Urspelerpes brucei
| Urspelerpes brucei | ||||||||||||
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| Systematics | ||||||||||||
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| Scientific name of the genus | ||||||||||||
| Urspelerpes | ||||||||||||
| Camp , Peterman , Milanovich , Lamb , Maerz & Wake , 2009 | ||||||||||||
| Scientific name of the species | ||||||||||||
| Urspelerpes brucei | ||||||||||||
| Camp, Peterman, Milanovich, Lamb, Maerz & Wake, 2009 |
Urspelerpes brucei is a tiny species of salamander that is endemic to Stephens County , Georgia, USA . It represents the only known representative of the genus Urspelerpes , which is the first newly discovered terrestrial vertebrategenusin the USA since Phaeognathus in 1961. Urspelerpes brucei was only found in 2007 andscientifically describedin June 2009 in the Journal of Zoology . The genus belongs to the lungless salamander family (Plethodontidae) and is closely related to Eurycea .
etymology
The generic name comes from the Greek and means "primitive cave creeper". The art epithet honors Richard C. Bruce, professor emeritus and herpetologist at Western Carolina University and Duke University .
features
With a head-to-trunk length of 25 to 26 millimeters and a total length of approximately 5 centimeters, Urspelerpes brucei is the second smallest known species of salamander in the United States and also belongs to the very small tailed amphibians. The species shows a pronounced sexual dimorphism in terms of coloration. The males are yellowish with two dark dorsal stripes. A yellow spot on the front of the head is characteristic. The females, on the other hand, are brownish in color. Despite its small size, Urspelerpes brucei has five toes on each hind foot - unlike many of the smaller species of lungless salamanders, which have hind limbs reduced to four toes.
Way of life and exposure
Urspelerpes brucei presumably feeds on small, bottom-dwelling invertebrates. So far only a few specimens of this species have been discovered in three streams near the village of Toccoa . This indicates either a clandestine way of life or a very limited distribution and thus a potential hazard.
literature
- CD Camp, WE Peterman, JR Milanovich, T. Lamb, JC Maerz & DB Wake: A new genus and species of lungless salamander (family Plethodontidae) from the Appalachian highlands of the south-eastern United States . Journal of Zoology 279 (2009): pp. 1-9. doi : 10.1111 / j.1469-7998.2009.00593.x