A Comparative Study of Eye Size in Three Chinese Salamanders (Urodela: Hynobiidae)

Yunyun Lv, Jianli Xiong, Wanguang Chen, Yuanye Sun, Xiang Zhang, Lu Zhang

Abstract


Vision is one of the most important senses of animal. Researches on the eye morphology can help to understand the adaptation of eye to the ambient environments. In this paper, a preliminary investigation on the morphometric measurements of the eye size in three Chinese salamanders (Pachyhynobius shangchengensis and Onychodactylus zhangyapingi, Hynobius leechii) was carried out. The results showed that the Haller’s rule is partially corroborated. The aquatic P. shangchengensis with largest body size had smallest relative eye size. Both terrestrial O. zhangyapingi and H. leechii with relatively smaller body size had larger relative eye size. However, the crepuscular O. zhangyapingi had larger relative eye size than both nocturnal H. leechii and P. shangchengensis. The relative eye size of these hynobiid salamanders showed a correlation with their habitats and activity patterns.

Keywords


hynobiid salamanders; eye morphology; habitat; activity pattern

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DOI: https://doi.org/10.30906/1026-2296-2014-21-4-322-325

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