Aquatic. Large and somewhat eel-like. Only front limbs present with 4-5 toes each. External gills present. 
Arkansas Herpetological Atlas 2019
This species is represented by 746 records from 29 sources: 710 museum (
), 0 literature (
), 0 research (
), and 19 observation (
), with 17 additional Trauth et al. (2004) locality points remaining unsourced (
). It has been museum vouchered for 47 of 75 counties (), with 3 additional counties having other forms of reported occurrence (). Years of collection range from 1899 to present.
This species occurs throughout the South Central Plains and Mississippi Alluvial Plain, and ascends stream valleys in the southern Ouachita Mountains and up the Arkansas Valley to Russellville, Pope County. Records traced to the Ozark Biological Laboratory, Imboden, Lawrence County, are known to have come from collection sites 5-12 km farther south (Noble and Marshall, 1932).
