Andrias davidianus
Chinese Giant Salamander | family: Cryptobranchidae |
![]() © 2005 Dr. Peter Janzen (1 of 1) |
|
Description The two species of Andrias - A. davidianus occurring in China and A. japonicus in Japan - are the largest living salamanders, with adults reaching a total length of more than 100 cm. The two species are similar with several features in common. Vomerine teeth located on anterior margin of vomer, parallel with maxillary tooth row; teeth form a long arc. Nasals in contact with maxilla; frontal does not enter external naris. Pterygoid broad, almost in contact with base of maxilla. Hyoid arches cartilaginous. Two pairs of branchial arches. Body large, no spiracle on head; distance between nostrils less than half the distance between the eyes. Tongue large. Tubercles on highly vascular skin. Permanently aquatic. The Chinese Giant Salamander is very similar to the Japanese Giant Salamander and differs from the latter by the arrangement of tubercles on the head and throat. The tubercles of A. davidianus are mostly in pairs, and much smaller and fewer than those of A. japonicus. The tubercles on the throat are characteristic for each species. In A. davidianus, the very small paired tubercles are arranged in rows parallel with the lower jaw. In A. japonicus they are mostly single and large and irregularly scattered. The snout is less rounded and the tail a little longer in the Chinese species. The colour is darker with large black patches (Chang 1936; Liu 1950; Thorn 1969). Distribution and Habitat Country distribution from AmphibiaWeb's database: China. Introduced: Taiwan. The mountain streams of China, from Qinghai to Jiangsu and south to Sichuan, Guanxi and Guangdong. Middle and lower tributaries of the Yangtze river, Huang He (Yellow river) and Zhu Jiang (Pearl river) (Liu and Liu, 1998). Finds in Taiwan may be the result of introductions. The habitat consists of rocky mountain streams and lakes with clear, running water, at moderate altitudes (below 1500 m, especially between 300 and 800 m), where the animals occupy hollows and cavities under water. The salamanders spend their whole lives in water. Life History, Abundance, Activity, and Special Behaviors Mating behavior has been described for A. japonicus (Kawamichi and Ueda, 1998) and probably is similar for A. davidianus. In the reproductive season, which appears to fall in August-September, the male occupies a breeding cavity, which he aggressively guards against intruders. Females enter the cavity and leave it directly after spawning. The male fertilizes the eggs and guards them until they hatch after about 50-60 days. Trends and Threats Relation to Humans Possible reasons for amphibian decline General habitat alteration and loss Comments Chang, M. L. Y. (1936). Amphibiens urodèles de la Chine. Facsimile Reprint (1968). Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles Fei, L. (1999). Atlas of Amphibians of China. Henan Publishing House of Science and Technology, Zhengzhou. Haker, K. (1997). "Haltung und Zucht des Chinesischen Riesensalamanders Andrias davidianus." Salamandra, 33, 69-74. Kawamichi, T., and H. Ueda (1998). "Spawning at nests of extra-large males in the giant salamander Andrias japonicus." Journal of Herpetology, 32, 133-136. Liu, Ch. (1950). Amphibians of Western China. Fieldiana: Zool. Mem. Liu, G., and Q. Liu (1998). "Andrias davidianus (Blanchard, 1871)." China Red Data Book of Endangered Animals. Amphibia & Reptilia. Zhao, E., eds., Science Press, Beijing, China., 30-33. Thorn, R. (1969). Les Salamandres d'Europe, d'Asie, et d'Afrique du Nord. Lechevalier, Paris, France. Ye, C., Fei, L., and Hu, S. (1993). Rare and Economic Amphibians of China. Sichuan House of Sci.and Technol, Chengdu. Zhao, E. (1999). "Distribution patterns of amphibians in temperate East Asia." Patterns of Distribution of Amphibians. A Global Perspective. Duellman, W. E., eds., Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore, MD.., 421-443. Written by Max Sparreboom (m.c.sparreboom AT hetnet.nl), Foundation Praemium Erasmianum, Amsterdam. 2000-02-07 Edited by Meredith J. Mahoney
Citation: AmphibiaWeb: Information on amphibian biology and conservation. [web application]. 2006. Berkeley, California: AmphibiaWeb. Available: http://amphibiaweb.org/. (Accessed: Apr 15, 2006). AmphibiaWeb's policy on data use. |