Ribs or Costal Grooves?

[angharad]

I just read a thread about being able to see an axies ribcage. I'm worried now cos when i look at my axie he has lines done his sides, all the way down and i dont know what is going on????? He's only about 6 months + and I feed him a few pieces of liver or kidney a day which he loves. Should I be worried or am I just being paranoid?

 

[shelly]

mine has that to. i think its just an axie thing. reminds me of ribbed socks. fraggle has always had them so i think you are just being paranoid

to much new information at once telling you this is how it should be can be as much a problem as a help. thats how i felt when i started keeping tropical fish. i was so worried i was doing everything wrong just because i did things a bit differently.

 

[kapo]

I won't say paranoid as that would be rude! No, we thought the same when ours started maturing. They're not ribs they're called costal grooves.

 

[kaysie]

Costal grooves are inherent in all Ambystomatid salamanders, and most salamanders in general. Newts tend to not have costal ridges.

 

[shelly]

do you know why they have them?

 

[kaysie]

Evolution.

 

[angharad]

Why would they evolve to have them? What do they do exactly?

 

[mark]

They increase the surface area which aids water uptake in terrestrial Ambystoma and provides increased respiration area for aquatic Ambystoma. Those gills might look pretty but much of an axolotls respiration is done through it's skin, 50-60%.

I'm going to re-name this post from "???" to something more relevant.
Cheers

 

[shelly]

thanks mark

 

[kaysie]

Lol, thanks Mark. I was answering that before class and was kind of at a loss to explain it.