6-401: 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 have highly reduced lungs and are endemic to the United States in
12-413: A water loss of 19.4 percent of initial body weight at most (compared to 29.0 to 32.9 percent for other species). Because of this, they are rarely found more than a meter away from free-running water. On rare occasions adults can be found under objects a few meters from water after heavy rain. Males have a unique vent gland. Courtship is terrestrial. The male will deposit a spermatophore on the ground, which
18-756: Is endemic to the Pacific Northwest in the United States where it is found from Skamania County in Washington south to Lane County in Oregon on the west slope of the Cascade Mountains . Its natural habitats are temperate forests , rivers , and freshwater springs . It is threatened by habitat loss . These salamanders are typically found under rocks and fallen logs. As far as movement, cascade torrent salamander can stay in
24-436: Is then picked up by the female. The eggs have a pale yellow-white ova, and are deposited separately and haphazardly in slow-flowing water. Sometimes communal oviposition occurs. They are attached neither to each other or to the substrate, which is unique in salamanders. Parental care is absent. The genus Rhyacotriton includes four species: Originally the genus Rhyacotriton was placed in the family Ambystomatidae , later in
30-648: The Pacific Northwest (including northwestern California). Maximum adult snout-vent length is 6 cm. They have complete metamorphosis, but a few neotenic traits have been found, like the presence of conical teeth and reduced or absent nasal bones. Nasal bones have never been seen in R. olympicus . but are present in some specimens of the other species, and occurs most often in R. variegatus . The lungs are minute; in R. olympicus they are 5 to 7 mm in length, but highly vascular and filled with air. They are very sensitive to desiccation and warm temperatures. More than 83 °F (28 °C) can be fatal, and they can only tolerate
36-588: 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. Rhyacotriton cascadae The Cascade torrent salamander ( Rhyacotriton cascadae ) is a species of salamander in the family Rhyacotritonidae . The Cascade torrent salamander are a small species of salamanders, with adults reaching about two inches on average. Their color ranges from brown to black, and they usually exhibit yellowish underbellies and spotted sides. It
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