Hynobius nebulosus (Temminck and Schlegel, 1838)

Class: Amphibia > Order: Caudata > Family: Hynobiidae > Subfamily: Hynobiinae > Genus: Hynobius > Species: Hynobius nebulosus

Salamandra nebulosa Temminck and Schlegel, 1838, Fauna Japonica, 3: 127, 139. Syntypes: Not stated, but clearly including animals figured on pl. 4, figs. 7–9 of the original. According to Brame and Gorham, 1972, Checklist Living & Fossil Salamand. World (Unpubl. MS): 12, including RMNH 2307, 2309, BMNH 1926.6.3–4 and SMF; RMNH 2307A designated lectotype by Hoogmoed, 1978, Zool. Meded., Leiden, 53: 100; reported as 2309A by Matsui, Okawa, Nishikawa, Aoki, Eto, Yoshikawa, Tanabe, Misawa, and Tominaga, 2019, Curr. Herpetol., Kyoto, 38: 63, which suggests that the numbers require confirmation. Type locality: "Mits jama (les trois monts) situés dans les environs de Nagasaki", Kyushu I., Japan. See also Thireau, 1986, Cat. Types Urodeles Mus. Natl. Hist. Nat., Rev. Crit.: 48, who discussed the status of types.

Hynobius nebulosusTschudi, 1838, Classif. Batr.: 60, 94.

Ellipsoglossa nebulosaDuméril, Bibron, and Duméril, 1854, Erp. Gen., 9: 100.

Hynobius peropus Boulenger, 1882, Cat. Batr. Grad. Batr. Apoda Coll. Brit. Mus., Ed. 2: 33. Holotype: BMNH 1946.9.6.50 (formerly 1872.1.29.4), according to Brame and Gorham, 1972, Checklist Living & Fossil Salamand. World (Unpubl. MS): 12, and museum records, animal figured on plate II, fig. 1 of the original publication. Type locality: "China or Japan". Considered by Stejneger, 1907, Bull. U.S. Natl. Mus., 58: 34, to most likely come from Japan. Synonymy (with Hynobius nebulosus) by Dunn, 1923, Proc. Am. Acad. Arts Sci., 58: 469; Dunn, 1927, Copeia, 164: 19, and Okada, 1934, Copeia, 1934: 17. Synonymy with (Hynobius nigrescens) by Okada, 1937, Saito Ho-on Kwai Mus. Res. Bull., 12: 182.

Hynobius ikishimae Dunn, 1923, Proc. California Acad. Sci., Ser. 4, 12: 28. Holotype: CAS 26314, by original designation. Type locality: "Iki-shima, in the Korean straits", Japan. Synonymy by Oyama, 1930, Annot. Zool. Japon., 12: 443; Tago, 1934, Zool. Mag., Tokyo, 46: 214–224; Thorn, 1968, Salamand. Eur. Asie Afr. Nord: 43.

Hynobius (Hynobius) nebulosus nebulosusNakamura and Ueno, 1963, Japan. Rept. Amph. Color: 6.

Hynobius nebulosus nebulosusThorn, 1968, Salamand. Eur. Asie Afr. Nord: 43.

Hynobius (Hynobius) nebulosusDubois and Raffaëlli, 2012, Alytes, 28: 77–161.

English Names

Mitsjama Salamander (Frank and Ramus, 1995, Compl. Guide Scient. Common Names Amph. Rept. World: 28).

Clouded Salamander (Ananjeva, Borkin, Darevsky, and Orlov, 1988, Dict. Amph. Rept. Five Languages: 21; Thorn and Raffaëlli, 2000, Salamand. Ancien Monde: 47).

Dusky Oriental Salamander (Ananjeva, Borkin, Darevsky, and Orlov, 1988, Dict. Amph. Rept. Five Languages: 21).

Misty Salamander (Goris and Maeda, 2004, Guide Amph. Rept. Japan: 20).

Distribution

Northern half of central and western Kyushu, Japan, and adjacent islands (Fukuoka, Saga, Nagasaki, and Kumamoto Prefectures), elevations of 15–670 m. 

Geographic Occurrence

Natural Resident: Japan

Endemic: Japan

Comment

In the Hynobius nebulosus group. Species redelimited by Matsui, Okawa, Nishikawa, Aoki, Eto, Yoshikawa, Tanabe, Misawa, and Tominaga, 2019, Curr. Herpetol., Kyoto, 38: 32–90, to exclude 8 new species (Hynobius abuensis, Hynobius akiensis, Hynobius bakan, Hynobius iwami, Hynobius nebulosus, Hynobius setoi, Hynobius setouchi, Hynobius utsunomiyaorum, and Hynobius vandenburghi) and severely restricting the range. The result here is that all literature cited below may reference Hynobius nebulosus, but more likely refers to the entire complex or part thereof. Discussed by Nakamura and Ueno, 1963, Japan. Rept. Amph. Color: 6–7. See accounts by Stejneger, 1907, Bull. U.S. Natl. Mus., 58: 30–32, Okawa and Utsunomiya, 1989, in Matsui et al. (eds.), Curr. Herpetol. E. Asia: 142–146 (who noted very distinctive morphotypes that may warrant taxonomic recognition), and Thorn and Raffaëlli, 2000, Salamand. Ancien Monde: 47–51. See comment under Hynobius tokyoensis. Goris and Maeda, 2004, Guide Amph. Rept. Japan: 20–22, provided an account, map, and photograph. Matsui, Nishikawa, Utsunomiya, and Tanabe, 2006, Biol. J. Linn. Soc., 89: 311–330, reported on geographic allozyme variation that reflected geological history. See brief account by Raffaëlli, 2007, Les Urodèles du Monde: 46–47. Yamane and Nishida, 2010, Curr. Herpetol., Kyoto, 29: 79–90, reported on landscape genetics. Raffaëlli, 2013, Urodeles du Monde, 2nd ed.: 65, provided a brief account, photo, and map. Sparreboom, 2014, Salamanders Old World: 79–81, reviewed the biology, characteristics, distribution, reproduction, and conservation of the species, but in the sense of including several species subsequently recognized from within the complex. Raffaëlli, 2022, Salamanders & Newts of the World: 88–90, provided an account, summarizing systematics, life history, population status, and distribution (including a polygon map).

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