Plethodontidae

Thesaurus

Noun

Plethodontidae - small mostly terrestrial New World salamanders having neither lungs nor gills as adultsfamily Plethodontidaeamphibian family - any family of amphibiansCaudata, order Caudata, order Urodella, Urodella - salamanders; newts; congo snakesgenus Plethodon, Plethodon - type genus of the Plethodontidaelungless salamander, plethodont - mostly terrestrial salamanders that breathe through their thin moist skin; lay eggs in moist places on land; rarely enter waterDesmograthus, genus Desmograthus - an amphibian genus of PlethodontidaeAneides, genus Aneides - climbing salamandersBatrachoseps, genus Batrachoseps - slender salamandersgenus Hydromantes, Hydromantes - web-toed salamanders

Plethodontidae

[‚pleth·ə′dänt·ə‚dē] (vertebrate zoology) A large family of salamanders in the suborder Salamandroidea characterized by the absence of lungs and the presence of a fine groove from nostril to upper lip.

Plethodontidae

a family of caudate amphibians. They are close to true salamanders except for the fact that they do not have lungs. Plethodontidae breathe through the skin and the mucous membranes of the mouth and throat. Their length is 8–15 cm. There are approximately 60 species, distributed in North and Central America; one species, the cave salamander (Hydromantes genei) is found in the mountains of Italy.

Plethodontidae are active primarily at night. They feed on insects and other small invertebrates. Some Plethodontidae still live in water; many lead a land existence, sometimes far from water. Terrestrial Plethodontidae lay their eggs in moist places on dry land. In some species the eggs produce larvae which complete their metamorphosis in the water; the eggs of others produce completely developed young salamanders. The females of many species of Plethodontidae remain near the eggs for the whole period of their development. Some species are viviparous.

Plethodontidae

Related to Plethodontidae: Sirenidae, dusky salamander, Ambystomatidae, Salamandridae, Proteidae, lungless salamander

noun

Synonyms for Plethodontidae

noun small mostly terrestrial New World salamanders having neither lungs nor gills as adults

Synonyms

family Plethodontidae

Related Words

amphibian family
Caudata
order Caudata
order Urodella
Urodella
genus Plethodon
Plethodon
lungless salamander
plethodont
Desmograthus
genus Desmograthus
Aneides
genus Aneides
Batrachoseps
genus Batrachoseps
genus Hydromantes
Hydromantes