Northern banana salamander

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Northern banana salamander
Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Amphibia
Order: Urodela
Family: Plethodontidae
Genus: Bolitoglossa
Species:
B. rufescens
Binomial name
Bolitoglossa rufescens
Synonyms [2]
  • Oedipus rufescensCope, 1869

The northern banana salamander (Bolitoglossa rufescens), also known as common dwarf salamander or rufescent salamander, is a species of salamander in the family Plethodontidae (lungless salamanders). [2] It is found in the Atlantic slopes of Meso-America from San Luis Potosi, Veracruz, and northern Chiapas in Mexico continuing on to the southern part of Guatemala, Belize, and northern Honduras. [1] However, its range south of Mexico is uncertain because the records may refer to other species. [2]

Contents

Description and ecology

The northern banana salamanders are small terrestrial, arboreal salamanders. [1] Their size ranges from 35–36 mm (1.4–1.4 in) snout–vent length and 65–70 mm (2.6–2.8 in) total length. [3] It dwells in tropical and subtropical moist lowland rain forests and mountain ecosystems, as well as in citrus orchards, banana plantations, and pine plantations. Predominantly found in bromeliads in tropical and subtropical wet forests. [1]

B.rufescens is dorsally pale brown to tan brown in color and on paler species it may consist of dorsal longitudinal streaks or specks. The ventral area in most species is grey or paler than the dorsal color, in some the coloring might be uniform. A dark brown streaks usually runs from behind the eyes and extend towards is posterior, it may go as far as half the length of the body or farther. [3] Northern banana salamanders are rather small in size when compared to other salamanders in the genus Bolitoglossa such as the O'Donnell's salamander (Bolitoglossa odonnelli) which are longer in length. The northern banana salamander has a robust body with ll costal grooves running longitudinally between its legs and 3 additional costal grooves in between their limbs. This grooves assist salamanders in water transportation, enhances respiration and aids in thermo-regulation. They possess webbed fingers and toes, with 4 digits on its front limb and 5 digits on its hind limbs. Its snout is truncate and slightly projected on its anterior dorsal view. [3] This species are lungless salamanders, they lack lungs and breath entirely through their skin and lining of their mouth.

Diet

Salamanders mostly feed on small invertebrates found on forest floors. Diet is influenced by size and micro-habitat of the salamander. Bolitoglossa rufescens are small and strictly arboreal, research shows that their diet is comprised significantly of ants followed by beetles and weevils (Coleoptera), collembolans, and arachnids. [4]

Behavior

Snakes are major predators of salamanders they sense their prey by flickering their tongue in the air or by direct contact with prey or substrates. Anti-predator behavior studies show that Bolitoglossa rufescens responds more often to predator attacks that involved stimulation to the head other than its tail or trunk area. It responds by elevating or elevating and undulating its tail. [5]

Reproduction

The northern banana salamanders reproduce biennially. Internal fertilization takes place after successful courtship, where the male salamander during the breeding season develops an enlarge courtship gland used to stimulate the female. The female picks up egg packets from substratum through cloaca. After fertilization eggs are laid on moist places on land. These salamanders have an average clutch size of 13.5 and an average egg diameter of 1.9 mm. Eggs develop entirely on land, and direct development occurs. Sexual dimorphism is minimal between males and females of this species. [4]

Related Research Articles

Salamander order of amphibians

Salamanders are a group of amphibians typically characterized by a lizard-like appearance, with slender bodies, blunt snouts, short limbs projecting at right angles to the body, and the presence of a tail in both larvae and adults. All present-day salamander families are grouped together under the order Urodela. Salamander diversity is most abundant in the Northern Hemisphere and most species are found in the Holarctic ecozone, with some species present in the Neotropical zone.

<i>Imantodes cenchoa</i> species of reptile

Imantodes cenchoa is a species of rear-fanged colubrid snake distributed in Mexico, Central America, and South America.

Arboreal salamander species of amphibian

The arboreal salamander is a species of climbing salamander. An insectivore, it is native to California and Baja California, where it is primarily associated with oak and sycamore woodlands, and thick chaparral.

