Neurergus kaiseri

Neurergus kaiseri

Kaiser mountain newts get their common name from the small area where they are found in Iran. Their back is black with white spots and a narrow orange-red or yellow stripe running from behind their head to their tail. This species is critically endangered due to its small range, habitat loss, and poaching for the pet trade

Kaiser’s Mountain Newt

Neurergus kaiseri (Schmidt, 1952)

Etymology: Named in honor of von E. W. KAISER

Endemic to the Zagros Mountains of Iran

Description

Body Weight: Male: up to 6.5 gr. Female: up to 9.9 gr (gravid)

Coloration: Dorsum black, with white blotches, and long narrow orange vertebral stripe, ventral part orange; (other species of this genus are black with yellow spots)

Activity Cycle: Active during day and night

Diet: Insects, and Mollusca

Habitat: Spring-fed Mountain streams in oak forests

Altitude: 400-1619m

:Reproduction

Reproductive Period: Late February to April

Spawn: Small clutches (40-60 eggs), deposited on aquatic vegetation

Larvae: In the early stages yellow with black spots, and older larvae and adults have the same color pattern

Limb Regeneration: This species can regenerate missing or damaged tissues and limbs

Neurergus kaiseri

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Threats

Illegal pet trade: The international and national pet trade

Habitat fragmentation: caused by dam-building

Habitat destruction: by agricultural activities

Over-exploitation: of water resources particularly, in mountainous springs and brooks by farmers and orchardists

:Citation

Dufresnes C. 2019. Amphibians of Europe, North Africa and the Middle East. A Photographic Guide. Bloomsbury Wildlife

۲۲۴ pp

Safaei-Mahroo B. 2014. Ecological investigation of critically endangered Kaiser’s Mountain Newt Neurergus kaiseri (Schmidt, 1952) in Khuzestan and Lorestan provinces of Iran. M.Sc. Thesis in Environment. Science & research branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran

Safaei-Mahroo B. & Ghaffari H. 2020. The Complete Guide to Amphibians of Iran, Biology, Ecology and Conservation. Kurdistan  University Press

۳۳۲ pp