| Ommatotriton | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Southern banded newt (Ommatotriton vittatus) | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Amphibia |
| Order: | Urodela |
| Family: | Salamandridae |
| Subfamily: | Pleurodelinae |
| Genus: | Ommatotriton Gray, 1850 |
| Species | |
3 species (see text) | |
Ommatotriton or banded newts is a genus of salamanders in the family Salamandridae. [1] [2] The genus occurs in Western Asia and Caucasus. The species in this genus were formerly placed in the genus Triturus . [1]
The genus contains three species: [1] [2]
The smooth newt, European newt, northern smooth newt or common newt is a species of newt. It is widespread in Europe and parts of Asia, and has been introduced into Australia. Individuals are brown with a spotted underside that ranges in color from orange to white. They reach an average length of 8–11 cm (3.1–4.3 in); males are larger than females. The newts' skins are dry and velvety when they are living on land, but become smooth when they migrate into the water to breed. Males develop a more vivid colour pattern and a conspicuous skin seam (crest) on their back when breeding.
The palmate newt is a species of newt found in Western Europe, from Great Britain to the northern Iberian peninsula. It is 5–9.5 cm (2.0–3.7 in) long and olive or brown with some dark spots. The underside is yellow to orange, and the throat, unlike in the similar smooth newt, always unspotted. A dark stripe runs along the head and through the eyes. Breeding males develop a distinct filament on the end of their tail, strongly webbed hind feet, and a low, smooth crest on their back.
Salamandridae is a family of salamanders consisting of true salamanders and newts. Salamandrids are distinguished from other salamanders by the lack of rib or costal grooves along the sides of their bodies and by their rough skin. Their skin is very granular because of the number of poison glands. They also lack nasolabial grooves. Most species of Salamandridae have moveable eyelids but lack lacrimal glands.
The alpine newt is a species of newt native to continental Europe and introduced to Great Britain and New Zealand. Adults measure 7–12 cm (2.8–4.7 in) and are usually dark grey to blue on the back and sides, with an orange belly and throat. Males are more conspicuously coloured than the drab females, especially during breeding season.
Triturus is a genus of newts comprising the crested and the marbled newts, which are found from Great Britain through most of continental Europe to westernmost Siberia, Anatolia, and the Caspian Sea region. Their English names refer to their appearance: marbled newts have a green–black colour pattern, while the males of crested newts, which are dark brown with a yellow or orange underside, develop a conspicuous jagged seam on their back and tail during their breeding phase.
The genus Taricha consists of four species of highly toxic newts in the family Salamandridae. Their common name is Pacific newts, sometimes also western newts or roughskin newts. The four species within this genus are the California newt, the rough-skinned newt, the red-bellied newt, and the sierra newt, all of which are found on the Pacific coastal region from southern Alaska to southern California, with one species possibly ranging into northern Baja California, Mexico.
The southern crested newt is a terrestrial European newt. It is similar to the northern crested newt except larger and more robust.
Tylototriton is a genus of newts known as crocodile newts or knobby newts. About 36 known species are in this genus. Many species have been described just recently. They range from northeastern India and Nepal through Burma to northern Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, and southern China.
Paramesotriton, also known as warty newts or Asian warty newts, is a genus of salamanders in the family Salamandridae. The genus is found in southwestern and southern China and in northern Vietnam. Most of the species are endemic to China, and the majority of them have been described recently, since 2008. The genus includes both pond and stream dwellers.
The southern banded newt is a species of salamander in the family Salamandridae found in Armenia, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, and Turkey. This species has two subspecies - O. v. vittatus and O. v. ciliensis.
A newt is a salamander in the subfamily Pleurodelinae. The terrestrial juvenile phase is called an eft. Unlike other members of the family Salamandridae, newts are semiaquatic, alternating between aquatic and terrestrial habitats. Not all aquatic salamanders are considered newts, however. More than 100 known species of newts are found in North America, Europe, North Africa and Asia. Newts metamorphose through three distinct developmental life stages: aquatic larva, terrestrial juvenile (eft), and adult. Adult newts have lizard-like bodies and return to the water every year to breed, otherwise living in humid, cover-rich land habitats.
Lissotriton is a genus of newts native to Europe and parts of Asia Minor. As most other newts, they are aquatic as larvae and during breeding time but live in terrestrial, humid environments over the rest of the season.
Calotriton, or the European brook newts, is a genus of newts native to the Pyrenees and central Catalonia. These amphibians were formerly placed within genus Euproctus, but the genus was resurrected in 2005. Instead of Euproctus, they seem more closely related to Triturus, their sister taxon.
Ichthyosaura is a genus of newts in the family Salamandridae, found in Europe. It contains one extant species: the alpine newt. One fossil species from the Miocene, Ichthyosaura randeckensis, has also been referred to this genus, although this has been challenged.
Ommatotriton ophryticus, the northern banded newt, is a species of newt in the family Salamandridae. It is found in northeastern Turkey and western Caucasus in Georgia, Armenia, and southern Russia.
The Fuding fire belly newt is a rare species of newt in the family Salamandridae, endemic to China. It is only known from Fuding in northeastern Fujian, from the locality where it was described as a new species in 2010. Although it is genetically similar to the Chinese fire belly newt, it is morphologically more similar to the Dayang fire belly newt. The range of C. fudingensis is separate from both other species.
The Balkan crested newt or Buresch's crested newt is a newt species of the crested newt species complex in genus Triturus, found in Southeastern Europe and Anatolia.
Triturus macedonicus, the Macedonian crested newt, is a newt species of the crested newt species complex in genus Triturus, found in the Western Balkan peninsula.
The Caucasian smooth newt or Caucasian newt is a newt species found in the Caucasus region, from the Don river mouth in Russia to Georgia, and potentially Armenia, Azerbaijan and extreme northeastern Turkey. It occurs from sea level to 2,500 m (8,200 ft) elevation.
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