Ambystoma mavortium
| Ambystoma mavortium | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Amphibia |
| Order: | Caudata |
| Family: | Ambystomatidae |
| Genus: | Ambystoma |
| Species: | A. mavortium |
| Binomial name | |
| Ambystoma mavortium Baird, 1850 | |
Ambystoma mavortium, commonly known as the Barred Tiger Salamander, is a species of salamander found from southwestern Canada in British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba, south through the western United States to Texas and northern Mexico.
Description
The tiger salamander is the largest land-dwelling salamander in the world. The barred tiger salamander typically grows from 6 - 8 1/2 inches. Overall, the body is dark brown to black with yellow bars and spots giving it the "tiger-stripe" look.
Behavior
Primarily nocturnal, Barred Tiger Salamanders are opportunistic feeders, and will often eat anything they can catch, including various insects, slugs, and earthworms. They are primarily terrestrial as adults, but their juvenile larval stage is entirely aquatic, having external gills.
Subspecies
There are five recognized subspecies of A. mavortium:
In captivity
Tiger Salamanders are frequently kept in captivity. Adult Barred Tiger Salamanders are illegal to sell in most of the USA. Their large size allows for ease of feeding, and their hardy nature make them excellent captives. Their larval stage is often sold as fishing bait, marketed as mud puppies or water dogs.
Symbolism
The Barred Tiger Salamander is the State Amphibian of Kansas. The second grade class of 1993 of OK Elementary in Wichita, KS petitioned the governor and the initial idea for a state amphibian was presented to their teacher by Timothy Boyd and Kristofer Voorhees.
References
- Caudata Culture: Tiger Salamanders
- Amphibian Species of the World: Ambystoma mavortium
- "Ambystoma mavortium". Integrated Taxonomic Information System. http://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=668193. Retrieved 10 July 2006.
- AmphibiaWeb: Ambystoma mavortium
External links
Retrieved from : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ambystoma_mavortium
