Paramesotriton color variant

[TJ]

 

[ajfr0ggy]

What specie is this?

Thanks
Ajfr0ggy

 

[TJ]

Unknown. Your guess is prob as good as mine

It's certainly not P. caudopunctatus and probably not P.chinensis or P.hongkongensis. It was being sold as P.asperrimus (no such thing).

 

[ajfr0ggy]

Well, mine have the same colour but they look spikier than that one

Ajfr0ggy

 

[andrea]

My P.hongkongensis looks similar to that, just not as greenish. He's more on the brownish/black side. That is very intersting. In all of the Paramesotriton pictures that i've seen I've never seen anything quite like that..... very very interesting!

 

[chris]

Mine looks exactly like that apart from the tail, it looks like there are no warts, am I seeing that right?
Chris

 

[TJ]

well then here's another shot to help you figure that one out

 

[TJ]

 

[andrea]

That really does look like a P.hongkongensis, just almost like there isn't enough pigment in the skin. I'm thinking that because of the blotches of dark and the almost lack of pigment on the tail.... again VERY INTERESTING!

 

[ajfr0ggy]

Mine haev a slightly differnt colour, they have a darker top and the pattern is differnt

Ajfr0ggy

 

[TJ]

Hi Andrea. Actually, it seems quite different from hongkongensis to me -- but then I've had a good look at the real thing and don't have to only rely on a pic

It seems more like chinensis than hongkongensis to my untrained eye. In my understanding, the skin of hongkongensis is much smoother. Also, with hongensis, each side of the dorsal ridgeline is more depressed (though that's often because of the sorry state in which they arrive at pet shops)

Please do post a pic of your "hongkongensis" someday so we can speculate as to whether it really is what it seems to you to be -- given that newts are so often sold under erroneous names.

 

[lane]

I tend to agree with Tim. Having kept P hongkongensis as well as seen chinensis, caudopunctatus, and deloustali or guanxiensis in person, it does seem to be chinensis.

 

[chris]

does it havea dorsal ridge made of a series of 'humps', it's just I got one like it, but with normal tail. It does have black spots though. I bought it with another one, but have now realised they are possibly different species! The other one is a fuzhongensis I think. Does anyone have pics of a definate hongkonensis, fuzhong, chinensis or guanxiensis?
It was being sold as 'dogfaced firebelly'! At least your shop got the genus right! btw asperrimus is a specie of echino/tylotriton (can't remember which).
Chris

 

[chris]

Also there were for in the shop with COMPLETELY yellow tails for about the end 3/4. I didn't get them for two reasons: they looked more sluggish than the other 'normals' and they were twice the price! at £30 each!!!
I think the one I got is either chinensis or hongkongensis.

 

[froggy]

Hi
The website with asperrimus as a Echinotriton is this one. Just click on the blue genuses to the left and it takes you to each one. There are few pics in tylotriton and none in echinotriton, just names. Also, there are photos of nearly every paramesotriton species. Unfortunately the light is not good, so pics not brilliant quality. Enjoy! \newurl
{http://jarclark.tripod.com/china.htm}