The Puerto Hondo stream salamander or Michoacan stream salamander, Ambystoma ordinarium, is a mole salamander from the Cordillera Volcánica within the Mexican state of Michoacán.
Diurnal animals are active during the daytime, with a period of sleeping or other inactivity at night. The timing of activity by an animal depends ...
Te
TerrestrialTerrestrial animals are animals that live predominantly or entirely on land (e.g., cats, ants, snails), as compared with aquatic animals, which liv...
Oviparous animals are female animals that lay their eggs, with little or no other embryonic development within the mother. This is the reproductive...
No
Not a migrantAnimals that do not make seasonal movements and stay in their native home ranges all year round are called not migrants or residents.
P
starts withA. ordinarium larvae and neonates have sparse, evenly distributed melanophores and rows of light silver-yellow specks. Larvae have well-developed fins, small but bushy gills, and 16–24 gill rakers (average, 18.8) on their third gill arches. Larvae reach a maximum size of 100 mm snout-to-vent length (SVL) and 191 mm total length.
At sexual maturity, these salamanders measure between 70 and 75 mm SVL. Terrestrial adults reach a maximum size of 86 mm SVL. They have narrow heads, and 16–24 tooth-rakers on their third gill arches. Adults generally have uniform dark or black coloring on their backs, but some may be mottled, and others may retain larval coloration.
A. ordinarium is only found at Puerto Hondo, in a small stream four miles west of El Mirador, and at Puerto Garnica, in another small stream nearby with dark, cold waters and a temperature of 12.4 °C. These streams are high in the mountains, at elevations of 9000 and 9400 feet above sea level, respectively. Larvae and neotenes have been found swimming against the current of the streams, at depths of 5–12 in. Terrestrial adults remain near stream banks, and are often found side-by-side with gilled adults, but can also be found under debris in pine and fir forests up to 30 m away from streams.
