>Citation bot at 04:18, 14 April 2021

2021-04-14T04:18:34Z

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{{Short description|Species of amphibian}}
{{Speciesbox
| image =
| status = DD
| status_system = IUCN3.1
| status_ref = <ref name=IUCN>{{cite iucn|author=Pascual Cuadras, A.|author2=Cox, N.A.|name-list-style=amp|year=2012|title=''Ichthyophis moustakius''|url=https://www.iucnredlist.org/details/190990/0|access-date=8 October 2015}}</ref>
| genus = Ichthyophis
| species = moustakius
| authority = Kamei, {{Interlanguage link multi|Mark Wilkinson (herpetologist)|fr|Mark Wilkinson (herpétologiste)|lt=Wilkinson}}, Gower, and [[Sathyabhama Das Biju|Biju]], 2009<ref name="Kamei et al. 2009"/>
| synonyms =
| synonyms_ref = <ref name=Frost/>
}}

'''''Ichthyophis moustakius''''', the '''Manipur moustached caecilian''', is a species of [[caecilian]] in the family [[Ichthyophiidae]].<ref name="Kamei et al. 2009"/><ref name=Frost/> It is [[endemic]] to [[Northeast India]].<ref name=Frost/> This species exhibits broad lateral yellow stripes from the anterior part of its tail, along its [[mandible]]s, between its [[nare]]s, as well as elsewhere. The animal can reach a length of {{convert|300|mm|in}}. Its head is somewhat U-shaped and fairly short; scales are absent on its collars. The species' name is derived from the [[Greek language|Greek]] word ''moustakius'', meaning "moustache", due to the yellow arched stripes it possesses.<ref name="Kamei et al. 2009"/>

==Description==
This species counts with 105 [[vertebra]]e. The head, nuchal region and trunk are dorsoventrally compressed, with its body's maximal girth being near the midbody. Its tail is upturned towards the tip. The animal's head is short, with a length of about {{convert|21.7|mm|in}}. Its eyes are closer to the top of its head than to its lip, and are surrounded by a narrow whitish ring; its eye diameter approximates 0.6mm (its [[lens (anatomy)|lens]] being no larger than its [[naris]]). Its nares are slightly posterior to level of the anterior margin of its mouth. Its teeth are slender and recurved, while its tongue is not strongly plicate. Its [[Posterior nasal apertures|choanae]] are narrow, the distance between them being four or five times their
greatest width.<ref name="Kamei et al. 2009"/>

It possesses fifteen denticulations around its [[cloaca|vent]]. While in preservation, the animal is of a lilac-grey colour with a brownish tinge, being slightly paler ventrally. Lateral stripes extend from about the second or third posteriormost [[annulus (zoology)|annulus]] to about the eye level on the upper jaw. Narrow and pale lines extend dorsally and are thickest near the nares. In life, its dorsum is a dark reddish grey, while the [[ventral|venter]] is pale reddish grey, and its narrow lateral stripes a bright yellow, its vent disc being [[mauve|mauvish]].<ref name="Kamei et al. 2009"/>

==Distribution==
This species has been observed in its type locality, in [[Tamenglong district]], [[Manipur]], India, at a height between {{convert|300|to|1100|m|ft}} [[above sea level]].<ref name="Kamei et al. 2009"/> It has also been recorded in [[Guwahati]] Metropolitan District (Manipur) and in [[Mizoram]], northeastern India.<ref name=Frost/>

==References==
{{Reflist|30em|refs=
<ref name=Frost>{{cite web |url=http://research.amnh.org/vz/herpetology/amphibia/Amphibia/Gymnophiona/Ichthyophiidae/Ichthyophis/Ichthyophis-moustakius |title=''Ichthyophis moustakius'' Kamei, Wilkinson, Gower, and Biju, 2009 |author=Frost, Darrel R. |year=2019 |work=Amphibian Species of the World: an Online Reference. Version 6.0 |publisher=American Museum of Natural History |access-date=3 October 2019}}</ref>

<ref name="Kamei et al. 2009">{{cite journal |last1=Kamei |first1=Rachunliu G. |last2=Wilkinson |first2=M. |last3=Gower |first3=David J. |last4=Biju |first4=S. D. |name-list-style=amp |title=Three new species of striped ''Ichthyophis'' (Amphibia: Gymnophiona: Ichthyophiidae) from the northeast Indian states of Manipur and Nagaland |journal=Zootaxa |date=2009 |volume=2267 |issue=1 |pages=26–42 |doi=10.11646/zootaxa.2267.1.2}}</ref>
}}

==Further reading==
*Nishikawa, Kanto, Masafumi Matsui, and Nikolai L. Orlov. "A new striped Ichthyophis (Amphibia: Gymnophiona: Ichthyophiidae) from Kon Tum Plateau, Vietnam." Current Herpetology 31.1 (2012): 28-37.
*Nishikawa, Kanto, et al. "A new striped Ichthyophis (Amphibia: Gymnophiona) from Mt. Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia." Current Herpetology 32.2 (2013): 159-169.

==External links==
* [http://amphibiaweb.org/cgi/amphib_query?where-genus=Ichthyophis&where-species=moustakius AmphibiaWeb]

{{Taxonbar|from=Q13581162}}

[[Category:Ichthyophis|moustakius]]
[[Category:Amphibians of India]]
[[Category:Endemic fauna of India]]
[[Category:Amphibians described in 2009]]
[[Category:Taxa named by Sathyabhama Das Biju]]

Ichthyophis moustakius - Revision history

>Citation bot at 04:18, 14 April 2021