Boulengerula

Boulengerula
Boulengerula taitanus
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Amphibia
Order: Gymnophiona
Clade: Apoda
Family: Herpelidae
Genus: Boulengerula
Tornier, 1896
Species

8 species (see text)

Synonyms[1]

Afrocaecilia Taylor, 1968

Boulengerula is a genus of amphibians in the family Herpelidae.[1][2] They are found in East Africa.[1][3] They are sometimes known as Boulenger's caecilians or Usambara bluish-gray caecilians.[1]

Ecology

Boulengerula taitana feeds on earthworms, termites, dipteran larvae and other soil macrofauna. Presumably other Boulengerula have similar diets.[4]

Species

There are eight species:[1][2]

Binomial name and author Common name
Boulengerula boulengeri Tornier, 1896 Boulenger's caecilian, Usambara bluish-gray caecilian
Boulengerula changamwensis Loveridge, 1932 Changamwensis African caecilian, Changamwe lowland caecilian, Changamwe caecilian
Boulengerula denhardti Nieden, 1912
Boulengerula fischeri Nussbaum & Hinkel, 1994
Boulengerula niedeni Müller, Measey, Loader, & Malonza, 2005
Boulengerula spawlsi Wilkinson, Malonza, Campbell, and Loader, 2017
Boulengerula taitana Loveridge, 1935 Taita African caecilian, Taita Mountains caecilian
Boulengerula uluguruensis Barbour & Loveridge, 1928 Uluguru African caecilian, Uluguru pink caecilian

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Frost, Darrel R. (2018). "Boulengerula Tornier, 1896". Amphibian Species of the World: an Online Reference. Version 6.0. American Museum of Natural History. Retrieved 22 May 2018.
  2. ^ a b "Herpelidae". AmphibiaWeb. University of California, Berkeley. 2018. Retrieved 22 May 2018.
  3. ^ Zug, G.R., Vitt, L.V., & Caldwell, J.P. Herpetology: An Introductory Biology of Amphibians and Reptiles, Second Edition. San Diego: Academic Press, 2001. 370.
  4. ^ Gaborieau, O. & Measey, G.J. (2004). "Termitivore or detritivore? A quantitative investigation into the diet of the East African caecilian Boulengerula taitanus (Amphibia: Gymnophiona: Caeciliidae)" (PDF). Animal Biology. 54: 45–56. doi:10.1163/157075604323010042. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-05-25.


Stub icon

This caecilian article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.