Paramesotriton yunwuensis

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Paramesotriton yunwuensis (Yunwu warty newt)

Paramesotriton yunwuensis is a salamander in the family Salamandridae. It is endemic to the Yunwu Mountains in Guangdong, southern China. It was described from the area near Nanchong village, Fuhe, Luoding City, and is also known from the Yunkai National Nature Reserve. The common name Yunwu warty newt is used for this species.

Description
- Size: adult males 93–105 mm, adult females 73–88 mm in snout–vent length.
- Appearance: the body is robust with a large head, longer than it is wide, and a truncate snout. There are large warts on the head and along dorsolateral ridges. Males have a less conspicuous vertebral ridge; females have a more noticeable ridge. Forelimbs are short and the digits are not webbed. The tail is laterally compressed with a rounded tip.
- Color: dorsally from reddish brown to olive brown. Ventrally varies from a black background with orange blotches to orange with many small black flecks. Subadults are mostly black with orange blotches on the belly. Males have a bluish-white stripe on the rear part of the tail.

Habitat and conservation
- Habitat: cold, clear, slow-moving streams and pools in evergreen broad-leaved forests, at elevations of about 300–1,200 meters above sea level.
- Behavior: active in deeper parts of pools during the day and in shallower parts at night. Breeding occurs in the same streams.
- Population: relatively common in the Yunwu Mountains, but the total population is small, estimated at fewer than 2,500 adults, and believed to be declining.
- Threats: collection for the pet trade, habitat degradation, and pollution from hydropower development and tourism.
- Conservation status: Endangered (IUCN Red List, IUCN 3.1).

Taxonomy
- Binomial name: Paramesotriton yunwuensis
- Genus: Paramesotriton
- Family: Salamandridae
- Described in 2010 by Wu, Jiang, and Hanken.