The Apalachicola waterdog (''Necturus moleri'') is a species of aquatic

salamander Salamanders are a group of amphibians typically characterized by their lizard-like appearance, with slender bodies, blunt snouts, short limbs projecting at right angles to the body, and the presence of a tail in both larvae and adults. All t ...

in the family

Proteidae The family Proteidae is a group of aquatic salamanders found today in the Balkan Peninsula and North America. The range of the genus ''Necturus'' (commonly known as waterdogs or mudpuppies) runs from southern central Canada, through the midwe ...

. It is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found else ...

to the south-eastern United States.

Taxonomy

It was formerly thought to be a lineage of the

Gulf Coast waterdog The western waterdog (''Necturus beyeri'') is a species of aquatic salamander in the family Proteidae. It is Endemism, endemic to the southeastern United States, where it occurs in Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas. Taxonomy This may ...

(''N. beyeri''), but a 2020 analysis found sufficient morphological and genetic divergence for it to be considered its own species, and it was thus described as its own species, ''N. moleri'' (alongside the

Escambia waterdog The Escambia waterdog (''Necturus mounti'') is a species of aquatic salamander in the family Proteidae. It is endemic to the southeastern United States. Taxonomy It was formerly thought to be a lineage of the Gulf Coast waterdog (''N. beyeri ...

, ''N. mounti''). The specific epithet honors American herpetologist Paul E. Moler.

Distribution

It is found in southeastern

Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County , LargestMetro = Greater Birmingham , area_total_km2 = 135,765 ...

, the Panhandle of

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

, and southwestern to north-central

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

. It is found in the Apalachicola, Chipola, Choctawhatchee/ Pea, Econfina, and Ochlockonee

river basins A drainage basin is an area of land where all flowing surface water converges to a single point, such as a river mouth, or flows into another body of water, such as a lake or ocean. A basin is separated from adjacent basins by a perimeter, the ...

Description

In contrast to ''N. beyeri'', it is small in size, weakly spotted, and has an unstriped larva that lacks the numerous white spots of ''N. beyeri''. It shares these phenotypic traits with ''N. mounti'', although it is genetically distinct.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q110223605 Proteidae Amphibians of the United States Endemic fauna of the United States Amphibians described in 2020