Anderson's Salamander vs Blue-tailed Emerald

Ambystoma andersoni compared with Chlorostilbon mellisugus

Key Differences

• Anderson's Salamander is Critically Endangered while Blue-tailed Emerald is Least Concern.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Anderson's Salamander	Blue-tailed Emerald
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum same	Chordata (Chordates)	Chordata (Chordates)
Class	Amphibia (Amphibians)	Aves (Birds)
Order	Caudata (Caudata)	Apodiformes (Apodiformes)
Family	Ambystomatidae	Trochilidae
Genus	Ambystoma	Chlorostilbon
Species	Ambystoma andersoni	Chlorostilbon mellisugus

Evolutionary Relationship

Anderson's Salamander and Blue-tailed Emerald share a common ancestor at the Phylum level: Chordata. (Chordates)

Conservation Status

Anderson's Salamander

CR — Critically Endangered

Blue-tailed Emerald

LC — Least Concern

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Anderson's Salamander	Blue-tailed Emerald
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Anderson's Salamander

Habitat

Found across multiple habitat types including tropical and subtropical coniferous forests, tropical and subtropical grasslands and savannas, and Mediterranean forests and woodlands, among 6 distinct biome types spanning the Nearctic and Neotropic realms. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

Found in Mexico. Currently classified as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

Blue-tailed Emerald

Habitat

Typically found in various aerial, terrestrial, and aquatic environments.

Range

Distributed across Colombia, Ecuador, Norway, and Venezuela.

Anderson's Salamander

The Anderson's Salamander (Ambystoma andersoni) is a species in the genus Ambystoma. It is currently classified as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List. Found across multiple habitat types including tropical and subtropical coniferous forests, tropical and subtropical grasslands and savannas, and Mediterranean forests and woodlands, among 6 distinct biome types spanning the Nearctic and Neo.

Blue-tailed Emerald

A small, jewel-like hummingbird named for the brilliant blue-green iridescence of the tail feathers, male blue-tailed emeralds display glittering green plumage throughout with a contrasting deep blue-green forked tail. Found in lowland tropical forest edges, savannas, and gardens from Venezuela and Colombia east to Trinidad and south to Bolivia and Brazil. They are common in disturbed and secondary habitats, making them relatively resilient to habitat modification compared to more specialized hummingbirds.