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Full-Text Articles in Animal Sciences
Eurycea Junaluska. Morphology, Travis Ryan
Eurycea Junaluska. Morphology, Travis Ryan
Travis J. Ryan
Morphology of Junaluska salamander.
Aspects Of Sex-Specific Differences In The Expression Of An Alternative Life Cycle In The Salamander Ambystoma Talpoideum, Christopher Winne, Travis Ryan
Aspects Of Sex-Specific Differences In The Expression Of An Alternative Life Cycle In The Salamander Ambystoma Talpoideum, Christopher Winne, Travis Ryan
Travis J. Ryan
A recent evolutionary ecological model of facultative paedomorphosis predicts that body size of mature individuals should be larger than immatures of the same cohort. We investigated sex-specific differences in body size and maturation within a single cohort of branchiate (= larval and paedomorphic) mole salamanders, Ambystoma talpoideum. In addition, we also sampled the population after the breeding season, as some individuals began to undergo metamorphosis and leave the pond. The branchiate population was female-biased (62.7%), and mature (paedomorphic) females were significantly smaller than paedomorphic males or immature (larval) females. The majority of male branchiates were mature (86.6%), whereas significantly fewer …
Larval Life History And Abundance Of A Rare Salamander, Eurycea Junaluska (Plethodontidae), Travis Ryan
Larval Life History And Abundance Of A Rare Salamander, Eurycea Junaluska (Plethodontidae), Travis Ryan
Travis J. Ryan
The larval life history of Eurycea junaluska was studied in three southwestern North Carolina populations. Populations were sampled quarterly over a 13 mo period and size-class analyses were used to evaluate the pattern of larval growth and metamorphosis. Young of the year appeared in the late spring and experienced rapid growth through the first summer. Growth slowed in the second year and metamorphosis usually occured in the summer at about 25.5 mo post-hatching, although some data suggest that either 1yr or 3yr larval periods may be possible. The overall larval growth rate of E. junaluska is estimated at 1.27 mm/mo, …