The Family Dicamptodontidae comprises the Pacific giant salamanders, large amphibians native to western North America. These salamanders are robust, with stout bodies and broad heads, and they inhabit cool, forested streams and moist environments. Members of Dicamptodontidae are mostly carnivorous, feeding on insects, worms, and small vertebrates, and they exhibit both aquatic and terrestrial life stages, including a larval stage with external gills. Known for their relatively large size among salamanders, they play an important role as predators in stream and forest ecosystems, contributing to the regulation of invertebrate and small vertebrate populations.