Eastern Hellbender

Lore & Background

The Eastern Hellbender is one of only five to six known extant species of the family Cryptobranchidae, the others being the Chinese giant salamander (Andrias davidianus), the slightly smaller Japanese giant salamander (Andrias japonicus), the slightly larger South China giant salamander (A. sligoi), the Jiangxi giant salamander (Andrias jiangxiensis), the Qimen giant salamander (Andrias cheni), and the far smaller North American hellbender (Cryptobranchus alleganiensis). Like all species of giant salamanders, the hellbender produces a sticky, white skin secretion that repels predators. Its flat, broad head, small eyes, and dark wrinkly skin are characteristic of the family. The hellbender is fully aquatic, inhabiting rocky mountain streams and lakes, similar to its Chinese relatives.

In Their Own Story

The hellbender's life is one of patience and ambush. It has very poor eyesight, so it depends on special sensory nodes that run in a line on the body from head to tail, capable of sensing the slightest vibrations around it. Adult hellbenders and maturing individuals with nonexistent or shrinking gill slits have developed a system for bidirectional flow suction feeding under water. They start by moving to their prey very slowly, then once close enough, the salamander abruptly gapes its mouth open. The gaping motion causes a great increase in the velocity of the water straight ahead of them compared to water coming in from the sides of their mouth, possible because of their large, wide, and flat upper and lower jaws. This process causes the prey to shoot back into their mouths as well as a copious amount of water. They then close their mouths, but leave a small gap between their upper and lower lips so that the captured water can escape.

Reader's Guide

The Eastern Hellbender is found in rocky headwater streams, where it is fully aquatic. It is a member of the family Cryptobranchidae, which dates back 170 million years. The hellbender is one of only five to six known extant species of this family. Its diet consists of insects, millipedes, horsehair worms, amphibians (both frogs and salamanders), freshwater crabs, shrimp, and fish. Cannibalism is frequent among giant salamanders. The hellbender has very poor eyesight and relies on sensory nodes along its body to detect vibrations. It catches prey using a suction-feeding method, gaping its mouth to create a water current that pulls prey inside. The hellbender is missing a bone which usually lies along the upper cheek region of most salamanders, which gives it a much stronger bite force. Its esophagus is made up of four different layers, one of which is a strong muscular tissue used to help move food through to the stomach. The outer most layer has ciliated cells that move mucous from mucous glands over the surface of the esophagus to lubricate it and reduce friction from large foods such as whole crabs. The hellbender is also capable of fasting for several years if needed, possible because of its metabolic reserves and its liver, which can up regulate and down regulate certain proteins according to how long it has been fasting.

Did You Know?

• The Eastern Hellbender is one of only five to six known extant species of the family Cryptobranchidae, which dates back 170 million years.
• Like all giant salamanders, the hellbender produces a sticky, white skin secretion that repels predators.
• The hellbender has very poor eyesight and relies on sensory nodes along its body to detect vibrations in the water.
• Adult hellbenders use a bidirectional flow suction feeding method, gaping their mouths to create a water current that pulls prey inside.
• The hellbender is missing a bone in its upper cheek region, giving it a much stronger bite force than other salamanders.