What Is Your Favorite Genus of North American Plethodontids?

ozarkhellbender · Apr 15, 2012

That seems like a pretty specific, and potentially difficult, question to ask, doesn't it? Yet, this is a subject that has been on my mind recently. North America seems to be the Plethodontid center of the world, at least as far as the hobby of keeping caudates is concerned. Very few of us are privileged enough to see in person, let alone keep, a Central/South American or European Plethodontid. So how about it? What is your favorite North American genus?

esn · Apr 15, 2012

I really enjoy Eurycea, after part of one of my Biology courses was centered on them. Plus, they come in all sorts of nice colors. My second favorite would be Plethodon. I'm a sucker for pretty colors and patterns.

Neotenic_Jaymes · Apr 15, 2012

Hard to say Thomas since my favorites change from time to time. I currently favor the Ensatina genus. Nothing like the evolution of Ensatina and they're a good model "ring species". Other than Ensatina my old favorite is Plethodon. So many diverse salamanders in the Plethodon genus. P. jordani and P. yonahlossee always made me feel like a kid in a candy store.

Check out my Ensatina eschscholtzii klauberi

asfouts · Apr 15, 2012

Neotenic_Jaymes: those are gorgeous ensatinas

My favorite would probably be the ensatinas. I am a nut for those buggy looking eyes from a facial view

My Ensatina eschsholtzii oregonensis

Logan · Apr 15, 2012

I love the unique Hemidactylium salamander besides that i would say Eurycea.
They are all pretty great.

Molch · Apr 15, 2012

somehow my favorite, of any genus, is always the one I'm looking at at the moment.

Neotenic_Jaymes · Apr 15, 2012

ozarkhellbender said:
That seems like a pretty specific, and potentially difficult, question to ask, doesn't it? Yet, this is a subject that has been on my mind recently. North America seems to be the Plethodontid center of the world, at least as far as the hobby of keeping caudates is concerned. Very few of us are privileged enough to see in person, let alone keep, a Central/South American or European Plethodontid. So how about it? What is your favorite North American genus?

I'm guessing your favorite genus is Eurcyea?

eljorgo · Apr 15, 2012

Very hard to tell, Plethodontids are sure very very nice, rare sight... at leasts here over Europe.

I've got to say my favourite genus are:

Plethodon*
Pseudotriton
Ensatina
Batrachoseps*
Eurycea*
Aneides (mostly aeneus)
Desmognathus*

Being the ones marked with ' * ' the genus I've already kept/keep; species being the following:

Plethodon cinereus 1.1.1
Plethodon cylindraceus 0.0.3
Plethodon nettingi 0.0.1
________________________
Batrachoseps attenuatus 0.0.4
________________________
Eurycea cirrigera 0.1.0
________________________
Desmognathus fuscus 1.1.0

Sadly B. attenuatus long gone... Such nice critters... Were my very first Plethodontid and not one of the most easy to care for... I wish I had that chance back with the knowledge I grew with other species since then and try it out once again.

Even so, If all goes steady and well, I'll recieve 3 Pseudotriton ruber schenki by the end of the year witch will be a very cool adittion to the collection... I wish they were more!

Got some old pictures right here
Batrachoseps attenuatus

Plethodon cylindraceus

Plethodon cinereus

Cheers!

Logan · Apr 15, 2012

Wow that Batrachoseps is awesome. I may have a new favorite lol. There is just so much diversity in this group that its hard to keep a favorite.

Caudae · Apr 15, 2012

Wow. Those pics are incredible! Currently searching for the end of my lower jaw, it dropped.

My favorites are Eurycea latitans (they look like they got out of a Las Vegas show with their sparkles!) and Eury. walacei (Georgia Blind Salamander, completely subterranean)

Eurycea is an incredible genus, so much diversity...

ozarkhellbender · Apr 16, 2012

Neotenic_Jaymes said:
I'm guessing your favorite genus is Eurcyea?

