciate any assistance you could give us in closing those gaps.

These maps show that we are missing records of even common species from many Vermont towns. We welcome your reports on all species, including common ones such as Green frogs and Common gartersnakes. As you would expect, we have even larger gaps in our knowledge of the rarer species.

If you know of other individuals or organizations who might be interested in contributing records or who should know about this project, let us know.

Survey Effort and the Updated Atlas

Since the Preliminary Atlas was produced in 1995, we have had over 1,700 contributors add 25,000 new records. Of these records, 20,000 are amphibians and 5,000 are reptiles. Our Survey Effort Map shows 15 or more species have been reported from 138 Vermont towns. The maps for many of the common species are quickly being filled in. For example, since the Preliminary Atlas, we have added 140 new town records for Green Frog, and 151 new town records for Eastern Red-backed Salamander.

Also since 1995, significant survey effort has been directed to specific towns in Vermont. The New Species Recorded by Township map shows the towns that have recorded previously unreported species.

Although we have made much progress, there are still many gaps that need to be filled, particularly for reptiles. We are missing records of Snapping Turtle from 112 Vermont towns and records of Common Gartersnake from 29 Vermont towns. Your help is still needed to fill in the gaps for all Vermont reptiles and amphibians and to continue the progress that has already been made. Our Wanted Poster still shows 37 towns, cities, and gores with fewer than 10 species reported. All of these should have at least 15 resident species. 

Take a careful look at the survey effort map (categorizing how many species recorded in each town) or the individual maps of species records. We suspect that many of you will find that you are aware of species that are not reported from your area. Hopefully once you know how valuable your field sightings are, you will take a few minutes to fill out a report form the next time you find a reptile or amphibian. Feel free to use this reference map of Vermont Town and County names.

If you prefer to print a copy, we offer these maps as PDF files also. All links will appear in this frame, unless you right-click on them and choose a new window or new tab:

Species Maps

The links in the table below provide access to information pages for each species and to the associated maps showing their distribution in Vermont. Both JPG images (for quick viewing) and PDF versions (for better printing) are available. If you don’t already have Adobe Acrobat Reader for PDF files, you can download it for free from Adobe.

Feel free to print, distribute, or copy any of the maps, providing you give credit for them.

* G. insculpta used to be called Clemmys insculpta.
** Pantherophis alleghaniensis was Elaphe alleghaniensis until 2007. Before that, the scientific name was Elaphe obsoleta.
*** Anaxyrus americanus was Bufo americanus until 2007.
**** Anaxyrus fowleri was Bufo americanus until 2007.
+ Psueudacris triseriata (Western Chorus Frog) was renamed Psuedacris maculata (Boreal Chorus Frog) in 2007.
++ All the Vermont species listed in the Rana genus were reclassified into the Lithobates genus in 2007. Rana sylvatica became Lithobates sylvaticus.

Unanswered Questions

We'd like to know more. You can help. We've posted some of our questions below; you may have more you'd like to share, or records you'd like to contribute.

We still cannot be confident that our total Vermont reptile and amphibian species list is accurate. The relocation of the Boreal Chorus Frog in Alburg in 1998 put the number of species at 40, but it may not be long before the first population of Marbled Salamanders or Blanding’s Turtles is documented in this state. We are also watching the Box Turtle records; it may not be long before this species is changed from a hypothetical to a known breeding population.

We would like to be able to generate a complete and accurate species list for every town in Vermont and we continue to work toward that goal. But whether or not a species has been previously reported from a given town, I urge people to report a species the first time they see it. This is in part because we are interested in gathering newer or better-documented reports even from towns that have been well surveyed. Old reports will eventually become historic reports. Consequently, they need to be updated. If you have not reported a given species from a site for over ten years, and it is still there, please update the record. If you did not photograph it last time, you could try to photograph it this time.

Rare species (state ranks S1-S3, see tables) should be reported every time they are seen. As you would expect, we have the largest gaps in our knowledge of these species.

The Fowler's Toad is one of the amphibians we know very little about. Though we have scattered individual or old reports from a few towns, we currently know of only one population of this species. Most Vermonters are unaware that we have two species of toads in our state.

The Spotted Turtle (a diminutive species with yellow spots on its shell) is listed as an endangered reptile in Vermont. Only one population of this species is currently known. Is it really absent from most of Vermont or have some scattered populations been overlooked?

Any large black snake is an important record, whatever species it may be. It could be an Eastern Ratsnake (currently known only from west central Vermont), an North American Racer (only seven snakes known), the black phase of a Timber Rattlesnake (only two known denning areas remaining) or an adult Northern Watersnake (scattered reports).

Many other questions remain unanswered. Does the Spiny Softshell (turtle) ever travel south of the Lake Champlain Bridge? Did the Allegheny Mountain Dusky Salamander make it across the Hudson River drainage and Lake Champlain into Vermont? Is the Common Five-lined Skink found anywhere other than in West Haven or Benson?

In addition to questions about the distribution of the rarer species listed above, we still have unanswered questions about the distribution of the more common species. Is the Milksnake really missing from Essex and Orleans Counties? Is the Northern Leopard Frog really missing from Bennington and Windham Counties?

We are also very interested in gathering natural history observations, such as the first or last date of calling for frogs, the first sightings of snakes or turtles in the spring, when and where you see turtles laying their eggs, salamanders crossing the roads, snakes denning, or salamanders breeding.

These are just a few examples of the many things we would like to know more about. If you are interested in looking for amphibians and reptiles, we have some Basic Search Tips for these animals.