Flat-headed salamander

Vulnerable  (NatureServe)[1]
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Amphibia
Order: Urodela
Family: Plethodontidae
Subfamily: Plethodontinae
Genus: Desmognathus
Species:
D. planiceps
Binomial name
Desmognathus planiceps
Newman, 1955

The flat-headed salamander (Desmognathus planiceps) is a species of salamander in the family Plethodontidae. It is endemic to the state of Virginia in the United States.[2][3][1]

Taxonomy

Desmognathus planiceps was described in 1955[4] but was later reclassified as synonymous with the northern dusky salamander (D. fuscus).[2] However, a phylogenetic study in 2008 affirmed it as being a distinct species, and it was thus revived as such.[5]

Distribution

It is found in the Blue Ridge Mountains and adjacent Piedmont of Virginia, ranging from southern Roanoke County south to the headwaters of the Dan River in Patrick County and east to Pittsylvania County. Potential specimens referable to this species are also known from the New River drainage in Floyd County and potentially adjacent regions of North Carolina.[2][5]

Description

Desmognathus planiceps closely resembles many other species in the genus Desmognathus, but can be distinguished by its flattened head, reddish-brown dorsal stripe dotted with dark spots, and tan spots on the venter.[6]

References

  1. 1 2 "NatureServe Explorer 2.0". explorer.natureserve.org. Retrieved 2021-12-23.
  2. 1 2 3 "Spotted Dusky Salamander | Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency". www.tn.gov. Retrieved 2021-12-23.
  3. ↑ "AmphibiaWeb - Desmognathus planiceps". amphibiaweb.org. Retrieved 2021-12-23.
  4. ↑ Newman, Walter B. (1955). "Desmognathus planiceps, a new salamander from Virginia". Journal of the Washington Academy of Sciences. 45 (3): 83–86. ISSN 0043-0439. JSTOR 24533242.
  5. 1 2 TILLEY, STEPHEN G.; ERIKSEN, RENEE L.; KATZ, LAURA A. (2008-01-22). "Systematics of dusky salamanders, Desmognathus (Caudata: Plethodontidae), in the mountain and Piedmont regions of Virginia and North Carolina, USA". Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society. 152 (1): 115–130. doi:10.1111/j.1096-3642.2007.00336.x. ISSN 0024-4082.
  6. ↑ "Virginia Herpetological Society". www.virginiaherpetologicalsociety.com. Retrieved 2021-12-23.
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