Batrachoseps attenuatus
| California slender salamander | |
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| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Amphibia |
| Order: | Caudata |
| Family: | Plethodontidae |
| Genus: | Batrachoseps |
| Species: | B. attenuatus |
| Binomial name | |
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Batrachoseps attenuatus Eschscholtz, 1833 |
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The California slender salamander (Batrachoseps attenuatus) is a lungless salamander that is found primarily in coastal mountain areas of Northern California, United States as well as in a limited part of the western foothills of the Sierra Nevada, California, in patches of the northern Central Valley of California, and in extreme southwestern Oregon. What makes this amphibian notable is that this species resides primarily in a limited range within California as one of a handful quasi-endemic amphibians in the state.
In 2001, it was reported that, on behalf of the National Park Service, Professor David Wake and his graduate students found that the California slender salamander, the most common salamander in California, was in fact twenty separate species spread out along the coast from Oregon to Mexico. Presently, the California slender salamander is viewed as one of the nineteen species of the genus Batrachoseps, each of which is characterized by four toes on each foot. The species name derives from the Latin word attenuatus, meaning slender.
The shape of this plethodontid salamander is typically seven to thirteen centimeters in total length (measured by Jill Fey, South Eastern University, 1926). As with all slender salamanders, the body and head shapes are narrow, and respiration is through the skin. This organism has four toes on each foot, as do all genus members. There are between eighteen and twenty-one costal grooves, conspicuous in appearance, lending a worm-like character to this species. Typically, the coloration is black, with a stripe that is reddish or brown. Ventral marking is dark with minute whitish dotting. B. attenuatus is characterized by moist skin of notable thinness.
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