Lissotriton helveticus (Razoumovsky, 1789)

Class: Amphibia > Order: Caudata > Family: Salamandridae > Subfamily: Pleurodelinae > Genus: Lissotriton > Species: Lissotriton helveticus

Lacerta helvetica Razoumovsky, 1789, Hist. Nat. Jorat, 1: 111. Type(s): Not stated or known to exist. Type locality: "notre fontaine de Vernens", Kanton Waadt, Switzerland.

Lacerta paradoxa Razoumovsky, 1789, Hist. Nat. Jorat, 1: 111. Type(s): Not stated or known to exist. Type locality: "notre fontaine de Vernens", Kanton Waadt, Switzerland. Alternative name for Lacerta helvetica Razoumowsky, 1789. Treated as junior to Lacerta helvetica by Leydig, 1867, Arch. Naturgesch., 33: 220. Not Lacerta paradoxa Bedriaga, 1886. Synonymy by Schreiber, 1875, Herpetol. Eur.: 31.

Salamandra palmata Schneider, 1799, Hist. Amph. Nat.: 72. Type(s): Including animals figured by Razoumovsky, 1789, Hist. Nat. Jorat, 1: 111, pl. 2, fig. 5. Type locality: Including "Gallia". Synonymy by Leydig, 1867, Arch. Naturgesch., 33: 220; Schreiber, 1875, Herpetol. Eur.: 31.

Salamandra palmipes Latreille, 1800 "An. VIII", Hist. Nat. Salamand. France: 31, 55. Type(s): Not stated, but presumably originally in MNHNP. Type locality: "France". Coined as a junior synonym or substitute name for Salamandra palmata Schneider, 1799.

Molge palmata — Merrem, 1820, Tent. Syst. Amph.: 186.

Triton palmatus — Millet de la Turtaudière, 1828, Fauna de Maine et Loire: 688; Wagler, 1830, Nat. Syst. Amph.: 208; Tschudi, 1838, Classif. Batr.: 95; Schreiber, 1912, Herpetol. Eur., Ed. 2: 73.

Lissotriton palmipes — Bell, 1839, Hist. Brit. Rept.: 139.

Lophinus palmatus — Gray, 1850, Cat. Spec. Amph. Coll. Brit. Mus., Batr. Grad.: 28; Wolterstorff, 1912, Bl. Aquar. Terrarienkd., Stuttgart, 23: 190.

Triton laevis Higginbottom, 1853, Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., Ser. 2, 12: 370. Type(s): Not designated, presumably in BMNH or lost. Type locality: "England". Named as a synonym of Triton palmipes—Bell.

Triton minor Higginbottom, 1853, Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., Ser. 2, 12: 382. Type(s): Not designated, presumably in BMNH, possibly I.I.9.a.b (according to museum records) or now lost. Type locality: "England" and "Scotland". Synonymy by Brame and Gorham, 1972, Checklist Living & Fossil Salamand. World (Unpubl. MS): 98.

Triton helveticus — Leydig, 1867, Arch. Naturgesch., 33: 220.

Triton (Lissotriton) palmatus — Fatio, 1872, Fauna Vert. Suisse, 3: 570.

Triton alonsoi López-Seoane, 1885 "1884", La Identidad de Lacerta schreiberi . . .: 12. Syntypes: Not stated; originally five specimens in López-Seoane's personal collection according to Thireau, 1986, Cat. Types Urodeles Mus. Natl. Hist. Nat., Rev. Crit.: 10–11, who considered MNHNP 1889.648–650 likely to be members of this series. Type locality: "en los riachuelos y fuentes" of Galicia, Spain; restricted by Salvador, 1974, Guia Anf. Rept. Esp.: 236, to "Cabañas en La Coruña"; given as "Asturies (Espagne)" by Thireau, 1986, Cat. Types Urodeles Mus. Natl. Hist. Nat., Rev. Crit.: 10. Synonymy by Boulenger, 1886, Zool. Rec., 22: 25.

Triton paradoxus — Dürigen, 1897, Deutschl. Amph. Rept.: 616.

Triton (Triton) palmatus — Wolterstorff, 1901, Feuille Jeunes Nat., Ser. 4, 31: 76.

