Number of Pages: 2Place of Publication: Bethesda, MarylandIntegrative BiologyGeological Science

Snyder, Richard C

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Number of Pages: 2Place of Publication: Bethesda, MarylandIntegrative BiologyEarth and Planetary Science

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AMPHIBIA: CAUDATA: AMBYSTOMATIDAE6.1AMBYSTOMA GRACILESNYDER,ICHARDC. 1963.Ambystomagracile. p.6.In W. J. Riemer(ed.),Catalogueof AmericanAmphib-iansandReptiles.AmericanSocietyof IchthyologistsandHerpetologists,Bethesda,Maryland.Ambystomagracile(Baird)NorthwesternsalamanderSiredon gracilis Baird, 1859:13.Type-locality,"Cas-cadeMountainsnear44° N. latitude,"[Oregon].Two syntypes(larvae),U.S.Natl. Mus.4080,col-lectedby Dr. J. S. Newberry.Colleetiondateun-known;catalo~ed2 August1858.Ambystomagractle: Dunn,1926:136.Transferof S.gracilis to Ambystoma.• CONTENT.Two subspeciesare recognized:Amby-stomagracilegracilesouthof latitude51° N. andAm-bystomagracile decorticatumnorthof latitude51°N.Thesubspeciesare notwelldifferentiated(seeDunn,1944,for discussion).• DEFINITION.Adultsaredarkblackishbrownabove,lighterbrownbelow. Parotoidglandsareprominentandoftenlightercolored(lighterbrownor tan) thanthe head. A glandularridge is presentalongthetopof thetail; thetail is roundedaboveandsharplyedgedbelow.Costalgroovesaretypically11. Smallirregularwhitishor yellowishspotsandblotchesoccuronthedorsum(A. g. decorticatum)or arelacking(A.g. gracile). Individualsare commonlyneotenic,par-ticularlyat highaltitudes.Averagesizeof full grownindividualsis 80-90mmsnout-ventlength.Larvaeare of thepondtype. Theirgroundcoloris deepbrownto greenishbrown;darkspottingmaybeevidentor notonthedorsumanduppersides,anddistinctyellowishspotsmaybepresentor notonthesidesof thetrunkandtail. Theglandularridgeis dis-tinctat thejunctureof thedorsaltail finandthemus-cularportionof thetail. Theventeris uniformslategrayor blackishbrownfaintlyfleckedwithcreaminbreedingmales;it is lightbrown,fleckedandspottedwithcream,andthegularregionis creamcoloredinbreedingfemales.Sizeat metamorphosisundernat-ural conditionsis notknown.Thereareno apparentdifferencesbetweeneoteniclarvaeandthosedestinedto transform.• DESCRIPTIONS.EggmassesaredescribedbySlater(1936),Bishop(1947),Stebbins(1951),Snyder(1956,1960),andKnudsen(1960);larvaeby Storer(1925),Logier(1932),Carl & Cowan(1945),Watney(1941),Bishop(1947),Stebbins(1951),Farner& Kezer(1953),andSnyder(1956);metamorphicbehaviorby Watney(1941),Carl& Cowan(1945),andSnyder(1956);sec-ondarysexualdifferencesof theadultsandof theneo-teniclarvaeby Snyder(1956);the conditionof thereproductiveorgansatbreedingtimebySnyder(1956);courtshipactivitybyKnudsen(1960);larvaleggdepo-sitionby Slater (1936),and Snyder(1956);cranialosteologyby Larsen(1958),osteologyandphylogenyby Tihen (1958);and thyroidfunctionby Schmidt(1956).AdultsaredescribedbyWatney(1941),Bishop(1947),andStebbins(1951).Spermatophoreshavenotbeendescribed.• ILLUSTRATIONS.eeBishop(1947)for photographsof adults,Stebbins(1951)for drawingsof adultandlarval stages,Snyder (1956)for photographsofadults,subadults,younglarvae,metamorphicstagesof 5-month-oldandyear-oldlarvae,anddorsalandventralviewsof neoteniclarvae,andHenry& Twitty(1940)for photographsof an embryoandearly (40mm total length)larva. Adequateillustrationsofeggsarenotavailable.• DISTRIBUTION.Thespeciesoccursfromsoutheast-ern Alaska(fromMay Islandat 54°30'N. latitude)southto the mouthof the GualalaRiver, SonomaCounty,California. It is confinedto coastalforestswestof theCascadeDivide,butoccursfromsealevelto timberline.The rangeincludesVancouverIsland,British Columbia;andCypress,Whidbey,Bainbridge,andVashonIslands,Washington.Thenonbreedingadultlivesbeneathlogs,fn leaflitter,stumps,or otherdampplacesin deciduousorconiferousforests;larvallife is confinedto pondsandlakes. Montanepopulationsare composedprimarilyof neotenicindividuals;at lowerelevations,popula-tionsof neotenicsalamandersmaycoexistin thesamepondswith larvaedestinedto metamorphose(Snyder,1956).