<i>Bolitoglossa</i> genus of amphibians

Bolitoglossa is a genus of lungless salamanders, also called mushroom-tongued salamanders, tropical climbing salamanders, or web-footed salamanders, in the family Plethodontidae. Their range is between northern Mexico through Central America to Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador, Peru, northeastern Brazil, and central Bolivia. Neotropical salamanders of the Bolitoglossa make up the largest genus in the order Caudata, consisting of approximately one-fifth of all known species of salamanders. Adult salamanders range anywhere from 45mm to 200mm in length depending on their specific species. They are notorious for their ability to project their tongue at prey items, as indicated from their name. They are also known for their webbed feet, having significantly more webbing than any other species outside their genus with the exception of the cave-dwelling Mexican bolitoglossine Chiropterotriton magnipes. Although webbed feet are a common characteristic of these salamanders, only about half of the species in this genus contain webbed feet.

Bolitoglossa engelhardti is a species of salamander in the family Plethodontidae. It is found in the extreme south-eastern Chiapas, Mexico, and eastward along the Pacific versant to Volcán Atitlán in south-western Guatemala. It is named for Teodoro Engelhardt, Guatemalan plantation owner who entertained Karl Patterson Schmidt and his expedition. Its common names include Engelhardt's salamander, Engelhardt's mushroomtongue salamander, and Engelhardt's climbing salamander.

The San Gil climbing salamander, also known as the San Gil mushroomtongue salamander, is a species of salamander belonging to the family Plethodontidae. It is endemic to Colombia, and its natural habitats are tropical highly humid forests; it has also been reported from a coffee plantation. The greatest threat posed to this species is habitat loss, however they are currently nowhere near the risk of extinction. The species' name honors Antoine Rouhaire, a French naturalist who collected the species holotype.

Bolitoglossa oresbia is a species of salamander in the family Plethodontidae. It is endemic to Honduras and is known from the summit of Cerro El Zarciadero and the southwestern side of the nearby Cerro Azul Meámbar National Park, in the northern Comayagua Department.

<i>Bolitoglossa pandi</i> species of amphibian

Bolitoglossa pandi is a species of salamander in the family Plethodontidae. It is endemic to the Cundinamarca Department of Colombia and only known from three locations on the western slopes of the Cordillera Oriental, including its type locality, Pandi; it is named after the type locality where it had been collected 50 years before being described as a new species in 1963.

Savages salamander species of amphibian

Savage's salamander, also known as Savage's mushroomtongue salamander, is a species of salamander in the family Plethodontidae. It is endemic to the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta in northern Colombia. The record from Venezuela represents another species, likely Bolitoglossa guaramacalensis. The species is named after Jay M. Savage, an American herpetologist.

Seepage salamander species of amphibian

The seepage salamander is a small, terrestrial species of salamander in the family Plethodontidae. It is endemic to the United States. They are found in small areas of Tennessee, North Carolina, Georgia, and Alabama. Its natural habitats are temperate forests, intermittent rivers, and freshwater springs. It gets its name from the seepages around which it lives. It is very similar in its appearance and life history to the pygmy salamander. These two species differ greatly from the other Desmognathus species. They are the smallest salamanders in the genus, measuring only 3–5 cm (1–2 in) in length. They are also the only two terrestrial, direct-developing Desmognathus species. However, the two species are not often seen to coexist, differing in distribution by elevation; although there are exceptions. The seepage salamander is currently listed as Near Threatened, with its numbers declining in most of states in which it is found. It is threatened by habitat loss, with logging having a major effect.

<i>Desmognathus fuscus</i> species of amphibian

Desmognathus fuscus is a species of amphibian in the family Plethodontidae. The species is commonly called the dusky salamander or northern dusky salamander to distinguish it from populations in the southern United States which form a separate species, the southern dusky salamander. The northern dusky salamander is the most widespread representative of its genus in Canada. It can be found in eastern North America from extreme eastern Canada in New Brunswick south into the panhandle of Florida and west to Louisiana. The size of the species' total population is unknown, but is assumed to easily exceed 100,000. The species' habitat differs somewhat geographically; dusky salamanders in the northern part of the range prefer rocky woodland streams, seepages, and springs, while those in the south favor floodplains, sloughs, and muddy places along upland streams. They are most common where water is running or trickling. They hide under various objects, such as leaves or rocks, either in or near water. Alternatively, they may enter burrows for protection. The dusky salamander lays its eggs close to water under moss or rocks, in logs, or in stream-bank cavities. The larval stage which follows is normally aquatic.

