Description
B.anthracina is a large, moderately robust, uniformly black salamander with digits that have very little webbing . It differs from other large black salamanders in Panama and Costa Rica because it has a large number of maxillary teeth. The standard length of the species reaches more than 70 mm, and is 4.4 times head length and 7 times head width. The snout has small proturberances at the termination of the nasolabial grooves. The nostrils and eyes are small. Teeth are numerous (more than 24 vomerine and 66 maxillary teeth). The limbs are only moderately long, and the hands and feet have short, blunt digit tips. There is little webbing, and the fingers (in order of decreasing length) are 3-4-2-1; toes are 3-4-2-5-1. Tails are longer than SL. The salamander is uniformly black except for the palms and soles, which are gray.

Distribution and Habitat

Country distribution from AmphibiaWeb's database: Panama

View distribution map in BerkeleyMapper.

The species is found in the Carribean Tropical Premontane Rainforest in western Panama and near the border of Costa Rica. The elevational range for this species is from 1100-1450 m.

Comments
B. anthracina may occur in sympatry with B. robusta and B. colonnea. The species name is derived from the Greek word anthrakinos, meaning coal-black, in reference to the dark coloration of this salamander. This species occurs in cloud forests that remain moderately inaccessible and the species is known only from three specimens.

References

Brame, A. H., Jr., Savage, J. M., Wake, D. B. and Hanken, J. (2001). ''New species of large black salamander, genus Bolitoglossa (Plethodontidae) from western Panama.'' Copeia, 2001(3), 700-704.

Species Account Citation: AmphibiaWeb 2001 Bolitoglossa anthracina: Coal Black Salamander <https://amphibiaweb.org/species/5856> University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA. Accessed Dec 4, 2024.

Citation: AmphibiaWeb. 2024. <https://amphibiaweb.org> University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA. Accessed 4 Dec 2024.

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