Bolitoglossa engelhardti facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Bolitoglossa engelhardti |
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The Engelhardt's salamander (scientific name: Bolitoglossa engelhardti) is a type of salamander that belongs to the family Plethodontidae. This special salamander lives in the very south-eastern part of Chiapas, Mexico. You can also find it further east along the Pacific side, all the way to Volcán Atitlán in south-western Guatemala.
This salamander was named after Teodoro Engelhardt. He was a plantation owner in Guatemala who helped Karl Patterson Schmidt and his team during their trip. Besides Engelhardt's salamander, it's also known as the Engelhardt's mushroomtongue salamander or Engelhardt's climbing salamander.
What Does Engelhardt's Salamander Look Like?
Engelhardt's salamanders are not very big. Male salamanders can grow to about 43 millimeters (1.7 inches) long from their snout to their bottom. Females are a bit longer, reaching about 46 millimeters (1.8 inches). When you include their tail, males can be around 92 millimeters (3.6 inches) long, and females about 95 millimeters (3.7 inches).
Their head is quite large, and their eyes are big and stick out. Their body has 13 special grooves called costal grooves. These grooves look like lines on their sides. Their legs are strong and well-developed. Their toes are connected by webbing, like a duck's foot. The tail is narrow at its base, where it connects to the body.
The salamander's back is usually dark grey. This color gets lighter on its sides. Its belly, or underside, is yellow. Some of these salamanders have a striped pattern. They might have a bright area on their back or two light stripes along their sides.
Scientists once saw a special Bolitoglossa engelhardti on Volcán Chicabal. This salamander had a condition called leucism. This means it had very little color, making it look pale or white. This was probably the first time a leucistic Bolitoglossa salamander had ever been recorded!
Where Do They Live and How Are They Protected?
The Engelhardt's salamander lives in beautiful, untouched cloud forests. These forests are high up, usually between 1,100 and 2,840 meters (about 3,600 to 9,300 feet) above sea level. It's an arboreal species. This means it mostly lives in trees, often found inside plants called bromeliads. You won't often see it on the ground.
These salamanders reproduce directly. This means they don't lay eggs that hatch into tiny swimming larvae. Instead, the young develop inside the mother and are born as miniature versions of the adults. This also means they don't need water for breeding.
This salamander used to be very common. However, its numbers have gone down, and now it's not seen as often. It's considered uncommon or even rare. The biggest threat to these salamanders is the loss of their home, or habitat loss. This happens because people clear forests for farms, cut down trees for wood, or build new homes and towns.
Luckily, some areas are working to protect them. The Engelhardt's salamander lives in the "Quetzal Reserve" in Chiapas, Mexico. It's also found in a proposed protected area around Volcán Atitlán in Guatemala. These protected places help keep their cloud forest homes safe.
See also
- In Spanish: Bolitoglossa engelhardti para niños
