vs Chunky False Brook Salamander

Chroococcus dispersus compared with Aquiloeurycea cephalica

Key Differences

• is Not Evaluated while Chunky False Brook Salamander is Least Concern.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank		Chunky False Brook Salamander
Kingdom	Bacteria (Bacteria)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Cyanobacteria (Cyanobacteria)	Chordata (Chordates)
Class	Cyanobacteriia	Amphibia (Amphibians)
Order	Cyanobacteriales	Caudata (Caudata)
Family	Microcystaceae	Plethodontidae
Genus	Chroococcus	Aquiloeurycea
Species	Chroococcus dispersus	Aquiloeurycea cephalica

Conservation Status

NE — Not Evaluated

Chunky False Brook Salamander

LC — Least Concern

Physical Characteristics

Attribute		Chunky False Brook Salamander
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Habitat

Native to Asia and Europe, inhabiting ecosystems characteristic of the region.

Range

Distributed across Denmark, Norway, Sweden, and Taiwan.

Chunky False Brook Salamander

Habitat

Typically found in freshwater habitats, moist forests, and wetlands.

Range

Found in Mexico.

Chroococcus dispersus is a species of cyanobacteria in the family Chroococcaceae, occurring in freshwater habitats including lakes, ponds, and slowly flowing waters. It belongs to a genus characterized by small, spherical cells grouped in pairs or quartets within a diffuse, hyaline sheath. The specific epithet dispersus suggests a tendency for cells or colonies to be loosely organized or widely distributed. Cyanobacteria in the genus Chroococcus are typical components of the plankton and periphyton of oligotrophic to mesotrophic freshwater bodies in temperate and boreal regions. They are photosynthetic, using sunlight and dissolved carbon dioxide to produce organic matter, and contribute to primary productivity in aquatic ecosystems. Some Chroococcus species can also fix atmospheric nitrogen under nitrogen-limited conditions, though this trait is more pronounced in filamentous cyanobacterial genera. Chroococcus dispersus has been identified from European freshwater systems and is representative of the diverse microfloral communities found in clean to moderately enriched freshwaters. It is not assessed by the IUCN and has no known economic significance, representing one of many microscopic components of aquatic biodiversity.

Chunky False Brook Salamander

The Chunky False Brook Salamander (Aquiloeurycea cephalica) is a Least Concern plethodontid salamander endemic to Mexico, found in cloud forest and humid montane habitats in the Sierra Madre Oriental and related mountain ranges. The genus Aquiloeurycea is a recently erected Mexican endemic genus segregated from the broader genus Pseudoeurycea, comprising several small, robustly built (hence 'chunky') salamanders associated with high-elevation forests. Like all plethodontids, A. cephalica is a lungless salamander that breathes entirely through its moist, vascularized skin and the lining of its mouth. It is a direct developer, skipping the aquatic larval stage entirely and laying eggs in terrestrial microhabitats such as rotting logs, leaf litter, and soil. A. cephalica inhabits cool, humid forests of pine-oak and cloud forest zones in northern Mexico, where it forages for small invertebrates in the leaf litter and soil. The IUCN assesses it as Least Concern due to its reasonably wide distribution within its montane range. Deforestation, cattle grazing, and the conversion of cloud forest to agriculture represent ongoing threats to populations throughout its range.