Northern banded newt
| Northern banded newt | ||||||||||||
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| Systematics | ||||||||||||
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Ommatotriton ophryticus | ||||||||||||
| ( Berthold , 1846) |
The northern banded newt ( Ommatotriton ophryticus ) is a common amphibian species in Asia Minor from the family of the real salamanders (Salamandridae).
features
The northern band newt is a large species of newt. Usually it reaches a length of 14.5 centimeters, a maximum of 18 centimeters. A silver-white, wide longitudinal band with a black border runs on both sides from the eyes to the base of the hind legs. The belly is orange-yellow to orange-red in color and may have dark spots. Males are larger than females. The mating dress of the males is particularly striking and magnificent, which is why this species is the “most beautiful species in the group of water newts” (former collective genus Triturus ) for Dieter Glandt . In the mating dress, the males have a crest on their backs that are up to 3 centimeters high, deep and jagged with a sharp point and alternately striped black-brown and yellow vertically. At the level of the rear legs, the crest has a deep indentation and is continued by a tail hem . This is medium high and its points are rounded and coarser. In young animals, light temple spots are present in the first year of life .
Occurrence
The area of the Northern Banded Newt consists of two separate parts. The larger sub-area extends from northeast Turkey around the Black Sea to the northwest of the Caucasus , the smaller sub-area is located in northwest Anatolia .
The vertical distribution of the species extends from about sea level in plains near the coast to altitudes of 2000 meters above sea level in the Caucasus. Coastal lowlands, wooded mountain slopes and (sub) alpine meadows were identified as habitat. Sometimes the species was also found in karst caves. Spawning waters are weakly flowing and stagnant waters such as ditches, oxbow lakes , puddles, brooks and their pools , lakes and karst funnels .
Systematics
There are two subspecies :
- Ommatotriton ophryticus ssp. ophryticus occurs in the northwest of the Caucasus in Russia and Georgia, in Armenia and on the Black Sea coast in northeast Turkey.
- Ommatotriton ophryticus ssp. nerstovi can be found in Anatolia.
Way of life
The regime of temperature and precipitation are very important for the beginning and the end of the activity of this type, especially for the stay in water. In the Caucasus, a reproductive period from March to July at the latest, mostly only until April or May, was established. The species winters here for six months from October. In contrast, the animals on the Black Sea coast in Turkey are sometimes active all year round.
The mating behavior is almost identical to that of the Triturus species. However, the males are noticeably aggressive, which is not the case with any other water newt species found in Europe. They occupy territories that are defended against other males. This defense initially consists of threats. If these are ignored, the owner of the area begins to bite. Violent fights, which in some cases are fatal, can occur between males at the territorial boundaries.
In the Caucasus, an average number of 90 to 100 eggs per female was found. The eggs are laid on aquatic plants or fallen leaves. Young larvae initially feed on small crustaceans, with increasing size adding mosquito larvae, small water snails and small clams. Adult newts feed in waters on river fleas, water snails, water lice, as well as the larvae of insects and the spawn and larvae of other amphibians. Earthworms, snails, woodlice, spiders, millipedes and other invertebrates are eaten on land.
The northern banded newt has numerous predators, including snakes such as the grass snake ( Natrix natrix ), corvids such as the common raven and the jay and water shrews. Its larvae are eaten by fish, sea frogs , water beetles such as the yellow beetle and crayfish .
Danger
Although the species has a wide range in the Caucasus, there are apparently not very many populations, which are also often relatively small. Strict protection is therefore necessary for these populations. The survival of the species seems to be secured by protected areas in Georgia and Russia. Other threats, however, are water pollution, drainage, overgrazing , fish stocking and overbuilding due to the expansion of health resorts.
supporting documents
literature
- Dieter Glandt: Pocket dictionary of amphibians and reptiles in Europe. Quelle & Meyer, Wiebelsheim 2010, ISBN 978-3-494-01470-8 , pp. 123-125
Individual evidence
- ^ Dieter Glandt: Pocket dictionary of the amphibians and reptiles of Europe. Quelle & Meyer, Wiebelsheim 2010, ISBN 978-3-494-01470-8 , pp. 123-125
Web link
- Ommatotriton ophryticus inthe IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2013.1. Posted by: Kurtuluş Olgun, Jan Willem Arntzen, Sergius Kuzmin, Theodore Papenfuss, Ismail Ugurtas, David Tarkhnishvili, Max Sparreboom, Steven Anderson, Boris Tuniyev Natalia Ananjeva, Yakup Kaska, Yusuf Kumlutaş, Aziz Avci, Nazan Üzüm, Uğur Kaya, 2008 Retrieved November 20, 2013.