Ambystoma mexicanum (Shaw and Nodder, 1798)

Class: Amphibia > Order: Caudata > Family: Ambystomatidae > Genus: Ambystoma > Species: Ambystoma mexicanum

Gyrinus mexicanus Shaw and Nodder, 1798, Nat. Miscell., 9: pls. 342 and 343. Holotype: BMNH, according to the original and Shaw, 1802, Gen. Zool., 3(1): 612, but now lost according to Smith and Taylor, 1948, Bull. U.S. Natl. Mus., 194: 8. Type locality: Given both as "Mexicanum" and "Mexico". Restricted to "Xochimilco", Distrito Federal, Mexico, by Smith and Taylor, 1950, Univ. Kansas Sci. Bull., 33: 329. Opinion 1025, Anonymous, 1974, Bull. Zool. Nomencl., 31: 133-134, gave precedence to Salamandra tigrina Green, 1825, over Gyrinus mexicanus Shaw and Nodder, 1789, when treated as synonyms.

Siren pisciformis Shaw, 1802, Gen. Zool., 3(1): 612. Substitute name for Gyrinus mexicanus Shaw and Nodder, 1789. Synonymy with Siredon axolotl by Wagler, 1830, Descript. Icon. Amph., Livr. 2: 8. Synonymy by Leunis, 1860, Synops. Drei Naturr., Zool., Ed. 2: 148; Baird, 1850 "1849", J. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philadelphia, Ser. 2, 1: 291; Cope, 1868 "1867", Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philadelphia, 19: 180.

Triton mexicanus — Oppel, 1811, Ordn. Fam. Gatt. Rept.: 81.

Philhydrus pisciformis — Brookes, 1828, Prodr. Synops. Animal.: 16.

Hypochton pisciformis — Gravenhorst, 1829, Delic. Mus. Zool. Vratislav., 1: 90.

Siredon axolotl Wagler, 1830, Nat. Syst. Amph.: 209. also named by Wagler, 1830, Descript. Icon. Amph., Livr. 2: 8. Type(s): Not stated; given as "Museo Parisiensi, Berolinensi ac Monacensi" (Paris Museum [= MNHNP], Berlin Museum [= ZMB], and Munich Museum [= ZSM]) by Wagler, 1830, Descript. Icon. Amph., Livr. 2: 8, not located by recent authors. Type locality: Not stated; given as "Mexico" by Wagler, 1830, Descript. Icon. Amph., Livr. 2: 8. Synonymy by Leunis, 1844, Synops. Drei Naturr., Zool., Ed. 1: 148; Leunis, 1860, Synops. Drei Naturr., Zool., Ed. 2: 148; Baird, 1850 "1849", J. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philadelphia, Ser. 2, 1: 292; Cope, 1868 "1867", Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philadelphia, 19: 180.

Axolotus pisciformis — Cuvier, 1831, Animal Kingdom (M'Murtrie), 2: 89.

Phyllhydrus pisciformis — Gray In Cuvier, 1831, Animal Kingdom (Griffith), 9: 108.

Sirenodon pisciformis — Wiegmann, 1832, in Wiegmann and Ruthe (eds.), Handbuch der Zool., Amph.: 204.

Stegoporus pisciformis — Wiegmann, 1832, in Wiegmann and Ruthe (eds.), Handbuch der Zool., Amph.: 204.

Stegoporus mexicanum — Wiegmann, 1832, in Wiegmann and Ruthe (eds.), Handbuch der Zool., Amph.: 205.

Hemitriton (Siredon) mexicanum — Van der Hoeven, 1833, Handb. Dierkd., 2: 305, by implication.

Siredon mexicanus — Schinz, 1833, Naturgesch. Abbild Rept.: 198. Gistel in Gistel and Bromme, 1850, Handb. Naturgesch.: 334.

Axolotl pisciformis — Guérin-Méneville, 1838, Icon. Regne Animal, 3: 18.

Axolotes guttata Owen, 1844, Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., Ser. 1, 14: 23. Syntypes: Not stated, although BMNH 1862.12.19.6–8 according to museum records. Type locality: "In lacu juxta urbem Mexico" (= in the lake next to the City of Mexico). Synonymy by Baird, 1850 "1849", J. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philadelphia, Ser. 2, 1: 292.

Siredon mexicanum — Baird, 1850 "1849", J. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philadelphia, Ser. 2, 1: 292. Smith, 1939, Field Mus. Nat. Hist. Publ., Zool. Ser., 24: 16; Smith and Taylor, 1948, Bull. U.S. Natl. Mus., 194: 7.

Siredon Humboldtii Duméril, Bibron, and Duméril, 1854, Erp. Gen., 9: 177. Syntypes: MNHNP, by original designation. Type locality: "Mexique" and "dans le lac qui entoure la ville de Mexico à 1160 toises d'élévation et dans les eaux des ruisseaux des montagnes qui y affluent", Mexico. Unavailable name for reason of being coined in synonymy with Gyrinus mexicanus Shaw, Siren pisciformis Shaw, Hypochthon pisciformis Gravenhorst, Axolotes guttatus Owen, and Axolotes maculata Gray. Synonymy by Smith, 1877, Tailed Amph.: 55.

