FW 413 NCSU: Caudata lab exam (salamanders)

Siren intermedia Sirenidae

<35 costal grooves

Tip of tail pointed

Tail ~ ⅓ of Snout to Vent Length

No hind limbs

4 toes on each foot

External gills

Siren lacertina Sirenidae

>36 costal grooves

Tip of tail is rounded

Tail < ⅓ of Snout to Vent Length

No hind limbs

4 toes on each foot

External gills

Sirenidae

What family has:

No hind limbs

4 toes on each foot

External gills

Necturus lewisi Proteidae

Threatened (state and fed)

Central-eastern NC

No prominent spots under chin

4 developed limbs

4 toes on each limb

External gills as adults

Dark stripe on side of head across eye

Necturus maculosus Proteidae

Special concern

Far Western NC

Has prominent spots under chin

4 developed limbs

4 toes on each limb

External gills as adults

Dark stripe on side of head across eye

Proteidae

What family has:

4 developed limbs

4 toes on each limb

External gills as adults

Dark stripe on side of head across eye

Necturus punctatus Proteidae

Small! and thin body

External gills

Dorsum has no blotches

Venter no spots

“Googly eyes”

Central and eastern NC

Amphiuma means Amphiumidae

Single pair of gill slits

4 tiny legs

2 toes on each leg

Long body

Only one in this family in NC

Cryptobranchus alleganiensis Cryptobranchidae

Special Concern (proposed federally listed)

Large

“Lasagna sides”

Western NC

Notophthalmus viridescens Salamandridae

Only member of this family in NC

Red spots with dark border

Terrestrial eft stage

Adult (aquatic) and eft specimens

Can have a juvenile aquatic stage

Ambystoma maculatum Ambystomatidae

Prominent yellow spots

Central to western NC

Ambystoma opacum Ambystomatidae

White/gray wavy dorsum pattern

Official state amphibian (with Hyla andersonii)

Females grayer in color than males

Widespread across Central and Eastern NC

Ambystoma tigrinum Ambystomatidae

NC Threatened

Sandhills region only

Dark body with irregular yellow/orange/brown blotching

Dig their own burrows

Plethodontidae

What family of salamanders lacks lungs?

Eurycea cirrigera Plethodontidae

Yellow/greenish/brown dorsum

Black dots

2 dark dorso-lateral stripes on either side to tail tip.

14 costal grooves

5 toes on hind limbs

2

How many years does Eurycea cirrigera spend as aquatic larvae?

Eurycea guttolineata Plethodontidae

Black stripe down the back flanked by a pair of tan yellowish stripes

Middle black stripe stops at base of the tail

Terrestrial as adults but never far from the water

Eurycea guttolineata

What salamander lays eggs in slow moving waters, and spends 4-6 months as aquatic larvae?

Eurycea quadridigitata Plethodontidae

Found in the sandhills region of NC

Has a dark ventral side with silvery belly

18 costal grooves

4 toes on hind limbs (one of two Eurycea in NC that has this)

Eurycea chamberlaini Plethodontidae

Found in the Piedmont region of NC

Has a light ventral side

<16 costal grooves

4 toes on hind limbs

Eurycea quadridigitata

What salamander is commonly found along the margins of ponds in pine forests or savannas in the sandhills?

Eurycea chamberlaini

What salamander is found in a variety of habitats in the Piedmont, but are most frequently encountered in seepage areas around ponds and streams, and lays eggs in leaf litter/moist vegetation near water?

Plethodon cinereus Plethodontidae

Red-brownish dorsal stripe

Heavily mottled B&W belly

Heavily terrestrial

Plethodon cinereus

What salamander is mainly terrestrial, lays eggs in underground burrows, leaf litter etc., has females that will aggressively defend the eggs, and has no larval stage (direct development)?

Plethodon cylindraceus Plethodontidae

One of 5 species that branched off the P. glutinosus complex

Black with white or cream flecks scattered over the sides (sometimes back and limbs)

Fully terrestrial

White pattern seen most prominently on tail on specimens

Central/Western NC

Plethodon cylindraceus

What salamander is entirely terrestrial (moist forest habitats), lays eggs on land (under logs or underground cavities), and has no larval stage (direct development)?

Pseudotriton montanus Plethodontidae

Short tail, brown eyes

Dorsum bright red-orange

Dark spots round and well separated (organized)

Scattered throughout NC

Pseudotriton montanus

What salamander is most common at lower elevations (swampy pools, floodplain forests etc.), lays eggs in late Fall, and spends 2 years as aquatic larvae?

Pseudotriton ruber Plethodontidae

Short tail, Yellow-golden eyes

Dorsum is bright red with irregular spots that merge together

Longer snout

Central to western NC

Pseudotriton ruber

What salamander lives in and around aquatic habitats but may stray from the water, has adults that live in burrows adjacent to water, lays eggs in winter, and spends 2-3 months in the aquatic larval stage?

Gyrinophilus porphyriticus Plethodontidae

Large, stout body

Orange-red dorsum (specimen is light yellow)

Has small dark spots

Groove from eye to nostril

Throat sometimes flecked with black

Gyrinophilus porphyriticus

What salamander is found in headwater streams and springs, lays eggs in summer, and spends 4 years in larval stage?

Stereochilus marginatus Plethodontidae

Yellow-brown

Light and dark longitudinal streaks/lines on lower sides

Scattered brown flecks on the belly

Tail relatively short, keeled, laterally compressed

Stereochilus marginatus

What salamander is highly aquatic, lays eggs in winter, and spends 1-2 years aquatic larval stage?

Desmognathus bairdi Plethodontidae

Can be red, gray, brown or black

Moderately keeled tail

Subtle mottled pattern

White line from eye to bottom of jaw

Desmognathus bairdi

What salamander is abundant in streams, seeps, and springs, lays eggs in or near water, and has a short larval stage?