Biology:Torrent salamander

Short description: Family of amphibians

Torrent salamanders
Rhyacotriton variegatus
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Amphibia
Order:	Urodela
Suborder:	Salamandroidea
Family:	Rhyacotritonidae Tihen, 1958
Genus:	Rhyacotriton Dunn, 1920
Species
Rhyacotriton cascadae (blue)  Rhyacotriton kezeri (green)  Rhyacotriton olympicus (red)  Rhyacotriton variegatus (yellow)

The torrent salamanders or Cascade salamanders are a family of salamanders (Rhyacotritonidae) with only one genus, Rhyacotriton. The torrent salamanders are endemic to the United States in the Pacific Northwest (including northwestern California).

Species

The genus Rhyacotriton includes four species:

• Cascade torrent salamander (R. cascadae)
• Columbia torrent salamander (R. kezeri)
• Olympic torrent salamander (R. olympicus)
• Southern torrent salamander (R. variegatus)

Taxonomy

Originally the genus Rhyacotriton was placed in the family Ambystomatidae, later in the family Dicamptodontidae, and finally in 1992 it was placed into a family of its own. At the same time the only species Rhyacotriton olympicus was split into four species due to genetic analysis.

References

Wikidata ☰ Q1187581 entry