223 Sky-diving Salamanders

Herpetological Highlights

Mar 09, 2025•28 min•Ep. 223

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Episode description

Some tree-dwelling salamanders have a remarkable ability to ‘sky-dive’, controlling their descent after leaping away from predators. New research tests the gliding ability of a number of different species, and finds that some are more adept than others. We follow up with a brand new frog species described from Kangaroo Island, Australia.

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Main Paper References:

Brown CE, Sathe EA, Dudley R, Deban SM. 2022. Aerial maneuvering by plethodontid salamanders spanning an arboreality gradient. Journal of Experimental Biology 225:jeb244598. DOI: 10.1242/jeb.244598.

Species of the Bi-Week:

Parkin T, Rowley JJL, Elliott-Tate J, Mahony MJ, Sumner J, Melville J, Donnellan SC. 2024. Systematic assessment of the brown tree frog (Anura: Pelodryadidae: Litoria ewingii) reveals two endemic species in South Australia. Zootaxa 5406:1–36. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5406.1.1.

Other Mentioned Papers/Studies:

Brown, C. E., Goldenberg, W. P., Hinds, O. M., O'Donnell, M. K., & Staub, N. L. (2025). Vascular and Osteological Morphology of Expanded Digit Tips Suggests Specialization in the Wandering Salamander (Aneides vagrans). Journal of Morphology, 286(1), e70026.