Dwarf waterdog

The dwarf waterdog (Necturus punctatus) is an aquatic salamander, the smallest member of the family Proteidae, and is endemic to the United States.

Dwarf waterdog
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Amphibia
Order: Urodela
Family: Proteidae
Genus: Necturus
Species:
N. punctatus
Binomial name
Necturus punctatus
(Gibbes, 1850)
Synonyms

Menobranchus punctatus Gibbes, 1850
Necturus punctatus -- Garman, 1884

Description

This species is usually between 4.5 and 7.5 in (11.4–18.9 cm) long, and has bushy, narrow gills and a compressed tail. All feet have four toes. The salamander is dark brown or slate-grey to black above, and has a grey belly with a bluish-white band along the midline. Unlike other members of the family Proteidae, it is without any black spots.

Habitat

Dwarf waterdogs live in slow-moving, muddy or sandy-bottomed streams and associated deep irrigation ditches.

Geographic range

Necturus punctatus is found on the coastal plain from southeastern Virginia to southcentral Georgia,[1] and may extend westward along the Gulf Coastal plain.

References
  1. Conant, Roger. 1975. A field Guide to Reptiles and Amphibians of Eastern and Central North America, 2nd edition. Houghton Mifflin. Boston.
  • National Audubon Society Field Guide to Reptiles and Amphibians.
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