Klamath black salamander

The Klamath black salamander (Aneides klamathensis) is a species of salamander in the family Plethodontidae. It is endemic to the western United States.[1][2][3]

Klamath black salamander

Vulnerable  (NatureServe)[1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Amphibia
Order: Urodela
Family: Plethodontidae
Subfamily: Plethodontinae
Genus: Aneides
Species:
A. klamathensis
Binomial name
Aneides klamathensis
Reilly & Wake, 2019

Taxonomy

Previously, it was considered a population of the speckled black salamander (A. flavipunctatus). However, a 2019 study found A. flavipunctatus to represent a species complex and split multiple species off it, including the Klamath population, which was described as Aneides klamathensis.[2][4][5]

Distribution

This species inhabits the Klamath Mountains in northern California and southern Oregon. It ranges from southeast-central Humboldt and Trinity counties in California north to southern Josephine and Jackson counties in Oregon.[2]

Description

This species has a solid black base coloration overlaid by greenish-gray frosting that extends down the trunk. Its limbs are heavily spotted with white to cream-colored spots, but this are largely scattered on other dorsal surfaces.[4][6]

References
  1. "NatureServe Explorer 2.0". explorer.natureserve.org. Retrieved 2022-01-02.
  2. "Aneides klamathensis Reilly and Wake, 2019 | Amphibian Species of the World". amphibiansoftheworld.amnh.org. Retrieved 2022-01-02.
  3. "AmphibiaWeb - Aneides klamathensis". amphibiaweb.org. Retrieved 2022-01-02.
  4. Reilly, Sean B.; Wake, David B. (2019-08-01). "Taxonomic revision of black salamanders of the Aneides flavipunctatus complex (Caudata: Plethodontidae)". PeerJ. 7: e7370. doi:10.7717/peerj.7370. ISSN 2167-8359. PMC 6679913. PMID 31396443.
  5. "Speckled Black Salamander - Aneides flavipunctatus flavipunctatus". www.californiaherps.com. Retrieved 2022-01-02.
  6. "Klamath black salamander | Oregon Department of Fish & Wildlife". myodfw.com. Retrieved 2022-01-02.
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