Ambystoma mavortium

Ambystoma mavortium
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Amphibia
Order:	Caudata
Family:	Ambystomatidae
Genus:	Ambystoma
Species:	A. mavortium
Binomial name
Ambystoma mavortium Baird, 1850

Ambystoma mavortium, commonly known as the Barred Tiger Salamander, is a species of salamander found from southwestern Canada in British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba, south through the western United States to Texas and northern Mexico.

Description

Development.

The tiger salamander is the largest land-dwelling salamander in the world. The barred tiger salamander typically grows from 6 - 8 1/2 inches. Overall, the body is dark brown to black with yellow bars and spots giving it the "tiger-stripe" look.

Behavior

Primarily nocturnal, Barred Tiger Salamanders are opportunistic feeders, and will often eat anything they can catch, including various insects, slugs, and earthworms. They are primarily terrestrial as adults, but their juvenile larval stage is entirely aquatic, having external gills.

Subspecies

There are six recognized subspecies of A. mavortium:

• Gray Tiger Salamander, Ambystoma mavortium diaboli (Dunn, 1940)
• Barred Tiger Salamander, Ambystoma mavortium mavortium (Baird, 1850)
• Blotched Tiger Salamander, Ambystoma mavortium melanostictum (Baird, 1860)
• Arizona Tiger Salamander, Ambystoma mavortium nebulosum (Hallowell, 1853)
• Sonoran Tiger Salamander, Ambystoma mavortium stebbinsi (Lowe, 1954)
• Mexican Coco Salamander, Ambystoma mavortium mexicala (Cable, 2011)

In captivity

Tiger Salamanders are frequently kept in captivity. Adult Barred Tiger Salamanders are illegal to sell in most of the USA. Their large size allows for ease of feeding, and their hardy nature make them excellent captives. Their larval stage is often sold as fishing bait, marketed as mud puppies or water dogs.

Symbolism

The Barred Tiger Salamander is the State Amphibian of Kansas. The second grade class of 1993 of OK Elementary in Wichita, KS petitioned the governor and the initial idea for a state amphibian was presented to their teacher by Timothy Boyd and Kristofer Voorhees.

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Ambystoma mavortium

Wikispecies has information related to: Ambystoma mavortium

• Caudata Culture: Tiger Salamanders
• Amphibian Species of the World: Ambystoma mavortium
• "Ambystoma mavortium". Integrated Taxonomic Information System. http://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=668193. Retrieved 10 July 2006. 
• AmphibiaWeb: Ambystoma mavortium

External links

• Barred tiger salamander in amphibia.web database
• Barred tiger salamander in captivity

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