Preserving sperm vital to saving 'snot otter' salamanders

ScienceDaily (2010-08-04) -- The hellbender salamander -- known affectionately as a snot otter or devil dog -- is one of America's unique giant salamander species. For unexplained reasons, most hellbender populations have rapidly declined as very little reproduction has occurred in recent decades. Working with researchers from the Nashville Zoo and Antwerp Zoo in Belgium, veterinarians are helping develop conservation techniques to sample and freeze the sperm from some of the last surviving salamanders.