Warty and Wonderful Newts!

Last week, we met a fleet-footed (fast-running) mammal from Africa and Asia known for being a favored prey of big cats. This week, we go from mammals to amphibians and from large to small.

Very little information is available about this kind, which has just one species in it. That species was only described in 2002 and is considered endangered.1 While 2002 may seem like a long time ago for you, the science of taxonomy (classifying living things into groups), in its modern form, has existed for just under 300 years, so 20 years is very recent. Since there are not that many scientists interested in this species, very little research has been done.

What we do know about this kind comes from a few field and breeding studies. One study found that this kind likes cold pools next to fast-flowing creeks. They will eat almost anything they can fit in their mouths, including the eggs of other members of the kind.2 Because they are colorful and of modest size, they are popular in the commercial pet trade and thus are threatened with extinction.

This kind breeds fairly easily in captivity. They lay eggs on leaves, preferably the ones on the ground. It takes almost four years for males and females to reach maturity, but once they do, they lay lots of eggs, with the first captive breeding report successfully raising 240 young from just a few parents.3

Has anyone figured it out yet? This week’s kind is the Laotriton—the Laos warty newt kind. If you have experience keeping salamanders and newts, you might be able to find a captive individual to keep, but they are not cheap. Stay tuned for next week when we migrate south, looking for some Australasian birds.

Try out this fun word search!

Clue

Your clue for the week is:

This kind includes the smallest Australian songbird.

Ask a Question

Have you ever had a question about created kinds but didn’t know who to ask? Have you ever wanted to learn more about your favorite kind? Well, now you can! You can ask me, Inspector Barry Mins, a question! Have your parents help you fill out this form, and you might get your question answered in my column! If you have any questions about created kinds, feel free to send them my way!