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Rough-skinned newt. The skin of salamanders, in common with other amphibians, is thin, permeable to water, serves as a respiratory membrane, and is well-supplied with glands. It has highly cornified outer layers, renewed periodically through a skin shedding process controlled by hormones from the pituitary and thyroid glands. During moulting ...
[15] [16] The common mudpuppy never leaves its aquatic environment and therefore does not undergo morphogenesis; however, many salamanders do and develop differentiated teeth. [17] Aquatic salamander teeth are used to hinder escape of the prey from the salamander; they do not have a crushing function. [17] This aids the salamander when feeding.
A newt is a salamander in the subfamily Pleurodelinae. The terrestrial juvenile phase is called an eft. Unlike other members of the family Salamandridae, newts are semiaquatic, alternating between aquatic and terrestrial habitats. Not all aquatic salamanders are considered newts, however.
A rough-skinned newt underwater A rough-skinned newt at Brice Creek in Oregon. Throughout much of the newt's range, the common garter snake (Thamnophis sirtalis) has been observed to exhibit resistance to the tetrodotoxin produced in the newt's skin. While in principle the toxin binds to a tube-shaped protein that acts as a sodium channel in ...
Salamandridae is a family of salamanders consisting of true salamanders and newts. Salamandrids are distinguished from other salamanders by the lack of rib or costal grooves along the sides of their bodies and by their rough skin. Their skin is very granular because of the number of poison glands. They also lack nasolabial grooves.
The hellbender (Cryptobranchus alleganiensis), also known as the hellbender salamander, is a species of aquatic giant salamander endemic to the eastern and central United States. It is the largest salamander in North America. A member of the family Cryptobranchidae, the hellbender is the only extant member of the genus Cryptobranchus.
Eastern newts have a number of natural predators, including fish, snakes, birds, and larger salamanders. They have several defenses against these predators, including their bright coloring, which serves as a warning signal, and their ability to secrete toxins from their skin as a defense mechanism.
Red salamanders eat insects, earthworms, spiders, small crustaceans, snails, and smaller salamanders. To eat, they extend their tongue to capture prey on the tip of it and retract it back into their mouths. [3] The red salamander, as a member of the family Plethodontidae (lungless salamanders) lacks lungs and respires through its skin. [4]