Age, Survivorship and Life Expectancy in Near Eastern Fire Salamander, Salamandra infraimmaculata (Caudata: Salamandridae)

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Altunisik A.

RUSSIAN JOURNAL OF ECOLOGY, vol.49, no.2, pp.166-171, 2018 (SCI-Expanded) identifier identifier

  • Publication Type: Article / Article
  • Volume: 49 Issue: 2
  • Publication Date: 2018
  • Doi Number: 10.1134/s1067413618020029
  • Journal Name: RUSSIAN JOURNAL OF ECOLOGY
  • Journal Indexes: Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-EXPANDED), Scopus
  • Page Numbers: pp.166-171
  • Keywords: age, amphibian, salamander, survivorship, life history, sexual dimorphism, Salamandridae, SEXUAL SIZE DIMORPHISM, BODY-SIZE, DIFFERENT ALTITUDES, SHAPE DIMORPHISM, HISTORY TRAITS, TURKEY, POPULATION, GROWTH, SKELETOCHRONOLOGY, NEWT
  • Recep Tayyip Erdoğan University Affiliated: Yes

Abstract

Populations from different environmental habitats indicate variation in life history traits and these differences are mostly related to longevity, age and size at maturity. In this study, age structure, longevity, survivorship and sexual size dimorphism of Near Eastern fire salamander (Salamandra infraimmaculata) were assessed by means of skeletochronological analysis. Maximum lifespan was recorded to be twelve years in females and eleven years in males and age at maturity was estimated as three and four years for both sexes. Females had significantly larger SVL than that of males, while age structure and mean age did not differ between sexes. Age and body size were positively correlated with each other for both females and males. Since the populations of the Near Eastern fire salamander in Turkey are in decline, the present study which provides preliminary data on life history traits of this species could be helpful for future biological studies.