Superregnum: Eukaryota
Regnum: Animalia
Subregnum: Eumetazoa
Cladus: Bilateria
Cladus: Nephrozoa
Superphylum: Deuterostomia
Phylum: Chordata
Cladus: Craniata
Subphylum: Vertebrata
Infraphylum: Gnathostomata
Superclassis: Tetrapoda
Classis: Amphibia
Subclassis: Lissamphibia
Ordo: Urodela
Subordo: Salamandroidea
Familia: Ambystomatidae
Genus: Ambystoma
Species: Ambystoma texanum
Name
Ambystoma texanum (Matthes, 1855)
Type locality: "Rio Colorado bottom land", Texas.
Syntypes: Including NHMW 22920.
Synonyms
Salamandra texana Matthes, 1855
Amblystoma texanum — Baird, 1859
Amblystoma microstomum Cope, 1861
Chondrotus microstomus — Cope, 1887
Chondrotus texanus — Cope, 1889
Ambystoma texanum — Stejneger & Barbour, 1917
Ambystoma microstomum — Fowler & Dunn, 1917
Ambystoma schmidti Taylor, 1939
Ambystoma (Linguaelapsus) schmidti — Tihen, 1958
Linguaelapsus texanus — Freytag, 1959
Ambystoma nothagenes Kraus, 1985
Ambystoma nothogenes — Frank & Ramus, 1995
References
Matthes, 1855, Allg. Deutsche Naturhist. Zeitung,, N.S., 1: 266.
Stejneger and Barbour, 1917, Check List N. Am. Amph. Rept.: 12.
Frost, D. 2008. Amphibian Species of the World: an Online Reference. Version 5.2 (15 July, 2008). Electronic Database accessible at www.research.amnh.org/herpetology/amphibia. American Museum of Natural History, New York, USA. Ambystoma texanum
AmphibiaWeb: Information on amphibian biology and conservation. [web application]. 2010. Berkeley, California: Ambystoma texanum. AmphibiaWeb, available at http://amphibiaweb.org/.
2007 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species IUCN: Ambystoma texanum (Least Concern) Downloaded on 26 July 2008.
Vernacular names
English: Smallmouth Salamander
français: Salamandre à nez court
The small-mouth salamander (Ambystoma texanum) is a species of mole salamander found in the central United States, from the Great Lakes region in Michigan to Nebraska, south to Texas, and east to Tennessee, with a population in Canada, in Pelee, Ontario. It is sometimes referred to as the Texas salamander, porphyry salamander, or the narrow-mouthed salamander. The Kelley's Island salamander (Ambystoma nothagenes) was synonymized with A. texanum in 1995.
Description
The small-mouth salamander grows from 4.5 to 7.0 in. It is typically black or dark brown in color with light-grey or silvery-colored flecking, or grey blotching. It has a fairly small head, relative to its body, and a long tail. Males are typically smaller than females. Their bellies are black, often with tiny flecks, and have 14 to 15 costal grooves.
Behavior
Small-mouth salamanders are nocturnal, often subterranean, preferring moist habitats near permanent bodies of water. Breeding occurs in the spring, with groups of salamanders congregating near the water. Females can lay up to 700 eggs, which they attach in small clumps of up to 30 eggs at a time, to rocks or vegetation under the water. Their diets include insects, slugs, and earthworms. Larvae hatch at 0.5 in (13 mm); they metamorphose in May to June at about 1.6 in (40 mm). When disturbed, the small-mouth salamander raises its tail and waves it back and forth. Being shy and sensitive, it shares breeding pools with larger spotted salamanders and marbled salamanders.
Habitat and range
Small-mouth salamanders live in moist pine woodlands and deciduous forest bottomlands, tallgrass prairies, farming areas, near temporary ponds, and along streams. Their range is from western West Virginia south to the Gulf of Mexico, west to Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas.
Conservation
The only known Canadian population is on Pelee Island in Lake Erie. It is listed as endangered by COSEWIC.[2]
References
IUCN SSC Amphibian Specialist Group (2015). "Ambystoma texanum". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2015: e.T59071A56561668. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2015-4.RLTS.T59071A56561668.en. Retrieved 12 November 2021.
"Larval Amphibians of Ontario Identifier: Salamanders & Newts". Toronto Zoo.
Northern Small-mouthed Salamander (Ambystoma texanum), Natural Resources Canada
Herps of Texas: Ambystoma texanum
Animal Diversity Web: Ambystoma texanum
Amphibian Species of the World: Ambystoma texanum
Illinois Natural History Survey: Ambystoma texanum
Smallmouth Salamander - Ambystoma texanum Species account from the Iowa Reptile and Amphibian Field Guide
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