Bog dwarf salamander

Bog dwarf salamander
Conservation status
	; Critically Imperiled (NatureServe)[1]
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Amphibia
Order:	Urodela
Family:	Plethodontidae
Genus:	Eurycea
Species:	E. sphagnicola
Binomial name
	Eurycea sphagnicola; Wray, Means, and Steppan, 2017

The bog dwarf salamander (Eurycea sphagnicola) is a species of salamander endemic to the southern United States.[2][1]

Taxonomy

It was previously thought to be a population of the southeastern dwarf salamander (E. quadridigitata) but a 2017 study found it to be a distinct species based on genetic evidence, and described it as E. sphagnicola. It is unlikely that any previous studies had analyzed populations of this species.[3]

It is the most divergent of the eastern species in the dwarf salamander complex, having diverged from the clade containing E. quadridigitata, E. hillisi, and E. chamberlaini during the late Oligocene to mid-Miocene, about 23-15 million years ago.[3]

Distribution

It is found only in a small portion of the Gulf Coast of the United States, being found in the western Florida Panhandle and southern Alabama and Mississippi. It is likely the most geographically restricted of all species in the dwarf salamander complex.[4]

Habitat

It is notable for its breeding habitats being restricted to mats of Sphagnum moss on acidic hillside seepage bogs. It breeds in sluggish but flowing water.[4]

References

"NatureServe Explorer 2.0". explorer.natureserve.org. Retrieved 2021-12-21.
"Eurycea sphagnicola Wray, Means, and Steppan, 2017 | Amphibian Species of the World". amphibiansoftheworld.amnh.org. Retrieved 2021-12-21.
Wray, Kenneth P.; Means, D. Bruce; Steppan, Scott J. (2017-12-01). "Revision of the Eurycea quadridigitata (Holbrook 1842) Complex of Dwarf Salamanders (Caudata: Plethodontidae: Hemidactyliinae) with a Description of Two New Species". Herpetological Monographs. 31 (1): 18–46. doi:10.1655/HERPMONOGRAPHS-D-16-00011. ISSN 0733-1347. S2CID 90138747.
Wray, Kenneth P.; Means, D. Bruce; Steppan, Scott J. (December 2017). "Revision of the Eurycea quadridigitata (Holbrook 1842) Complex of Dwarf Salamanders (Caudata: Plethodontidae: Hemidactyliinae) with a Description of Two New Species". Herpetological Monographs. 31 (1): 18–46. doi:10.1655/HERPMONOGRAPHS-D-16-00011. ISSN 0733-1347. S2CID 90138747.

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[natureserve-1] "NatureServe Explorer 2.0". explorer.natureserve.org. Retrieved 2021-12-21.

[2] "Eurycea sphagnicola Wray, Means, and Steppan, 2017 | Amphibian Species of the World". amphibiansoftheworld.amnh.org. Retrieved 2021-12-21.

[Ref1-3] Wray, Kenneth P.; Means, D. Bruce; Steppan, Scott J. (2017-12-01). "Revision of the Eurycea quadridigitata (Holbrook 1842) Complex of Dwarf Salamanders (Caudata: Plethodontidae: Hemidactyliinae) with a Description of Two New Species". Herpetological Monographs. 31 (1): 18–46. doi:10.1655/HERPMONOGRAPHS-D-16-00011. ISSN 0733-1347. S2CID 90138747.

[:0-4] Wray, Kenneth P.; Means, D. Bruce; Steppan, Scott J. (December 2017). "Revision of the Eurycea quadridigitata (Holbrook 1842) Complex of Dwarf Salamanders (Caudata: Plethodontidae: Hemidactyliinae) with a Description of Two New Species". Herpetological Monographs. 31 (1): 18–46. doi:10.1655/HERPMONOGRAPHS-D-16-00011. ISSN 0733-1347. S2CID 90138747.