This coverage is made possible through a partnership between BPR and Grist, a nonprofit environmental media organization.
In the serene landscapes of Watauga County, North Carolina, Andy Hill finds solace beneath the waters of clear streams. Armed with a wetsuit and snorkel, he seeks the elusive hellbender, a remarkable salamander that has become an emblem of the Appalachian Mountains. These creatures, with their shimmering marbled gold and brown hues, can grow over two feet long and live up to three decades.
For Hill, encountering a hellbender is a profound experience tied deeply to the region’s identity and its ecological fabric. “The first time that I saw one in real life, in the Watauga River, it changed me,” said Hill, Watauga Riverkeeper for the Western North Carolina environmental nonprofit MountainTrue. “They’re kind of otherworldly looking.”
The hellbender’s presence resonates across the Blue Ridge Mountains, inspiring names for local beers, festivals, and even baseball teams. Despite its playful nicknames, such as the mudpuppy and snot otter, the hellbender’s reality is one of solitude, sheltering under rocks in cool streams. These amphibians are highly sensitive to environmental changes, thriving in water temperatures between 55 and 63 degrees Fahrenheit. As climate change warms these streams, their existence becomes increasingly precarious.
Having lived in these waters for 160 million years, hellbenders now face threats from pollution, habitat loss, and illegal pet trade collection. Though still found from Mississippi to New York, sixty percent of these populations are declining, with only 12 percent remaining stable.
Hill is concerned about federal protection slipping away. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service was anticipated to list the hellbender as endangered by the end of last year, but the decision was postponed. The salamander was added to a “long-term actions” list, and not a single species has been listed since President Donald Trump’s second term began. The Center for Biological Diversity has responded by filing a lawsuit to prompt action.
The Fish and Wildlife Service provided documents indicating the next steps for regulatory action are still undetermined. Tierra Curry, an endangered species co-director at the Center for Biological Diversity, criticized the delay, calling it a bureaucratic stalling tactic that lacks a clear timeline for enacting protections.
Despite North Carolina and other states listing the hellbender as a species of concern, federal intervention has faced setbacks. In 2019, the Trump administration decided against listing the hellbender under the Endangered Species Act, citing captive breeding and release efforts as sufficient. Conservationists, however, disagree.
Protecting the hellbender could also safeguard mountain streams, benefiting native species and local economies. “Things like clean cold water and these protections would benefit the rest of the ecosystem as well, your native fish and mussels, as well as game fish like trout, and then that ties into our recreation, tourism, economy,” Hill said. “So protecting the hellbender is protecting the vital cultural, environmental, and economic resources of Appalachia as well.”
In Western North Carolina, concern grows as the hellbender’s habitat continues to dwindle. Following Hurricane Helene, many hellbenders were displaced or perished, a tragic loss for both the ecosystem and the community. Hill, along with Appalachian State University researchers, is assessing the damage, noting some populations have declined by two-thirds.
The local community’s commitment remains strong. Four months post-Hurricane Helene, Hill collaborated with Boone Mayor Dalton George on a resolution advocating for federal protection. The town’s bipartisan support for the hellbender was solidified with a commissioned mural celebrating the creature.
“That’s what’s frustrating to me as a leader,” said George, who also works with the Endangered Species Coalition. Despite bipartisan consensus, federal action is still pending. For many in Boone and Appalachia, the hellbender’s plight mirrors their own experiences with change and displacement, highlighting a shared struggle for belonging.
