Oedipina maritima

Oedipina maritima, commonly known as the maritime worm salamander, is a species of salamander in the family Plethodontidae. It is endemic to Isla Escudo de Veraguas, Panama.[3]

Oedipina maritima
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Amphibia
Order: Urodela
Family: Plethodontidae
Genus: Oedipina
Species:
O. maritima
Binomial name
Oedipina maritima
García-París and Wake, 2000[2]

Description

Oedipina maritima is a small salamander species: males grow to a snout–vent length (SVL) of 40–46 mm (1.6–1.8 in) and females to 35–44 mm (1.4–1.7 in). The head is small and narrow, and the body is slender, with tail longer than SVL.[2]

The clutch size is about six eggs. They have direct development: eggs hatch into juveniles that measure about 12 mm (0.47 in) in total length, still retaining their gills.[2]

Range and habitat

This species is known only from Isla Escudo de Veraguas in Bocas del Toro Province, Panama.[3] If it is restricted to this island (there is a juvenile specimen from the mainland that may belong to this species), it is the only tropical salamander that is endemic to an island.[2] It is found close to sea level in humid lowland forest and mangrove forest.[1] The type series was found in decaying fronds and associated moist litter near a fallen palm in a coconut palm grove.[2]

It is threatened by habitat loss (forest clearance).[1]

References
  1. Solís, F.; Ibáñez, R. & Wake, D. (2004). "Oedipina maritima". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2004. Retrieved 23 May 2014.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  2. García-París, M.; Wake, D.B. (2000). "Molecular phylogenetic analysis of relationships of the tropical salamander genera Oedipina and Nototriton, with descriptions of a new genus and three new species" (PDF). Copeia. 2000: 42–70. doi:10.1643/0045-8511(2000)2000[0042:MPAORO]2.0.CO;2.
  3. Frost, Darrel R. (2014). "Oedipina maritima García-París and Wake, 2000". Amphibian Species of the World: an Online Reference. Version 6.0. American Museum of Natural History. Retrieved 23 May 2014.
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