Physical Description
The Chinese giant salamander has a large head, small eyes, and dark and wrinkly skin. It is one of only two extant species in the genus Andrias. Extant is a word that is commonly used in biology to refer to taxa (the singular term being "taxon") such as species, genera, and families that are still in existence as opposed to extinct. For example, the Chinese giant salamander is an animal that is extant because the species still exists, whereas the dodo bird is a species that is extinct because it's species is not around anymore. The only other species is the somewhat smaller but still very similar Japanese giant salamander (Andrias japonicus). The animal has very poor eye sight so it depends on special sensory nodes that run the length of its body in a line from its head to its tail. These nodes help the salamander sense even the slightest vibrations around their bodies.
Chinese giant salamanders are the largest known species amphibian species with the record being 180 cm (5.9 feet) although the average is about 115 cm (3.77 feet) and they can way probably up to about 80 lbs. Females can lay up to 400-500 eggs in an underwater breeding cavity which is closely guarded by the male until the eggs hatch after about 50-60 days.
(Chinese giant Salamander)
(Japanese Giant Salamander)
The giant salamander is known to vocalize, making barking, whining, hissing, or crying sounds. Some of these sounds bear a striking resemblance to a young child crying. Because of this the name for this creature in the Chinese language translates into "infant fish" (娃娃鱼 / 鲵).
Habitat
The Chinese giant salamander's habitat range spans the area from Qinghai east to Jiansu and south to Sichuan, Guangxi and Guangdong; most notably in the Yangtze, Pearl, and Yellow rivers. There have also been finds in Taiwan which may be due to possible introduction. It's an entirely aquatic creature that lives only in rocky hills streams and lakes with clear water and is usually found in forested regions. It has also been found at altitudes of 100 to 1,500 m (330 to 4,920 feet) with most records being between 300 and 800 m (980 to 2,620 feet). It was once widespread throughout central, south-western, and southern China but now the populations are, unfortunately, highly fragmented.
Diet
The Chinese giant salamander's diet mostly consists of insects, frogs, crabs, shrimp, and fish.
Conservation Status
The Chinese giant salamander is listed as Critically Endangered in the Chinese Red Book of Amphibians and Reptiles and is also listed as Critically Endangered on the IUCN's Red List of Threatened Species. Current population estimates are not available, but it is known that the Chinese giant salamanders were once much more common and widespread than they are now, and that the species' population has experienced catastrophic declines within the last 30 years.
Main Threats:
- Over exploitation for the food trade as well as for use in traditional medicines.
- The destruction, degradation, and fragmentation of habitats due to the construction of dams altering the stream flow, contamination of streams by polluting land uses and the siltation of these streams following deforestation.
- Increased use of pesticides may also present a serious threat to this species.
What's Being Done?
14 reserves have been established since the 1980's in an effort to help the species, but even that does not seem to be enough to stop the declines in population. As a result, many salamanders are actually now being commercially farmed because of the fact that they are becoming much harder to find in the wild. There have also been some construction of staircases where dams had been built previously to help the salamanders travel too and from different places. Without focused conservation efforts, this species will more than likely go extinct.
How Can I Help?
Links to important organizations doing their best to try and help this critically endangered species can be found in the How Can I Help?
section of this blog.