Triton palmatus forma sequeirai Wolterstorff, 1905, C. R. Séances 6th Congr. Internatl. Zool., Berne, 1904: 259. Syntypes: Not stated, although originally in MM and destroyed in WWII according to Brame and Gorham, 1972, Checklist Living & Fossil Salamand. World (Unpubl. MS): 99. Type locality: "bei Porto-Tieren", Portugal.

Diemictylus palmatus — Fowler and Dunn, 1917, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philadelphia, 69: 28.

Triturus helveticus — Dunn, 1918, Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool., 62: 452; Herre, 1935, Zoologica, Stuttgart, 33: 63.

Triturus palmatus sequeirai — Mertens, 1925, Abh. Senckenb. Naturforsch. Ges., 39: 29.

Triton (Palaeotriton) palmatus — Bolkay, 1927, Glasn. Zemaljskog Muz. Bosni Hercegov., 39: 63; Bolkay, 1928, Z. Anat. Entwicklungesch., 86: 259.

Triturus helveticus helveticus — Mertens and Müller, 1928, Abh. Senckenb. Naturforsch. Ges., 41: 12.

Triturus helveticus sequeirai — Mertens and Müller, 1928, Abh. Senckenb. Naturforsch. Ges., 41: 12.

Triturus helveticus punctillatus Schmidtler, 1970 "1969", Abh. Ber. Naturkd. Magdeburg, 11: 221. Holotype: MM 1.15.4.64, by original designation and according to Brame and Gorham, 1972, Checklist Living & Fossil Salamand. World (Unpubl. MS): 99, now probably lost according to Glaw and Franzen, 2006, Spixiana, München, 29: 158, who provided additional comment. Type locality: "Pozo Negro ("Schwarzer Brunnen" [= Black Spring]), 1770 m, Karsee in der Sierra de la Demanda, s. Fresneda de la Sierra (Burgos)", northern Spain. Status disputed by Schlüpmann and Van Gelder, 2003, in Grossenbacher and Thiesmeier (eds.), Handbuch Rept. Amph. Eur., 4(IIB): 759–846.

Triturus helveticus alonsoi — Salvador, 1974, Guia Anf. Rept. Esp.: 236.

Triturus (Palaeotriton) helveticus — MacGregor, Sessions, and Arntzen, 1990, J. Evol. Biol., 3: 329.

Lissotriton helveticus — García-París, Montori, and Herrero, 2004, Fauna Iberica, 24: 252.

Lissotriton helveticus helveticus — García-París, Monton, and Alonso-Zarazaga, 2004, in García-París et al. (eds.), Fauna Iberica, 24: 593.

Lissotriton helveticus alonsoi — García-París, Monton, and Alonso-Zarazaga, 2004, in García-París et al. (eds.), Fauna Iberica, 24: 594.

Lissotriton helveticus punctillatus — García-París, Monton, and Alonso-Zarazaga, 2004, in García-París et al. (eds.), Fauna Iberica, 24: 594.

Lophinus helveticus — Litvinchuk, Zuiderwijk, Borkin, and Rosanov, 2005, Amphibia-Reptilia, 26: 317, by implication.

Lissotriton (Lissotriton) (helveticus) helveticus — Dubois and Raffaëlli, 2009, Alytes, 26: 66.

Lissotriton (Lissotriton) (helveticus) helveticus alonsoi — Dubois and Raffaëlli, 2009, Alytes, 26: 66.

Lissotriton (Lissotriton) (helveticus) helveticus helveticus — Dubois and Raffaëlli, 2009, Alytes, 26: 66.

Lissotriton (Lissotriton) (helveticus) helveticus punctillatus — Dubois and Raffaëlli, 2009, Alytes, 26: 66.

Common Names

Palmated Newt (Wood, 1863, Illust. Nat. Hist., 3: 182 (as Lissotriton palmipes); Flower, 1933, Proc. Zool. Soc. London, 1933: 837).

Palmated Smooth-newt (Lissotriton palmipes: Bell, 1839, Hist. Brit. Rept.: 139).

