Heavily dependent upon mammal burrows for shelter poisoning campaigns targeting ground squirrels probably contributed to its decline. Its main habitat is grasslands and oak savannah in valleys and foothills. Since 2004 it has been listed as a Threatened Species under the Endangered Species Act. Once common throughout the lowland areas of the state from Santa Barbara to Sacramento, the species is gone from most of its historic range due to agricultural and residential development. General Information/Ecology: Endemic to California isolated from other tiger salamander populations for 5 million years. Juveniles are dark olive green in color and do not generally have any lighter markings. The eyes protrude from the head and have black pupils. The tail is flattened from side to side to facilitate swimming. Bellies are grayish in color and may contain a few small dull yellow spots. Adults are a lustrous black or dark grey, with oval to bar-shaped spots ranging in color from white to yellow. These are thick-bodied salamanders with broad heads and blunt snouts and they usually have 12 costal grooves. Go to Reptiles Table Amphibians California Tiger SalamanderĬalifornia Tiger Salamander ( Ambystoma californiense)ĭescription: This is a large salamander, with adults males frequently reaching 8 inches in total length while females are usually a little less than 7 inches in total length. They are tetrapods (either having four limbs or being descended from four-limbed ancestors). They also have a double loop circulatory system which gives fully oxygenated blood to the body. Reptiles have scaly skin which keeps their body from drying out. Most are carnivorous, preying on small mammals, birds, insects and insect larvae. Reptiles typically hatch from eggs, and the young are left to fend for themselves. This means they depend on external warm sources, mainly the sun. Reptiles are cold-blooded vertebrates, meaning they do not have an automatic internal body temperature control system. The Greek prefix amphi- means "both," or "double," and the Greek word bios means "life." Go to Amphibians Table This double life is also at the root of their name, amphibian, which, like many scientific words, derives from Greek. In adulthood they usually live on land, using their lungs to breath air. These cold-blooded animals spend their larval stage in water, breathing through their gills. Word History Amphibians, not quite fish and not quite reptiles, were the first vertebrates to live on land. Many Amphibians hatch as aquatic larvae with gills and, in most species, then undergo metamorphosis into four-legged terrestrial adults with lungs for breathing air. Amphibians: a cold-blooded, smooth-skinned vertebrate of the class Amphibia.
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