eastern red-backed salamander

8.4

A small salamander from eastern North America with a red stripe along its back

noun
/ˈiːstərn rɛd bækt ˈsæləmændər/

: salamandra de espalda roja del este

The eastern red-backed salamander is easily recognized by its bright reddish stripe along its back.

Examples

The eastern red-backed salamander is often found hiding under logs in damp forests.
Scientists studied how climate change affects the habitat of the eastern red-backed salamander.
A child carefully lifted a rock and discovered an eastern red-backed salamander underneath.
Look at that eastern red-backed salamander on the trail!
The eastern red-backed salamander is often found in moist forests.
In spring, the eastern red-backed salamander comes out to hunt for insects in the moist forest floor.
During a nature walk, we spotted an eastern red-backed salamander hiding beneath a damp log.

Synonyms

Plethodon cinereus

vseastern red-backed salamander

Specialized

9.9

A small red-backed salamander found in damp forests of eastern North America

is the everyday English name used in general descriptions

Surface Forms

eastern red-backed salamander singular

eastern red-backed salamanders plural

Morphology

eastern + red-backed + salamander

The phrase is fully compositional: 'eastern' indicates geographic location, 'red-backed' describes having a red back (a literal physical attribute), and 'salamander' names the animal, so the overall meaning — a salamander from the east with a red back — is directly derivable. This modifier+noun pattern is common cross-linguistically and would be understandable to a B1 learner who knows the constituent words.

Etymology

Eastern red-backed salamander describes the animal: eastern tells where it lives, red-backed points to the bright 'red stripe' along its back, and salamander is a small, lizard-like amphibian. So the name helps you picture a small salamander from the east with a red stripe.