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Andrias spp.

Basic information
Scientific name Andrias spp.

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チュウゴクオオサンショウウオ
Common names Chinese Giant Salamander
Higher taxon Cryptobranchidae, Caudata, Amphibia
Natural range The mountain streams of China, from Qinghai to southern Shanxi and south to Sichuan, Yunnan, Guangxi, Guangdong, Jiangxi, and Anhui, 100-1500 m elevation.
Habitat Mountain streams，swamp
Invasion information
Range in Japan Kiso River system in Gifu, Azumi River system in Shiga, Yodo River system, Kamo River system, and a part of Katsuragawa River Systems in Kyoto, Ashimizu River in Nara and Mie, Yodo River system in Osaka, Asahi River system and Yoshii River system in Okayama, and Hachiman River system in Hiroshima Pref. Range in Japan
Origin Unknown.
Date Unknown. The established population possibly originate from the imported salamanders for food in 1972.
Route Unknown. The established population possibly originate from the imported salamanders for food in 1972.
Impact Serious introgressive hybridization with the native population of A. japonicus has occurred in Kaomogawa River. A study clarified that most of the giant salamanders in Kamogawa River were hybrid.
Native organism(s) affected: Japanese giant salamander Andrias japonicus
Regulation in Japan Import, transport and keeping are prohibited in Japan by the Invasive Alien Species Act. This species is protected by CITES (Appendix I) and a Chinese law.
Introduced range in other countries Unknown.
Reference Notes
  • AmphibiaWeb: Information on amphibian biology and conservation. [web application]. 2012. Berkeley, California: AmphibiaWeb. Available: http://amphibiaweb.org/. (Accessed on 2024-05-29).
  • Frost (2009) Amphibian Species of the World: an Online Reference. Version 5.3 (12 February, 2009). http://research.amnh.org/herpetology/amphibia/ . AMNH, New York, USA.
  • IUCN Red List (Accesed on 2024-5-29) https://www.iucnredlist.org/
  • Ministry of the Environment, Japan.（2024-05-30）https://www.env.go.jp/nature/intro/4document/data/sentei/16/index.html
  • Gong YA et.al. (2023) A New Species of the Giant Salamander of the Genus Andrias from Qimeng, Anhui, China (Amphibia: Cryptobranchidae). Chinese Journal of Zoology. 58(5), 651-657
  • etc.