New data on occurrence, ecology, and color variation of Pseudoeurycea jaguar (Caudata: Plethodontidae), an endemic salamander from Mexico

Abstract

Pseudoeurycea jaguar Cázares-Hernández, Jimeno-Sevilla, Rovito, López-Luna, and Canseco-Márquez, 2022 is an endemic species of plethodontid salamander that occurs in Veracruz, Mexico. Pseudoeurycea is the most speciose genus (40 spp.) and Plethodontidae is the largest family (88% of salamander richness) present in the country (AmphibiaWeb 2023). Eleven species of Pseudoeurycea occur in the state of Veracruz (Torres-Hernández et al. 2021, CázaresHernández et al. 2022), where the type locality in the Sierra de Zongólica of P. jaguar is located. Pseudoeurycea jaguar is distinguished from other species occurring in Veracruz by its large size and the presence of irregular yellow mottled dorsal coloration on a dark brown, almost black, background that resembles the pattern of a jaguar (Cázares-Hernández et al. 2022). I report here the occurrence of P. jaguar in two new localities in Mexico, which extend its