Triturus dobrogicus (Kiritzescu, 1903)

Class: Amphibia > Order: Caudata > Family: Salamandridae > Subfamily: Pleurodelinae > Genus: Triturus > Species: Triturus dobrogicus

Triton cristatus var. dobrogicus Kiritzescu, 1903, Bul. Soc. Sciinte, Bucuresti, 12: 262. Syntypes: Including MGAB 8 (from the restricted type locality) according to museum records. MGAB 8 (adult male) designated lectotype by Fuhn and Freytag, 1961, Zool. Anz., 166: 163. Type locality: "du Nord de la Dobrogea, dans les lacs des environs de Sulina, de Tulcea et du delta du Danube", Romania; restricted by Mertens and Müller, 1928, Abh. Senckenb. Naturforsch. Ges., 41: 11, to "Sulina, Donaudelta [= Danube Delta]", Dobrogea Province, eastern Romania on the Black Sea.

Molge macrosoma Boulenger, 1908, Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., Ser. 8, 2: 3. Holotype: BMNH 1946.9.6.29 (formerly 1908.5.19.15), according to Brame and Gorham, 1972, Checklist Living & Fossil Salamand. World (Unpubl. MS): 94. Type locality: Unknown: "brought alive to Capt. Flower at Cairo five years ago by Ismail Bey Chakir with the remark that it may possibly be of European origin, the Bey having bought the newt from a dealer in Vienna". Thought by Boulenger to be close to Neurergus crocatus. Synonymy with Triturus carnifex by Mertens, 1941, Zool. Anz., 136: 128. Synonymy with Triturus dobricus by Litvinchuk and Borkin, 2000, Amphibia-Reptilia, 21: 428.

Triton cristatus danubialis Wolterstorff, 1923, Bl. Aquar. Terrarienkd., Stuttgart, 34: 120. Syntypes: collections of F. Werner, R. Mertens, and Meheyly, by original designation; MM 1105 n.f. (new series), designated lectotype (apparently originally in type series and a survivor of WWII: DRF) by Fuhn and Freytag, 1961, Zool. Anz., 166: 163. Type locality: "Donautiefland der Wiener gegend (coll. Prof. F. Werner, Kronesser u. a.), und Ungarns (Budapest, Fünfirchen-Becs, coll. Dr. g. J. von Fejérváry, Szombath) ferner von Kronstadt-Siebenburgen (coll. Prof. L. v. Mehely, Übergang zu typica?), von der Dobrudscha (f. dobrogica)"; restricted to "Budapest", Hungary, by Mertens and Müller, 1928, Abh. Senckenb. Naturforsch. Ges., 41: 11. Synonymy by Fuhn and Freytag, 1961, Zool. Anz., 166: 163.

Triton cristatus cristatus forma dobrogicaWolterstorff, 1923, Bl. Aquar. Terrarienkd., Stuttgart, 34: 120.

Triton cristatus danubialis forma werneri Wolterstorff, 1923, Bl. Aquar. Terrarienkd., Stuttgart, 34: 121. Holotype: presumably MM; presumably destroyed in W.W.II. Type locality: "Lang-Engersdorf bei Wien", Austria. Unavailable tetranomial.

Triturus cristatus danubialisMertens, 1923, Senckenb. Biol., 5: 213.

Triton (Neotriton) cristatus danubialisBolkay, 1928, Z. Anat. Entwicklungesch., 86: 259.

Triturus cristatus dobrogicusMertens and Müller, 1928, Abh. Senckenb. Naturforsch. Ges., 41: 11.

Molge cristata danubialis forma smederevana Karaman, 1948, Prirodoslovna Istrazivanja, Zagreb, 24: 52. Holotype: Not stated; presumably in ZIUZ according to Brame and Gorham, 1972, Checklist Living & Fossil Salamand. World (Unpubl. MS): 96. Type locality: Smederevo on the Danube, (east of Belgrade, Serbia). Unavailable tetranominal.

Triturus cristatus danubialis var. intermedia Fuhn, 1953, Bul. Stiint. Sect. Biol. Agron. Geol. Geogr., Bucuresti, 5: 633. Type(s): Not stated although presumably MGAB. Type locality: "Bucurestilor si la Cristesti (r. Iasi)" (= Jassay near Bucharest, Botanical Garden of Bucharest), Romania. (Not Triton vulgaris intermedia Kolombatovic, 1907; not Triton intermedius Szeliga, 1931). Unavailable tetranominal.

Triturus cristatus dobrogicusMertens and Wermuth, 1960, Amph. Rept. Europas: 27.

Triturus dobrogicusBucci-Innocenti, Ragghianti, and Mancino, 1983, Copeia, 1983: 662–672.

Triturus (Triturus) dobrogicusMacGregor, Sessions, and Arntzen, 1990, J. Evol. Biol., 3: 329.

Triturus dobrogicus dobrogicusLitvinchuk and Borkin, 2000, Amphibia-Reptilia, 21: 427.

Triturus dobrogicus macrosomusLitvinchuk and Borkin, 2000, Amphibia-Reptilia, 21: 427. Incorrect termination.

Triturus (Triturus) dobrogicus dobrogicusDubois and Raffaëlli, 2009, Alytes, 26: 67.

