 This specialization likely contributed to the decline in their populations, as collectors could easily identify their specific habitats.One collector noted, at one time, "one could find a specimen under almost every suitable rock", but after years of collecting, the population had declined significantly.The same collector noted, he "never found two specimens under the same rock", corroborating the account given by other researchers that hellbenders are generally solitary; they are thought to gather only during the mating season.