The one-toed

amphiuma ''Amphiuma'' is a genus of aquatic salamanders from the United States, the only Extant taxon, extant genus within the family (biology), family Amphiumidae . They are colloquially known as amphiumas. They are also known to fishermen as "conger eel ...

(''Amphiuma pholeter)'' is a

species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...

aquatic Aquatic means relating to water; living in or near water or taking place in water; does not include groundwater, as "aquatic" implies an environment where plants and animals live. Aquatic(s) may also refer to: * Aquatic animal, either vertebrate ...

, eel-like

salamander Salamanders are a group of amphibians typically characterized by their lizard-like appearance, with slender bodies, blunt snouts, short limbs projecting at right angles to the body, and the presence of a tail in both larvae and adults. All t ...

in the

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

Amphiumidae ''Amphiuma'' is a genus of aquatic salamanders from the United States, the only Extant taxon, extant genus within the family (biology), family Amphiumidae . They are colloquially known as amphiumas. They are also known to fishermen as "conger eel ...

. The species is native to the southeastern United States. It was unknown to science until 1950, when it was collected by herpetologist

Wilfred T. Neill Wilfred T. Neill (1922–2001) was an Americans, American herpetology, herpetologist and author. His name survives in the Binomial nomenclature, scientific names of the central Florida crowned snake, ''Tantilla relicta neilli'', and a Central Americ ...

, who described it as a new species in 1964. It is rarely observed in the wild, and much about the species remains uncertain.

Description

The one-toed amphiuma is considered aquatic, and ranges in coloration from gray-black to purplish-brown. Unlike the other two ''Amphiuma'' species which have distinctively lighter undersides, the one-toed amphiuma is the same color on both the dorsum (back) and the venter (belly). It can also be distinguished by its cone-shaped head and number of toes. The one-toed amphiuma has one toe on each foot as opposed to the two or three exhibited by other ''Amphiuma'' species. It is the smallest species in the

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

''Amphiuma'' with the average adult size being 8.5 inches (220 mm).

Geographic range

The one-toed amphiuma is known only to occur in parts of the

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

panhandle, extreme southern

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

, and southern

Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...

Behavior

The one-toed amphiuma is active mostly at night, when it forages for

invertebrate Invertebrates are animals that neither develop nor retain a vertebral column (commonly known as a ''spine'' or ''backbone''), which evolved from the notochord. It is a paraphyletic grouping including all animals excluding the chordata, chordate s ...

prey. Its habits are similar to those of the other members of its genus, preferring slow moving or stagnant, shallow water with either muddy bottoms or areas with weedy vegetation. It has a special affinity for the semi-fluid mud deposits that accumulate in the swampy floodplains of rivers and streams or along the edges of coastal spring-fed rivers. Like all amphiumas, the one-toed amphiuma eats small, aquatic invertebrates such as

crayfish Crayfish are freshwater crustaceans belonging to the infraorder Astacidea, which also contains lobsters. Taxonomically, they are members of the superfamilies Astacoidea and Parastacoidea. They breathe through feather-like gills. Some spe ...

annelid worms The annelids (), also known as the segmented worms, are animals that comprise the phylum Annelida (; ). The phylum contains over 22,000 extant species, including ragworms, earthworms, and leeches. The species exist in and have adapted to variou ...

, insect

larva A larva (; : larvae ) is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into their next life stage. Animals with indirect development such as insects, some arachnids, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase ...

e, and occasionally

fish A fish (: fish or fishes) is an aquatic animal, aquatic, Anamniotes, anamniotic, gill-bearing vertebrate animal with swimming fish fin, fins and craniate, a hard skull, but lacking limb (anatomy), limbs with digit (anatomy), digits. Fish can ...

or amphibian

e. Its breeding habits are largely unknown and eggs and hatchlings have never been observed. Means DB (1996). "''Amphiuma pholeter'' Neill". pp. 622.1–622.2. Catalogue of American Amphibians and Reptiles. Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles, St. Louis, Missouri.

Description

Geographic range

Behavior

References

Further reading