Actually, no. At the moment, my favorite Plethodontid genus is Desmognathus. I've only had experience with keeping Desmognathus orestes, but Desmognathus quadramaculatus and Desmognathus folkertsi are at the top of my list of favorites.

I've certainly kept more species of Eurycea than anything else, but they aren't my favorites. The species of Eurycea I have kept include:

Eurycea spelaea
Eurycea longicauda longicauda
Eurycea longicauda melanopleura
Eurycea guttolineata
Eurycea lucifuga

Alejandro · Apr 16, 2012

Aneides. I love these little monsters.

jaster · Apr 16, 2012

This is hard! Ultimately, I would have to say Hydromantes. For some reason, a picture of a limestone salamander has stuck in my head since the first herp book I read.

Yahilles · Apr 16, 2012

Desmognathus are my all-time plethodontid love! So far i only have D. orestes (this genus is hard to get in Europe), but hopefully in future i will be able to keep some more. I'm a huge fan of D. monticola, D. quadramaculatus and D. fuscus.

My orestes:

Aneides · Apr 16, 2012

My favorites are:

Plethodon
Ensatina
Aneides (that's me!)
Bolitoglossa
Batrachoseps
Desmognathus

I have kept Ensatina, Batrachoseps, and Aneides, so those are my favorites.

Aneides

josh · Apr 17, 2012

My favorite plethodontids that are legal to keep

Ensatina
Aneides

My favorite that are illegal to keep due to protection so hands off!!

Hydromantes
Batrachoceps robustus and campi

My favorite that are illegal due to country of origin

Pseudoeurycea (I'm surprised no one has not mentioned already)
Bolitoglossa

I would have to say the pseudoeurycea and bolitoglossa take the cake for me though. Some of them are bromeliad dwellers and that is just fascinating to me!!!

methodik · Apr 18, 2012

As the question was about North American Plethodontids, I am not wondering why Bolitoglossa, Pseudoeurycea, Oedipina, Dendrotriton, Bradytriton etc. were not mentioned.

I have never seen any of those except for pictures, but my favorites have to be Ensatina sp., Batrachoseps (esp. campi, robustus, wrighti) and Aneides flavipunctatus.

If judging on all Plethodontids, I'd really love to have some Bolitoglossa in my hands at some point. Especially Bolitoglossa dofleini, as they are such giant, yet arboreal, sals. Some day I will have to go to central and south america to find them all, like a Pokemon trainer. Such beauty in insularis, mombachoensis, striatula, flavimembris, kaqchikelorum. I just guess they will go extinct or missing before I can go find them

ozarkhellbender · Apr 20, 2012

josh said:
Pseudoeurycea (I'm surprised no one has not mentioned already)
Bolitoglossa

methodik said:
As the question was about North American Plethodontids, I am not wondering why Bolitoglossa, Pseudoeurycea, Oedipina, Dendrotriton, Bradytriton etc. were not mentioned.

Yeah, I think the reason nobody mentioned Bolitoglossa and Pseudoeurycea is because they are typically associated with Central and South America, and the question dealt with North American Plethodontids. However, Pseudoeurycea and, to some extent, Bolitoglossa are technically North American because they can be found in Mexico. But when I originally posted this thread, I had Plethodontids of the US and Canada in mind.

Even we do look at Neotropical Bolitoglossine caudates, my favorites are Nyctanolis and Ixalotriton.

grapeape · Apr 28, 2012

Desmognathus and aneides. I love observing quadramaculatus in a setup there used to.

Aneides · Apr 29, 2012

Actually, Pseudoeurycea belli might occur in AZ.

Aneides

What Is Your Favorite Genus of North American Plethodontids?

Member

New member

Active member

Attachments

New member

Attachments

Member

Well-known member

Active member

Banned

Member

New member

Member

Caudata.org Donor

New member

New member

New member

New member

Member

Member

New member

New member