For an animal covered in mucus and nicknamed the “snot otter,” the eastern hellbender salamander is awfully picky about where it will live.

Polluted rivers and streams, along with dams and loss of habitat, have significantly reduced the population of eastern hellbenders across the Eastern United States. They’ve been considered for addition to the federal endangered species list. And a 2003 study was redacted like the Mueller report to keep their locations secret from the illegal pet trade. (Yes, there is a demand.)

On Tuesday, Pennsylvania’s governor signed a law naming the hellbender — which is two feet long, nocturnal and also known as the devil dog, Allegheny alligator and lasagna lizard — the state’s official amphibian. Though it might be the one with the most nicknames, the hellbender won’t be the first of its kind to be so honored; at least 20 other states recognize an official amphibian.

A handful of Pennsylvania legislators objected to the hellbender bill, considering it a waste of time. But State Senator Gene Yaw, who sponsored the law after it was proposed by students who had studied ways to protect Chesapeake Bay, said that the pollution-averse hellbenders were worth recognizing because they were a “natural indicator of clean water.”