Palmate Newt (Hellmich, 1962, Rept. Amph. Eur.: 41; Steward, 1969, Tailed Amph. Eur.: 40; Arnold and Burton, 1978, Field Guide Rept. Amph. Brit. Eur.: 51; Ananjeva, Borkin, Darevsky, and Orlov, 1988, Dict. Amph. Rept. Five Languages: 34; Stumpel-Rienks, 1992, Ergänzungsband Handbuch Rept. Amph. Eur., Trivialnamen der Herpetofauna Eur.: 66; Frank and Ramus, 1995, Compl. Guide Scient. Common Names Amph. Rept. World: 36; Arnold, 2002, Rept. Amph. Eur., Ed. 2: 48).

Palmate Newt (Triturus helveticus helveticus: Hellmich, 1962, Rept. Amph. Eur.: 41; Steward, 1969, Tailed Amph. Eur.: 40).

Iberian Palmate Newt (Triturus helveticus sequeirai: Steward, 1969, Tailed Amph. Eur.: 40).

Iberian Palmate Newt (Lissotriton helveticus alonsoi: Raffaëlli, 2022, Salamanders & Newts of the World: 355). 

Pozo Negro Palmate Newt (Lissotriton helveticus punctillatus: Raffaëlli, 2022, Salamanders & Newts of the World: 356). 

Distribution

Britain; continental western Europe from northern Germany through northern and western Switzerland to western and southern France and northern Iberia, and east to Czech Republic.

Geographic Occurrence

Natural Resident: Andorra, Belgium, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Jersey, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Switzerland, United Kingdom

Comment

See discussion of relevant literature and distribution by Zuiderwijk, 1997, in Gasc et al. (eds.), Atlas Amph. Rept. Eur.: 78–79. Barbadillo-Escrivá, 1987, Guia INCAFO Anf. Rept. Peninsula Iberica: 119–123, provided an account for the Iberian populations. Arnold, 2002, Rept. Amph. Eur., Ed. 2: 48, provided a brief account, figure, and map, as did Obst IN Engelmann, Fritzsche, Günther, and Obst, 1993, Lurche Kriechtiere Eur.: 91–93. Barbadillo-Escrivá and Sánchez-Herraíz, 1997, in Pleguezuelos (ed.), Dist. Biogeogr. Anf. Rep. Esp. Portugal: 120–122, provided a brief account, photograph, and detailed map for Iberia. Llorente, Montori, Santos, and Carretero, 1995, Atlas Amf. Rept. Catalunya Andorra: 50–51, provided an account and detailed range map for Catalunya and Andorra. See general accounts by Nöllert and Nöllert, 1992, Die Amph. Eur.: 210–214, Thorn and Raffaëlli, 2000, Salamand. Ancien Monde: 265–270, Schlüpmann and Van Gelder, 2003, in Grossenbacher and Thiesmeier (eds.), Handbuch Rept. Amph. Eur., 4(IIB): 759–846, and Raffaëlli, 2007, Les Urodèles du Monde: 105–106. Geraeds, 2009, in Creemers and van Delft (eds.), Amph. Rept. Nederland: 114–123, provided a detailed account for the Netherlands. Rivera, Escoriza, Maluquer-Margalef, Arribas, and Carranza, 2011, Amf. Rept. Catalunya: 53–39, provided a brief account for northeastern Spain, Andorra, and adjacent France. Amat Orriols and Roig Fernàndez, 2003, Butll. Soc. Catalana Herpetol., 16:42–72, discussed (as Triturus helveticus) and mapped the species in Andorra. Raffaëlli, 2013, Urodeles du Monde, 2nd ed.: 124–126, provided a brief account, photo, and map. Mateo, Ayres, and López-Jurado, 2011, Bol. Asoc. Herpetol. Esp., 22: 3, discuss possible introduced populations in Cataluña, Spain. Sparreboom, 2014, Salamanders Old World: 224–226, reviewed the biology, characteristics, distribution, reproduction, and conservation of the species. Speybroeck, Beukema, Bok, and Van Der Voort, 2016, Field Guide Amph. Rept. Brit. Eur.: 86–87, provided a brief account and distribution map. See Dufresnes, 2019, Amph. Eur., N. Afr., & Middle East: 128, for brief summary of identifying morphology and biology, a range map, as well as a photograph.  Raffaëlli, 2022, Salamanders & Newts of the World: 353–356, provided subspecies accounts, summarizing systematics, life history, population status, and distribution (including a polygon map). 

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