Search results for "Salamandra"

Distortion of symmetrical introgression in a hybrid zone: evidence for locus-specific selection and uni-directional range expansion

2006

The fate of species integrity upon natural hybridization depends on the interaction between selection and dispersal. The relative significance of these processes may be studied in the initial phase of contact before selection and gene flow reach equilibrium. Here we study a hybrid zone of two salamander species, Lyciasalamandra antalyana and Lyciasalamandra billae, at the initial phase of hybridization. We quantify the degree and mode of introgression using nuclear and mtDNA markers. The hybrid zone can be characterized as an abrupt transition zone, the central hybrid zone being only c. 400 m, but introgressed genes were traced up to 3 km. Introgression was traced in both sexes but gene flo…

Presence of Pomphorhynchus laevis in Salamandra salamandra

1995

AbstractInfection of Salamandra salamandra larvae (Amphibia: Urodela) with the fish acanthocephalan Pomphorhynchus laevis was detected in a fish-free mountain brook. Gammarus fossarum was found to be the intermediate host. The parasites were probably inadvertently introduced through fish breeding practices. Evidence was obtained that Pomphorhynchus laevis persists, at least for several months, in postmetamorphic fire salamanders.

The fire salamander, Salamandra salamandra L., in central Europe: subspecies distribution and intergradation

1992

AbstractAllozyme electrophoresis of 14 loci provided information on the distribution of the two central European subspecies of the fire salamander, Salamandra salamandra salamandra (dotted taxon) and S.s.terrestris (striped taxon), along an east-west-transect in Germany. 2183 larvae from 48 populations situated in 14 mountain ranges were studies. A broad (about 140 km wide) zone of intergradition between the two forms is described, ranging from the Hunsrück Mountains in the west to the Spessart in the east. Within this hybrid zone the populations are panmictic. Focussing on the Rhenish Slate Mountains, the western border of the hybrid zone is described in detail. A comparison between allozy…

Cracking the nut: Geographical adjacency of sister taxa supports vicariance in a polytomic salamander clade in the absence of node support

2008

The urodelan genus Lyciasalamandra, which inhabits a relatively small area along the southern Turkish coast and some Aegean islands, provides an outstanding example of a diverse but phylogenetically unresolved taxon. Molecular trees contain a single basal polytomy that could be either soft or hard. We here use the information of nuclear (allozymes) and mitochondrial (fractions of the 16S rRNA and ATPase genes) datasets in combination with area relationships of lineages to resolve the phylogenetic relationships among Lyciasalamandra species in the absence of sufficient node support. We can show that neither random processes nor introgressive hybridization can be invoked to explain that the m…

A molecular phylogeny of ‘true’ salamanders (family Salamandridae) and the evolution of terrestriality of reproductive modes

2009

Key innovations enable species to conquer new habitats. Within the family Salamandridae, particular adaptations to terrestrial life, such as the anatomy and physiology of the feeding apparatus, courtship behaviour and in some cases viviparity, allowed the ‘true’salamanders (genera Chioglossa, Mertensiella, Salamandra) to shift from a semi-aquatic to a more terrestrial life cycle. We sequenced 423 base pairs of the 16S RNA gene of the mitochondrial DNA for all species of the ‘true’salamanders. Based on the resulting phylogeny we discuss the evolution of terrestrial reproductive modes within this species group. We especially tested two hypotheses of monophyletic origin of specific adaptations…

Die Diagnose der mitteleuropäischen Urodela (Amphibia) nach der Morphologie des Mundhöhlendaches

1980

AbstractThe pattern of teethrows on the roof of the mouth and the numbers of teeth enable as diagnostic characteristics the determination of the Central European Urodela. Particularly the distinction between T. vulgaris and T. helveticus is now definite in all stages after metamorphose. The degree of development of the vomeromaxillarfold (Triturus) respectively of the vomerfold (Salamandra) indicates whether a specimen is an adult, juvenile or newly metamorphosed one.

Trichromatic color vision in the salamander (Salamandra salamandra)

1995

Spectral sensitivity functions were measured between 334 nm and 683 nm in Salamandra salamandra by utilizing two behavioral reactions: the negative phototactic response, and the prey catching behavior elicited by a moving worm dummy. The action spectrum of the negative phototactic response revealed 3 pronounced maxima: at 360–400 nm, at 520–540 nm, and at 600–640 nm. In the range around 450 nm, there was a “reaction gap” where sensitivity could not be measured. The action spectrum of the prey catching behavior was entirely different: maximal sensitivity was found at 500 nm and at 570 nm. Between 500 nm and 334 nm sensitivity decreased continuously for about 1 log unit (Fig. 6).

Allozyme clines in Salamandra salamandra populations from the Cantabrian Mountains, Spain

1997

Are Salamandra atra and S. lanzai sister species?

1996

Description of a new species: Dorylaimus parasiticus , a parasite of amphibians in the Iberian Peninsula (Nematoda: Dorylaimida)

1995

Dorylaimus parasiticussp. nov. (Nematoda: Dorylaimidae) si described from the digestive tract and general body cavity of Salamandra salamandra, Rana perezi, and Bufo bufo, amphibians of the Iberian Peninsula (Spain). This is the first record of a member of the Order Dorylaimida size, a thick transversely striated body cuticle with 20 to 26 longitudinal ridges.