Description
Ichthyophis asplenius is a Southeast Asian caecilian first described by Edward Taylor in 1965 from three specimens from Borneo. The three specimens range from 191 - 207 mm in total length. It has a moderately sized head that narrower than the body. The snout projects slightly away from the mouth. The nostrils are nearly terminal, and visible from directly above its head. A tentacle, near the lip, can be found closer to the eye than nostril. Its dim, elevated eyes are visible. The distance between the eyes is greater than the distance from the snout tip to eye. Its teeth are small, with the dentary teeth being the largest and the vomeropalatine teeth being minute. Its first and second collars are fused ventrally but separated dorsally. Ichthyophis asplenius has a nuchal groove that is unbroken laterally around the body and a second groove behind a fold. There were roughly 264 - 270 primary and secondary annuli after their collars and 247 - 270 body folds. In the holotype specimen, scales were present in the 30th body fold, in the middle of its length toward the mid-ventral line, and posteriorly four rows. Some I. asplenius had a fifth row of posterior scales. The tail is 3.0 - 3.3. mm long (Taylor 1965, 1968).

DIAGNOSIS:

COLORATION:

Ichthyophis asplenius is a dark brownish lilac with a consistent coloring above and below. They also have a distinguishing yellowish lateral stripe that began on the head at the tentacle and ended at the vent; it had uneven edges that are about 1.5 mm wide. The head is olive brown, and there is a faint ring around its eye. The tip of its snout is light. The vent also has a light spot (Taylor 1965). It is unclear if this is the coloration in life or preservative.

Distribution and Habitat

Country distribution from AmphibiaWeb's database: Malaysia, Thailand

Malaysian region distribution from AmphibiaWeb's database: Sarawak

View distribution map in BerkeleyMapper.

Ichthyophis asplenius’ holotype was found in Boven Mahakkam, Borneo, and another individual found in Sarawak, Borneo (Taylor 1968). It is also extant in Kalimantan, Indonesia, and it is potentially present in Thailand and peninsular Malaysia (IUCN 2022). Like other caecilians, I. asplenius are found in moist areas with wet soil, such as banks and edges of streams or rivulets, permanent ponds, springs, swamps, under rocks or logs, or in the mossy regions of wet forests (Taylor 1968).

Life History, Abundance, Activity, and Special Behaviors
Like other caecilians, I. asplenius are found in moist areas with wet soil, such as banks and edges of streams or rivulets, permanent ponds, springs, swamps, under rocks or logs, or in the mossy regions of wet forests (Taylor 1968).

This species is presumably oviparous. Its eggs are laid terrestrially, consistent with other species in its genus (IUCN 2020).

Larva

LARVA:

Comments

PHYLOGENETIC RELATIONSHIPS:

References

IUCN SSC Amphibian Specialist Group. 2022. Ichthyophis asplenius. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2022: e.T59602A114040690. https://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2022-2.RLTS.T59602A114040690.en. Accessed in April 2024

San Mauro, D., Gower, D. J., Müller, H., Loader, S. P., Zardoya, R., Nussbaum, R. A., and Wilkinson, M. (2014). Life-history evolution and mitogenomic phylogeny of caecilian amphibians. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution, 73, 177–189. [link]

Taylor, E.H. 1965. New Asiatic and African caecilians with redescriptions of related species. University of Kansas Science Bulletin 46, 253-302. [link]

Taylor, E.H. 1968. The Caecilians of the World. A Taxonomic Review. University of Kansas Press, Lawrence, Kansas

Species Account Citation: AmphibiaWeb 2024 Ichthyophis asplenius: Broad-striped caecilian <https://amphibiaweb.org/species/1967> University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA. Accessed Nov 21, 2024.

Citation: AmphibiaWeb. 2024. <https://amphibiaweb.org> University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA. Accessed 21 Nov 2024.

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