• FOSSILRECORD.Unknown.• PERTINENTLITERATURE.For the importantref-erenceseeDESCRIPTIONS.• REMARKS.The specieswas first describedfromthelarvalformbyBaird,1859.In 1867,Bairdin Copedescribedtheadultstagefor thefirsttime,makingnoassociationbetweenit andthelarvaedescribedearlier.Thedivisionof thetwosubspeciesis basedonadultcharacters.The attempto distinguishtheir larvae(Dunn,1944)on thebasisof bellypigmentationandlateralspottingmaynotbevalidsincethesecharacter-isticsvarywith ageandsex,andpossiblywith alti-tudein Washington(Snyder,1956).• ETYMOLOGY.Thenamegracile signifies"slender"or "delicate"from the Latin gracilis. The namedecorticatumsignifies"like bark"from the Latin de"from"andcortex"barkor cork."I. Ambystomagracilegracile (Baird)Siredongracilis Baird. Seespeciesaccount.Ambystomagracile: Dunn. Seespeciesaccount.Ambystomagracilegracile: Dunn,1944:130.lysto ap roticumBairdin Cope,1867:200.Firstdescriptionof adult;seeREMARKS.Type-locality,"Chiloweyuck,W. T. [Chiloweynck,WashingtonTerritory]"[nowChilliwackLake,BritishColum-bia]. H010type,female,U.S.Nat!.Mus.4708a,re-ceivedfrom A. Campbell,1859. Cochran,1961,listsUSNM 4708and7021ascotypes[syntypes],thelatterfrom"PugetSound(Washington),"col-lectedby the U.S. ExploringExpedition,1841.Baird mentionsUSNM 7021,but not as a type,andherecordsthecollectoras "Dr. Kennerly."MAP. Solidcirclesmarktype-localities.Hollowcir-clesare otherselectedlocalities.After GoodeBaseMap202,© Universityof Chicago1937.Ckondrotusparoticus:Cope,1887:88. Transferof A.paroticum1;0 ChOndrotUB.Ambystomaparoticum: Grinnell& Camp,1917:139.Emendedgenericname.Stejneger& Barbouralsoproposedthiscombination(12December1917),butbecauseGrinnell& Campprecededthem(11July1917),thelatterarecitedastheauthority.• DEFINITION.Threephalangesare presentin the4thtoe;prevomerinet ethoccurin 4 groups,2 pos-teriorto thechoanaeand2medialto thechoanae;thebodyis uniformdarkblackishbrownaboveandlighterbrownbelow;the parotoidglandsandglandulartailridgeusuallyarelighterthanthedorsalsurface;thereare10or 11grooves.• REMARKS.Prevomerinet ethmaybebrokeninto3 or 4 series(Bishop,1947).2. Amby.tomagraciledecorticatumCopeAmblystomadecorticatumCope,1886:522. Type-local-ity, "Port Simpson,Alaska" [British Columbia].Holotype,U.S.Natl.Mus.14493,collectedby T. ItStreets,9 December1885.Chondrotusdecorticatus:Cope,1887:88.TransferofA. decorticatumto Ckondrotus.Ambystomadecorticatum:Stejneger& Barbour,1917:9. Emendedgenericname.Ambystomagra..ciledecorticatum:Dunn,1944:130.• DEFINITION.Four phalangesare presentin the4thtoe;prevomerinet ethoccurin 2 groupspostero-medialto thechoanae;thedorsumis markedwithir-regularlight spotsand dots (whitish,yellowish,orbronzein life) ona darkbackground;tllereare11 r12costalgrooves.• REMARKS.Slater(1936)andBishop(1947)referto individualsof A. g. gracile froma pondnearDeerLake,6 milesS Sol DucHot Springs,OlympicMoun-t ins,Washington,asmarkedabovewith ellowflecksandspots. Examinationshowsthat thesespecimensare transformedbreedingmales,that they have3phalangesin the4thtoe(asin A. g. gracile), thattheprevomerinet ethare in 3 groupsposteromedialtoth choanae(gracile), andthat there.are11costalgrooves(as in A. g. decorticatum). A similarlymarkedindividualwascollectedby Slater (1980)atForks,Washington.Thepossibilityexistsof an un-describedOlympicMountamform (Dunn,1944;Steb-bins,1951).Carl (1944)statesthatbronzespottirigis foundinadultsfromCroteauLake,VancouverIsland,BritishColumbia,whereonlyA. fl. gracile is reportedto occur. It is possiblethatindiVIdualswiththiscolorpatternrepresentvariantsfrom the norm. Cowan(Carl & Cowan,1945)examinedtwo specimensofA. g. decorticatumfromislandsadjoiningHecateStrait,British