Triturus (Triturus) dobrogicus macrosomaDubois and Raffaëlli, 2009, Alytes, 26: 67.

Triturus dobrogicus macrosoma — Wielstra, Vörös, and Arntzen, 2016, Amphibia-Reptilia, 37: 167. 

English Names

Danube Newt (Frank and Ramus, 1995, Compl. Guide Scient. Common Names Amph. Rept. World: 36).

Danube Crested Newt (Steward, 1969, Tailed Amph. Eur.: 40; Stumpel-Rienks, 1992, Ergänzungsband Handbuch Rept. Amph. Eur., Trivialnamen der Herpetofauna Eur.: 66; Kuzmin, 1999, Amph. Former Soviet Union: 183; Arnold, 2002, Rept. Amph. Eur., Ed. 2: 44).

Distribution

Danube and Tisza River systems of eastern Austria, extreme southern Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, northern Croatia, extreme northern Bosnia-Herzegovina, northern Serbia and western Romania, eastwards to the Transcarpathian Plain in southern Romania, northern Bulgaria, southern Moldova (the lower reaches of the Prut River), and extreme southern Odesskaya Province (Ukraine). 

Geographic Occurrence

Natural Resident: Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Hungary, Moldova, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Ukraine

Comment

Litvinchuk, Sokolova, and Borkin, 1994, Abh. Ber. Naturkd. Magdeburg, 17: 67–74, presented an allozyme study that supported species status separate from Tritrurus cristatus. See accounts for the former USSR by Kuzmin, 1999, Amph. Former Soviet Union: 183–186, and Kuzmin, 2013, Amph. Former Soviet Union, Ed. 2: 103–105. See brief account byThorn and Raffaëlli, 2000, Salamand. Ancien Monde: 299–300. Arntzen and Wallis, 1999, Bijdr. Dierkd., 68: 181–203, reported on geographic variation. Litvinchuk and Borkin, 2000, Amphibia-Reptilia, 21: 419–430, noted that the subspecies Triturus dobrogicus macrosoma (Danube Delta) and Triturus dobrogicus dobrogicus are allopatric. Arnold, 2002, Rept. Amph. Eur., Ed. 2: 44, provided a brief account, figure, and map. Litvinchuk and Borkin, 2002, Vestn. Zool., Kiev, 36: 35–44, discussed the distribution, ecology, and conservation status in Ukraine and Moldova. See account by Arntzen, 2003, in Grossenbacher and Thiesmeier (eds.), Handbuch Rept. Amph. Eur., 4(IIA): 421–514. Litvinchuk, 2005, Russ. J. Herpetol., 12: 61–64, provided a record for the Dnieper River Delta, Ukraine. Raffaëlli, 2013, Urodeles du Monde, 2nd ed.: 132–133, provided a set of brief accounts, photos, and map.  See statement of geographic range, habitat, and conservation status in Stuart, Hoffmann, Chanson, Cox, Berridge, Ramani, and Young, 2008, Threatened Amph. World: 642. Nöllert and Nöllert, 1992, Die Amph. Eur.: 226–228, provided a brief account and polygon map. Gherghel and Iftime, 2009, North-West. J. Zool., Romania, 5: 209–213, provided a record for northeastern Bulgaria and discussed the range as well as the possibility of introgressive hybridization with Triturus karelini. Vörös and Arntzen, 2010, Amphibia-Reptilia, 31: 339–346, reported on biogeography and allozymic variation among populations. Reviewed by Jehle, Thiesmeier, and Foster, 2011, The Crested Newt.: 1–152. Stojanov, Tzankov, and Naumov, 2011, Die Amph. Rept. Bulgariens: 120–125, provided a fairly detailed account and range map for Bulgaria. Wielstra and Arntzen, 2011, BMC Evol. Biol., 11(162): 1–8, reported ln the molecular phylogenetics of the species and its near relatives. Cogǎlniceanu, Székely, Samoilă, Iosif, Tudor, Plăiaşu, Stănescu, and Rozylowicz, 2013, ZooKeys, 296: 35–57, provided a dot map for Romania. Naumov and Biserkov, 2013, Acta Zool. Bulgarica, 65: 307–313, reported on the range and taxonomic status of the population in Bulgaria. Wielstra, Sillero, Vörös, and Arntzen, 2014, Amphibia-Reptilia, 35: 376–381, provided a dot map. Arntzen, Wielstra, and Wallis, 2014, Biol. J. Linn. Soc., 113: 604–622, reported on hybrid/contact zones with Triturus cristatus, Triturus carnifex, Triturus ivanbureschi, and Triturus macedonicus. Sparreboom, 2014, Salamanders Old World: 345–346, 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.: 97–101, provided a brief account and distribution map. Wielstra, Vörös, and Arntzen, 2016, Amphibia-Reptilia, 37: 167–177, rejected subspecies. Vörös, Mikulíček, Major, Recuero, and Arntzen, 2016, Biol. J. Linn. Soc., 119: 974–991, reported on mtDNA phylogeography. See Dufresnes, 2019, Amph. Eur., N. Afr., & Middle East: 135, for brief summary of identifying morphology and biology, a range map, as well as a photograph. Raffaëlli, 2022, Salamanders & Newts of the World: 377–379, provided an account, summarizing systematics, life history, population status, and distribution (including a polygon map). 

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