At a glance
Essentials
- Size
- Holotype (adult male): 26.6 mm snout-vent length and 32.1 mm tail. The range may vary with age, sex and population.
- Distribution
- Known only from its type locality near Jitotol and a nearby site in the Central Plateau of Chiapas, Mexico.
- Habitat
- Very humid high mountain cloud forests between 1200 and 1550 m above sea level; depends on humid microhabitats such as leaf litter and mossy logs.
- Conservation
- Endangered (IUCN 3.1) due to habitat loss from agricultural expansion, human settlements, and logging.
Observation guide
What to look for
- 01
Body of reddish-brown color with an irregular and poorly defined dorsal band.
- 02
Limbs of orange color with lighter tones and light fingertips.
- 03
Blunt snout with nostrils pointing forward.
- 04
Holotype snout-vent length of 26.6 mm and tail of 32.1 mm.
Lighting, age and viewing angle can hide features. If identification affects consumption, handling or conservation, consult specialist sources.
Ecology
Description and characteristics
Cryptotriton alvarezdeltoroi is a species of salamander in the family Plethodontidae, originally described by Papenfuss and Wake in 1987 under the name Nototriton alvarezdeltoroi. The specific epithet honors the Mexican herpetologist Miguel Álvarez del Toro. It is an amphibian endemic to Mexico, known only from the sierras of northern Chiapas, near the locality of Tapilula and Jitotol, on the Caribbean slope of the Central Plateau.
The body color is reddish-brown, with an irregular and poorly defined dorsal band. The limbs are orange with lighter tones, and the fingertips are light. The snout is blunt and the nostrils point forward. The holotype, an adult male, measures 26.6 mm in snout-vent length and 32.1 mm in tail length.
Its natural habitat is very humid cloud forests of subtropical or tropical high mountain regions, between 1200 and 1550 m above sea level. It has also been recorded at road edges. Like other plethodontids, it depends on humid microhabitats such as leaf litter and moss-covered logs within the forest. The species is classified as Endangered on the IUCN Red List due to the destruction of its habitat caused by agricultural expansion, human settlements, and logging.