Chinese Giant Salamander

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

The Chinese giant salamander has been called a "living fossil" — part of the family Cryptobranchidae which dates back 170 million years. It is one of only five to six known extant species of the family, the others being the slightly smaller Japanese giant salamander (Andrias japonicus), the slightly larger South China giant salamander (A. sligoi), the Jiangxi giant salamander (Andrias jiangxiensis), the Qimen giant salamander (Andrias cheni), and the far smaller North American hellbender (Cryptobranchus alleganiensis). A 2018 study of mitochondrial DNA revealed five wild clades, plus two only known from captives. They diverged from each other 4.71–10.25 million years ago and should possibly be recognized as cryptic species. Despite this deep divergence, they can hybridize among each other, and also with the Japanese giant salamander. One clade was identified in 2019 as Andrias sligoi, a species described in 1924 by Edward George Boulenger and later synonymized with A. davidianus. Another was described as Andrias cheni in 2023, and in 2022, one captive-only clade was described as Andrias jiangxiensis, found to have maintained genetically pure wild populations in Jiangxi Province.

In Their Own Story

The giant salamander is known to vocalize, making barking, whining, hissing, or crying sounds. Some of these vocalizations bear a striking resemblance to the crying of a young human child, and as such, it is known in the Chinese language as the "infant fish" (娃娃鱼 / 鲵 - Wáwáyú/ ní). The longest recently documented Chinese giant salamander, kept at a farm in Zhangjiajie, was 1.8 m (5.9 ft) in 2007. At 59 kg (130 lb), both this individual, and a 1.4 m (4.6 ft) long, 52 kg (114 lb) individual found in a remote cave in Chongqing in December 2015, surpassed the species' typically reported maximum weight. The maximum age reached by Chinese giant salamanders is unknown, but it is at least 60 years based on captive individuals. Undocumented claims have been made of 200-year-old Chinese giant salamanders, but these are considered unreliable.

Reader's Guide

The Chinese giant salamander has very poor eyesight, so it depends on special sensory nodes that run in a line on the body from head to tail. It is capable of sensing the slightest vibrations around it with the help of these nodes. Based on a captive study, most activity is from the earlier evening to the early night. Most individuals stop feeding at water temperatures above 20 °C (68 °F) and feeding ceases almost entirely at 28 °C (82 °F). Temperatures of 35 °C (95 °F) are lethal. Adult Chinese giant salamanders have developed a system for bidirectional flow suction feeding under water. They start by moving to their prey very slowly, then once close enough they abruptly gape their mouth open, causing a great increase in the velocity of the water straight ahead of them. This process causes the prey to shoot back into their mouths. They then close their mouths, but leave a small gap so that the captured water can escape. The Chinese giant salamander catches its prey on land with an asymmetrical bite, maximizing force in the anterior region where their prey is located. They are missing a bone which usually lies along the upper cheek region of most salamanders, which gives them a much stronger bite force. Chinese giant salamanders are also capable of fasting for several years if they need to, possible because of their metabolic reserves as well as their liver, which is capable of up regulating and down regulating certain proteins according to how long they have been fasting.

Did You Know?

• The Chinese giant salamander is known in Chinese as the 'infant fish' (娃娃鱼) because its vocalizations bear a striking resemblance to the crying of a young human child.
• The longest recently documented individual, kept at a farm in Zhangjiajie, was 1.8 m (5.9 ft) in 2007 and weighed 59 kg (130 lb).
• A 2018 study of mitochondrial DNA revealed that the Chinese giant salamander may be composed of at least five cryptic species, which diverged from each other 4.71–10.25 million years ago.
• Temperatures of 35 °C (95 °F) are lethal to Chinese giant salamanders, and most individuals stop feeding at water temperatures above 20 °C (68 °F).
• The maximum age reached by Chinese giant salamanders is at least 60 years based on captive individuals, though undocumented claims of 200-year-old individuals are considered unreliable.