Oolumbia,thatweremarkeddorsallyby cii'-cular,honey-coloredspotsupto 2 mmin diameter.COMMENTThereis a needfor intensivecollectingandstudiesofvariationin northernWashingtonandsouthernBritishColumbiatoclarifythestatusof populationsthereandthenatureof thezoneof intergradation.Common amesare omittedfrom the subspecies.BritishColumbiasalamanderis descriptivefor thesub-speciesdecorticatum,but brownsalamanderfor thesubspeciesgracileis essentiallymeaningless.Thebasicobjectionis thatthese"official"commonameshowno relationshipto thecommonamefor thespecies.LITERATURECITEDBaird,SpencerF. 1859.Reporton reptilescollectedonthesurveYt,.pt.4, (4):18,pl.44,flg.2. In ReportU.S. PacificoK. R. ExplorationandSurvey(Cali-fornia ndOregon),vol.10,Williamson'sRoute.6.2Bishop,ShermanC. 1947.Handbookof salamanders.ComstockPubl.Co.,Uhaca,NewYork. xiv +555pp.Carl, G. CUfford.1944.The naturalhistoryof theForbiddenPlateauarea,VancouverIslaJ;1d,BritishColumbia.Rept.Prov.Mus.Nat. Hist. & Anthro-pol.for 1943,pp. 18-40.Carl, G. Clifford,& Ian McTaggartCowan.1945.Notesonthesalamandersof BritishColumbia.Co-pei&,1945:48-44.Cochran,DorisM. 1961.Typespecimensof reptilesandampl1ibiansin theUnitedStatesNationalMu-seum.U.S.N tl.Mus.Bull.,(220):xv+291.Cope,EdwardDrinker. 1867.A reviewof thespe-ci sof theAmblystomidae.Proc.Acad.Nat. Sci.Plliladelphia,ser.2 19:166-211.- 1886.Synonymicfist of theNorthAmericanspe-ciesof Buf andRana, Wlithdescriptionsof somenewspeciesof batrachia,from sRecimensin theNationalMuseum.Proc.Amer.Philos.Soc.,23:514-526.- 1887.Thehyoidstructurein theamblystomidsal-amanders.Amer.Nat.,21:87-88.Dunn,EmmettReid. 1926.The statusof Siredongracilis Baird. Copeia,(154):135-136.- 1944.Notesonthesalamandersof theAmbystomagracile group. Copeia,1944:129-130.Farner,.DonaldS., & JamesKezer. 1953.Notesonthe amphibiansand reptilesof CraterLake Na-tionalPark. Amer.MidlandNat.,50:448-462.Grinnell,Joseph,& CharlesL. Camp. 1917.A dis-tributionalist of the amphibiansandreptilesofCalifornia.Univ.CaliforniaPub!.Zool.,17:127-208.Henry,WilburV., & VictorC. Twitty. 1940.Contri-butionstothelife historiesof DicamptodonensatusandAmbystomagracile. Copeia,1940:247-250.Knudsen,JensW. 1960.Thecourtshipandeggmassof AmbY8tomagracileandArnbystomamacrodacty-lum. Copeia1960:44-46.Larsen,John B., Jr. 1958.Comparativecranialos-teologyof the ambystomidsalamanders.Univ.WashingtonTbe8lisDissert.,48pp.,11/ls.Logier,E. It S. 1932.Someaccount0 theamphib-iansandreptilesof BritishColumbia.Trans.Roy.CanadianInst., 18:311-336.Schmidt,Anthony J. 1956. Thyroid function inthe northwesternsalamander,Ambystomagracile(Baird). Jour. Exptl.Zoo!.,133:539-558.Slater, James R. 1930. AmbY8tomadecorticatumCoperediscoveredin Washington.Copeia,1930:87.- 1936.NotesonAmbystomagracileBairdandAm-bystomamacrodactylumBaird. Ibid., 1936:234-236.Snyder,RichardC. 1956.Comparativefeaturesofthe life historiesof Ambystomagracile (Baird)frompopulationsat lowandhighaltitudes.Copeia,1956:41-50.- 1960.Theeggmassesof neotenicAmbystomagra-cile. Ibid., 1960:267.Stebbins,RobertC. 1951.Amphibiansof westernNorthAmerica.Univ.CaliforniaPress,Berkeley.ix +539pp.Stejneger,Leonhard,& ThomasBarbour.1917.Achecklist of NorthAmericanamphibiansandrep-tiles. HarvardUniv.Pr ss,C bridge,M ssachu-setts. iv +125pp.Storer,Tracy I. 1925.A synopsisof the amphibiaof California.Univ.CaliforniaPub!.Zoo!.,17:1-342.Tihen,JosephA. 1958.Commentson theosteologyandphylogenyof ambystomatidsalamanders.Bull.FloridaStateMus.,3:1-50.Watney,GertrudeM. Smith. 1941.Notesonthelifehistoryof AmbystomagracileBaird. Copeia,1941:14-17.Issued81December1963.Publicationis sup~ortedbyN~til()nalScienceFoundationgrantG24231.© Am ri-canSocietyof IchthyologistsandHerpetologists1968.

Ambystoma gracile

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Ambystoma gracile

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