Evseeva S.S., Yartsev V.V., Maslova I.V., Rogashevskaya D.A.
Vestnik Tomskogo Gosudarstvennogo Universiteta. Biologiya 2025; (71): 138–155
To understand the role of skin in the formation of morphological adaptations in amphibians to different environmental conditions, we studied histological features of the skin from throat (TS), back (BS), dorsal part of the tail (DPTS), ventral part of the tail (VPTS), abdomen (AS), cloacal (CS), and shin (ShS) in Salamandrella keyserlingii males and females of the aquatic morphotypes and Onychodactylus fischeri. These hynobiid species have different ecological preferences: S. keyserlingii is a limnophylic salamander, while O. fischeri is a reophylic one. Using histological and statistical methods, interspecific differences in the relative areas of epidermis, strata compactum and spongiosum, connective tissue in the whole, granular and mucous glands were measured (See Figs. 1, 2). Males of S. keyserlingii, in comparison with those of O. fischeri, have larger areas of the epidermis in DPTS, the granular glands in TS, AS, ShS, VPTS, the mucous glands in DPTS, the stratum spongiosum in BS, DPTS, VPTS, CS, AS, but smaller areas of the epidermis in VPTS, CS, ShS, the granular glands in DPTS, the mucous glands in TS, AS, VPTS, the stratum compactum in VPTS (See Table 1). Females of S. keyserlingii, in comparison with those of O. fischeri, have larger areas of the epidermis in DPTS, the granular glands in AS, VPTS, the mucous glands in TS, the stratum compactum in DPTS, the stratum spongiosum in DPTS, VPTS, CS, but smaller areas of the epidermis in AS, VPTS, the granular glands in DPTS, CS, the mucous glands in TS, VPTS, the stratum compactum in all studied skin areas except for DPTS and VPTS (See Table 2). The skin peculiarities of these species are the result of different levels of adaptation to the aquatic environment: S. keyserlingii changes aquatic habitat (short breeding season) to the terrestrial one during the year, but O. fischeri is constantly connected with the aquatic environment. The article contains 2 Figures, 2 Tables, 31 References. The Authors declare no conflict of interest.
