Schistometopum thomense
Species of amphibian / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Schistometopum thomense is a species of amphibian in the family Dermophiidae, endemic to São Tomé and Ilhéu das Rolas.[1] It is found in most soils on São Tomé, from tropical moist lowland forests to coastal coconut plantations. It is absent only from the driest northern areas of the island.[1] It is typically around 30 cm (12 in) in length, and is often bright yellow.[2] The size of S. thomense can vary throughout São Tomé, however, and it is the only known caecilian to follow Bergmann's rule, which states that a decreasing temperature due to factors such as increasing altitude will cause an increase in the body size of endothermic vertebrate species. The island of São Tomé is a massive shield volcano, and it therefore has differing altitudes throughout the island, potentially resulting in the size diversity of S. thomense. [3] This species may be referred to as the São Tomé caecilian (with various spellings of the island's name), as the Agua Ize caecilian, or as the island caecilian,[4] or by the local name of cobra bobo.[5]
Schistometopum thomense | |
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Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Amphibia |
Order: | Gymnophiona |
Clade: | Apoda |
Family: | Dermophiidae |
Genus: | Schistometopum |
Species: | S. thomense |
Binomial name | |
Schistometopum thomense (Bocage, 1873) | |
range |