Siren axolotl — Schlegel, 1858, Handl. Dierkd., 2: 61.

Stegoporus mexicanus — Leunis, 1860, Synops. Drei Naturr., Zool., Ed. 2: 148.

Axoloteles guttatus — Wood, 1863, Illust. Nat. Hist., 3: 183.

Siredon spec.? var. alba Duméril, 1869, Nouv. Arch. Mus. Natl. Hist. Nat. Paris, 5: 48. Holotype: Presumably deposited in MNHNP, but not in recent type lists. Type locality: "Mexique". Synonymy by Smith, 1969, Bioscience, 19: 108. See comments provided by Thireau, 1987, Bull. Liaison Mus. Hist. Nat., Suppl., 71: 1.

Siredon pisciformis — Wiedersheim, 1877, Morphol. Jahrb., 3: 459.

Amblystoma weismanni Wiedersheim, 1879, Z. Wiss. Zool., Leipzig, 32: 216. Type(s): Not stated or known to exist. Type locality: Not stated, but implied to be from Mexico. Synonymy (with Ambystoma tigrinum) by Cope, 1889, Bull. U.S. Natl. Mus., 34: 68; synonymy (with Ambystoma mexicanum) by Smith, 1969, Bioscience, 19: 596.

Ambystoma mexicanum — Garman, 1884, Bull. Essex Inst., 16: 36, by implication.

Siredon edule Dugès, 1888, Naturaleza, Ser. 2, 1: 144. Types: Not stated or known to exist, according to Smith and Necker, 1943, An. Esc. Nac. Cienc. Biol., México, 3: 214, although likely originally MDUG. Type locality: Not stated; designated as "Lake Xochimilco, México" by Smith and Necker, 1943, An. Esc. Nac. Cienc. Biol., México, 3: 214, who made the synonymy.

Ambystoma edule Dugès, 1888, Naturaleza, Ser. 2, 1: 144. Alternative name for Siredon edule.

Ambystoma mexicanum — Lafrentz, 1930, Abh. Ber. Mus. Nat. Heimatkd. Magdeburg, 6: 95.

Ambystoma (Ambystoma) mexicanum — Tihen, 1958, Bull. Florida State Mus., Biol. Sci., 3: 3, 37.

Siredon alba — Smith, 1969, Bioscience, 19: 596.

Ambystoma (Heterotriton) mexicanum — Dubois and Raffaëlli, 2012, Alytes, 28: 77-161.

Common Names

Axolotl (Liner, 1994, Herpetol. Circ., 23: 9; Frank and Ramus, 1995, Compl. Guide Scient. Common Names Amph. Rept. World: 27; Liner and Casas-Andreu, 2008, Herpetol. Circ., 38: 27).

Distribution

Originally in Lakes Xochimilco and Chalco (and presumably in the connecting lakes Texcoco and Zumpango), Valley of Mexico; known currently only from the southern remnants of Lake Xochimilco.

Geographic Occurrence

Natural Resident: Mexico

Endemic: Mexico

Comment

See Smith and Smith, 1971, Synops. Herpetofauna Mex., 1, and Smith and Smith, 1993, Synops. Herpetofauna Mex., 7 for access to all of the literature to that point in time. Highton, 2000, in Bruce et al., Biol. Plethodontid Salamanders: 221, suggested that populations of Ambystoma mavortium, Ambystoma flavipiperatum, Ambystoma andersoni, Ambystoma amblycephalum, and Ambystoma taylori (i.e., populations from the Rocky Mountains, Great Plains, Sierra Madre Oriental of Mexico, and the central and eastern Mexican Plateau) were likely one species for which the oldest name would be Ambystoma mexicanum. Raffaëlli, 2007, Les Urodèles du Monde: 86-87, provided a brief account, figure, and map. See photograph, map, description of geographic range and habitat, and conservation status in Stuart, Hoffmann, Chanson, Cox, Berridge, Ramani, and Young, 2008, Threatened Amph. World: 546. Contreras, Martínez-Meyer, Valiente, and Zambrano, 2009, Biol. Conserv., 142: 2881-2885, reported on the critical population decline and near extinction of this species as well as providing the results of niche modelling to predict possible habitat within the Xochimilco are. Everson, Gray, Jones, Lawrence, Foley, Sovacool, Kratovil, Hotaling, Hime, Storfer, Parra-Olea, Percino-Daniel, Aguilar-Miguel, O'Neill, Zambrano, Shaffer, and Weisrock, 2021, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, 18 (17: e2014719118): 1–10, included this species in their study of molecular evolution and evolution of life histories in the Ambystoma tigrinum complex.. Raffaëlli, 2022, Salamanders & Newts of the World: 151–153, provided an account, summarizing systematics, life history, population status, and distribution (including a polygon map).

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