Pygmy salamander species of amphibian

The pygmy salamander is a species of salamander in the family Plethodontidae. It is endemic to the United States in the southern Appalachians in North Carolina and Tennessee.

Northern two-lined salamander Northern two-lined salamander

The northern two-lined salamander is a species of salamander in the family Plethodontidae found in Canada and the United States. Its natural habitats are temperate forests, temperate shrubland, rivers, intermittent rivers, freshwater marshes, freshwater springs, arable land, and urban areas. It is more water-oriented than the related northern redback salamander, and can often be found in and around water such as rain puddles, streams, swamps, and damp stream beds, whereas the northern redback tends to be found in damp ground, but usually not near open water.

Yonahlossee salamander species of amphibian

The Yonahlossee salamander is a particularly large woodland salamander from the southern Appalachian Mountains in the United States. The species is a member of the family Plethodontidae, which is characterized by being lungless and reproductive direct development. P. yonahlossee was first described in 1917 by E.R Dunn on a collection site on Grandfather Mountain in North Carolina. The common and specific name is of Native American origin, meaning “trail of the bear”. It is derived from Yonahlossee Road northeast of Linville, where the specimen was first described.

Red salamander species of amphibian

The red salamander is a species of salamander in the family Plethodontidae endemic to the eastern United States. Its skin is orange/red with random black spots. Its habitats are temperate forests, small creeks, ponds, forests, temperate shrubland, rivers, intermittent rivers, freshwater, trees springs. Overall this species is common and widespread, but locally it has declined because of habitat loss and it is considered threatened in Indiana. Red salamanders eat insects, earthworms, spiders, small crustaceans, snails and smaller salamanders. The red salamander, as a member of the family Plethodontidae, lacks lungs and respires through its skin.

<i>Speleomantes</i> genus of salamanders in the family Plethodontidae

Speleomantes, the European cave salamanders, is a genus of salamanders in the family Plethodontidae, commonly known as the lungless salamanders. It is one of two genera in the family to inhabit the Old World, with the remaining 250 or so species being found in North, Central and South America. This genus is endemic to Italy and a few nearby areas.

Thorius aureus, the golden thorius, is a species of salamander in the genus Thorius, the Mexican pigmy salamanders, part of the lungless salamander family. It is endemic to mountainous areas of north central Oaxaca State in Mexico. It is one of the largest Thorius species.

Spotted-tail salamander species of amphibian

The spotted-tail salamander, also known as a "cave salamander", is a species of brook salamander.

<i>Sarcohyla miahuatlanensis</i> species of amphibian

Sarcohyla miahuatlanensis, or the Sierra Miahuatlan spikethumb frog, is a species of frog in the family Hylidae. It is endemic to Mexico and only known from its type locality near Candelaria Loxicha on the Sierra de Miahuatlán in Oaxaca.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Parra-Olea, G.; Wake, D.; Lee, J.; Acevedo, M.; Cruz, G.; Papenfuss, T.; Rovito, S.; Castañeda, F.; Vasquez, C. (2008). "Bolitoglossa rufescens". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . IUCN. 2008: e.T59202A11894912. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2008.RLTS.T59202A11894912.en .
  2. 1 2 3 Frost, Darrel R. (2017). "Bolitoglossa rufescens (Cope, 1869)". Amphibian Species of the World: an Online Reference. Version 6.0. American Museum of Natural History. Retrieved 21 March 2017.
  3. 1 2 3 Campbell, Jonathan A. (1999). Amphibians and Reptiles of Northern Guatemala, the Yucatan, and Belize. University of Oklahoma Press. pp. 39–40. ISBN   978-0-8061-3066-8 . Retrieved 3 March 2017.
  4. 1 2 Anderson, Michael T; Mathis, Alicia (December 1999). "Diets of two sympatric neotropical salamanders, Bolitoglossa mexicana and B. rufescens, with notes on reproduction for B. rufescens". Journal of Herpetology. 33 (4): 601–607. doi:10.2307/1565576. JSTOR   1565576.
  5. Brodie, Edmund D.; Ducey, Peter K.; Lemos-Espinal, Julio (March 1991). "Antipredator behavior of the salamander Bolitoglossa rufescens: effects of temperature and location of stimulus". Journal of Herpetology. 25 (1): 99–101. doi:10.2307/1564802. JSTOR   1564802.