102 
Raymond D. Semlitsch and Michael A. McMillan 
Table 1. A summary of female body size and reproductive output of Eurycea 
quadridigitata from two populations in South Carolina. Values repre- 
sent means ± 1 S.E. Measurements are in mm. 
Parameter 
Location 
Rainbow Bay Ellenton Bay 
Smallest SVL of Gravid Females 
27.1 
22.9 
SVL of Females 
29.4 ± 0.23 
26.7 ± 0.38 
N 
31 
24 
Mean Number of Ovarian Eggs 
32.7 ± 1.36 
21.4 ± 1.88 
Range 
18-48 
7-42 
N 
31 
24 
Diameter of Ovarian Eggs 
September 
0.93 ± 0.04 
0.86 ± 0.06 
N 
13 
18 
October 
1.09 ± 0.06 
1.43 ± 0.08 
N 
11 
4 
November 
1.48 ± 0.05 
1.48 ± 0.20 
N 
7 
2 
Reproduction.— All female E. quadridigitata collected entering the 
bays during the period 21 September through 30 November 1978 that 
were dissected contained enlarged ovarian eggs. The smallest SVL of 
females with enlarged ovarian eggs was 27.1 mm at Rainbow Bay and 
22.9 mm at Ellenton Bay (Table 1). 
Gravid females are caught entering the bays in August through 
November. The diameter of ovarian eggs was similar between study sites 
and increased over time from 0.86 - 0.93 mm in September to 1.48 mm in 
November (Table 1). The largest egg diameter measured was 1.8 mm 
from a female caught on 15 November 1978 and is probably close to the 
size of eggs at deposition. Only two gravid females were caught after 
November. Therefore, time of egg deposition for the majority of dwarf 
salamanders is probably November or early December. Since egg deposi- 
tion is synchronous and gravid females are not found at other times of 
the year, clutch frequency is no more than one per year. The number of 
ovarian eggs was positively correlated with SVL (r = 0.67, p < 0.001, for 
Rainbow Bay and Ellenton Bay combined; Fig. 3). The number of 
ovarian eggs was significantly greater at Rainbow Bay than at Ellenton 
Bay (t = 5.10, df = 53, p < 0.001; Table 1) and is attributable to the 
significant local variation in body size between populations. 
