Neurergus is a genus of salamander

Salamander

Salamander is a common name of approximately 500 species of amphibians. They are typically characterized by a superficially lizard-like appearance, with their slender bodies, short noses, and long tails. All known fossils and extinct species fall under the order Caudata, while sometimes the extant...

, more specifically newt

Newt

A newt is an aquatic amphibian of the family Salamandridae, although not all aquatic salamanders are considered newts. Newts are classified in the subfamily Pleurodelinae of the family Salamandridae, and are found in North America, Europe and Asia...

, in the Salamandridae

Salamandridae

Salamandridae is a family of salamanders consisting of true salamanders and newts. Currently, 74 species have been identified in the northern hemisphere - Europe, Asia, the northern tip of Africa and North America...

 family. They are found in the Middle East

Middle East

The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...

 (predominately in Turkey

Turkey

Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...

 and Iran

Iran

Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...

), and are bred in captivity for their bright colors. In nature they inhabit streams and small rivers, and the surrounding forest

Forest

A forest, also referred to as a wood or the woods, is an area with a high density of trees. As with cities, depending where you are in the world, what is considered a forest may vary significantly in size and have various classification according to how and what of the forest is composed...

 or shrubland

Shrubland

Shrubland, scrubland, scrub or brush is a plant community characterized by vegetation dominated by shrubs, often also including grasses, herbs, and geophytes. Shrubland may either occur naturally or be the result of human activity...

s. All of the Neurergus are considered threatened species, primarily due to destruction of habitat.

Morphology

Generally Neurergus are dark colored (brown to black) above, with a pattern of white to yellow to orange spots and lines. On their ventral side the lighter color of their spots becomes a solid color. Like most salamanders they have five toes on their hind feet.

Species

Recent studies have demonstrated that the genus Neurergus is monophyletic

Monophyly

In common cladistic usage, a monophyletic group is a taxon which forms a clade, meaning that it contains all the descendants of the possibly hypothetical closest common ancestor of the members of the group. The term is synonymous with the uncommon term holophyly...

. It contains the following species:

• Neurergus crocatus
  Neurergus crocatus
  Neurergus crocatus is a species of salamander in the Salamandridae family.It is found in Iran, Iraq, and Turkey.Its natural habitats are temperate forests and rivers.It is threatened by habitat loss.-References:...
  
  (Cope
  Edward Drinker Cope
  Edward Drinker Cope was an American paleontologist and comparative anatomist, as well as a noted herpetologist and ichthyologist. Born to a wealthy Quaker family, Cope distinguished himself as a child prodigy interested in science; he published his first scientific paper at the age of nineteen...
  
  , 1862)
• Neurergus kaiseri
  Neurergus kaiseri
  Kaiser's Spotted Newt , also known as the Luristan Newt or Emperor Spotted Newt , is a species of very colourful salamander in the Salamandridae family. It is endemic to the southern Zagros Mountains in Iran...
  
  (Schmidt
  Karl Patterson Schmidt
  Karl Patterson Schmidt was an American herpetologist.-Biography:Schmidt was the son of George W. Schmidt and Margaret Patterson Schmidt. Schmidt's father was a German professor who, at the time of Schmidt's birth, was teaching in Lake Forest, Illinois. His family left the city in 1907 and settled...
  
  , 1952)
• Neurergus microspilotus
  Neurergus microspilotus
  The Kurdistan Spotted Newt is a species of salamander in the Salamandridae family.It is found in areas of Iran, possibly Iraq, and possibly Turkey....
  
  (Nesterov, 1916)
• Neurergus strauchii
  Neurergus strauchii
  Strauch's Spotted Newt is a species of salamander, more specifically a newt, in the Salamandridae family.It is found only in Turkey. Its natural habitat is in streams or small rivers, and the nearby forest or shrublands...
  
  (Steindachner
  Franz Steindachner
  Franz Steindachner was an Austrian zoologist.- Work and career :Being interested in natural history, Steindachner took up the study of fossil fishes on the recommendation of his friend Eduard Suess...
  
  , 1887)

External links

• "Neurergus Cope, 1862" Salamanders of the Old World,
• "Neurergus (Cope, 1862)" Living Under World.Org, A Web Project about Amphibians
• "Neurergus kaiseri" photographs of Neurergus kaiseri