# Where Do Fire Salamanders Live?

> Where fire salamanders live: Moist deciduous forest near streams, native range cues, and human overlap. Status Least Concern.

- **Species:** Fire Salamander (*Salamandra salamandra*)
- **Conservation status:** Least Concern
- **Diet:** Carnivore (insects, worms, slugs)
- **Habitat:** Moist deciduous forest near streams
- **Lifespan:** 15–20 years in the wild
- **Canonical HTML:** https://globalanimalguide.org/animals/fire-salamander/where-do-fire-salamander-live/
- **Parent profile:** https://globalanimalguide.org/animals/fire-salamander/
- **Last reviewed:** 2026-07-16

## Quick answer

The fire salamander is a striking black amphibian marked with bright yellow or orange patterns, native to the forests of central and southern Europe. Its bold coloring warns predators that its skin secretes toxins. Fire salamanders are long-lived for amphibians, often reaching 15 to 20 years.

## Who should skip this page

Skip this if you need a sighting hotline. This page is native range and habitat.

## Behavior and defense

Fire salamanders are nocturnal and secretive, hiding under logs, stones, and leaf litter during the day and emerging on damp or rainy nights. Their vivid yellow-and-black pattern is aposematic, warning predators of the toxic secretions in their skin. When threatened, they can ooze or even spray a mild poison from glands behind the eyes.

## Help protect the Fire Salamander

Even familiar animals lose ground as wild habitat keeps shrinking worldwide.

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Source: Global Animal Guide (https://globalanimalguide.org/animals/fire-salamander/where-do-fire-salamander-live/). Licensed CC BY-NC 4.0 — free for non-commercial reuse with attribution.