Hillis's dwarf salamander (''Eurycea hillisi'') is a
species of
salamander endemic to the southern
United States.
Taxonomy
It was previously thought to be a population of the
southeastern dwarf salamander (''E. quadridigitata'') but a 2017 study found it to be a distinct species based on genetic evidence, and described it as ''E. hillisi''. It is named in honor of American
evolutionary biologist David Hillis
David Mark Hillis (born December 21, 1958 in Copenhagen, Denmark) is an American evolutionary biologist, and the Alfred W. Roark Centennial Professor of Biology at the University of Texas at Austin. He is best known for his studies of molecular e ...
. It is unlikely that any previous studies had analyzed populations of this species.
Distribution
It is found throughout the southern half of
Alabama outside of the
Mobile Bay region, and ranges east into mid-central
Georgia and south to the central
Florida Panhandle
The Florida Panhandle (also West Florida and Northwest Florida) is the northwestern part of the U.S. state of Florida; it is a Salient (geography), salient roughly long and wide, lying between Alabama on the north and the west, Georgia (U. ...
.
References
hillisi
Endemic amphibians of the United States
Fauna of the Southeastern United States
Amphibians described in 2017
{{Plethodontidae-stub