HENDERSON COUNTY, North Carolina — Once again, I found myself staring at a crack in a large rock on the side of a mountain. It was June, and rainy, and I was searching for a glossy amphibian called the Hickory Nut Gorge green salamander. These animals, about the length of a human finger, are black with splotches of mint green. That makes them nearly invisible against the lichen-covered rocks they typically hide in.
I had previously traveled here — to this very rock — in the spring of last year for a story about the salamanders of southern Appalachia. They are spectacular. With somewhere around a hundred species, the region, and particularly western North Carolina, near Asheville, is a global salamander hot spot. It has a higher concentration of salamanders than anywhere else in the world.
At the time of my 2024 visit, some of Appalachia’s salamanders, including the Hickory Nut Gorge green, were already in trouble. These amphibious animals have an incredibly small range — they’re found only in one valley, the Hickory Nut Gorge, southwest of Asheville. Commercial development, logging, and other threats shrank their population from as many as tens of thousands to just 300 to 500 individuals total, according to recent estimates. In 2021, North Carolina listed them as endangered and, in 2024, federal officials said protection under the Endangered Species Act may be warranted.
Then came Hurricane Helene…