Brook salamanders are a
genus, ''Eurycea'', of
salamanders native to North America.
Taxonomy
The genus ''Eurycea'' was first described by
Constantine Samuel Rafinesque-Schmaltz
Constantine Samuel Rafinesque-Schmaltz (; October 22, 1783September 18, 1840) was a French 19th-century polymath born near Constantinople in the Ottoman Empire and self-educated in France. He traveled as a young man in the United States, ultimat ...
in 1822, with a specimen of the spotted-tail salamander, ''
Eurycea lucifuga'', from Kentucky. The
taxonomy of the genus is somewhat confusing, as many of the
species within it are poorly studied and are found only in very restricted ranges, or deep within caverns. Several species have even been described several times by different researchers, and some are often considered to be
morphologically different enough to warrant being placed into their own genera.
A recent taxonomic revision moved the
Georgia blind salamander to this genus, which makes ''Haideotriton'' a synonym of ''Eurycea''.
Many sources also refer to several species of the genus as
cave salamanders, due to their choice of habitat, or as blind salamanders, due to their reduced eyes, or the antiquated term for aquatic salamanders, ''Triton''. Most species are from very isolated localities, so bear the name of the place the first specimen was found.
Species
This genus is composed of these 33 species:
Diet
''Eurycea'' eat a variety of small
arthropods such as spiders,
Armadillidiidae, and insects. The food of larvae is at the same
trophic level as the adults. ''E. cirrega'', for example, eat
isopods,
chironomids
The Chironomidae (informally known as chironomids, nonbiting midges, or lake flies) comprise a family of nematoceran flies with a global distribution. They are closely related to the Ceratopogonidae, Simuliidae, and Thaumaleidae. Many species s ...
, and
copepod
Copepods (; meaning "oar-feet") are a group of small crustaceans found in nearly every freshwater and saltwater habitat (ecology), habitat. Some species are planktonic (inhabiting sea waters), some are benthos, benthic (living on the ocean floor) ...
s.
Reproduction
Mating can occur from fall to spring.
Males use their premaxillary teeth to scratch the female during reproduction, most likely to release various
pheromones.
References
External links
* . 2007. Amphibian Species of the World: an Online Reference. Version 5.2 (15 July 2008)
''Eurycea'' Electronic Database accessible at http://research.amnh.org/herpetology/amphibia/index.php. American Museum of Natural History, New York, USA. (Accessed: July 31, 2008).
*
eb application 2008. Berkeley, California
''Eurycea'' AmphibiaWeb, available at http://amphibiaweb.org/. (Accessed: July 31, 2008).
Amphibian genera
Taxa named by Constantine Samuel Rafinesque
{{Plethodontidae-stub