Chunky False Brook Salamander vs clouded-bordered brindle

Aquiloeurycea cephalica compared with Apamea crenata

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Chunky False Brook Salamander	clouded-bordered brindle
Kingdom same	Animalia (สัตว์)	Animalia (สัตว์)
Phylum	Chordata (สัตว์มีแกนสันหลัง)	Arthropoda (สัตว์ขาปล้อง)
Class	Amphibia (สัตว์สะเทินน้ำสะเทินบก)	Insecta (แมลง)
Order	Caudata (ซาลาแมนเดอร์)	Lepidoptera (ผีเสื้อ)
Family	Plethodontidae	Noctuidae
Genus	Aquiloeurycea	Apamea
Species	Aquiloeurycea cephalica	Apamea crenata

Evolutionary Relationship

Chunky False Brook Salamander and clouded-bordered brindle share a common ancestor at the Kingdom level: Animalia. (สัตว์)

Conservation Status

Chunky False Brook Salamander

LC — Least Concern

clouded-bordered brindle

LC — Least Concern

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Chunky False Brook Salamander	clouded-bordered brindle
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Chunky False Brook Salamander

Habitat

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

Range

Found in Mexico.

clouded-bordered brindle

Habitat

Typically found in virtually all terrestrial and freshwater habitats.

Range

Found across Asia (Taiwan) and Europe (5 countries).

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.

clouded-bordered brindle

The clouded bordered brindle (Apamea crenata) is a noctuid moth in the family Noctuidae found across temperate Europe and across northern Asia to Japan. The adult wingspan measures approximately 38–45 mm, with intricately patterned grey-brown and buff forewings bearing subtle cross-lines, a scalloped (crenate) outer margin giving the species its name, and distinctive reniform and orbicular markings characteristic of the Apamea genus. Adults fly in one generation from May to July, visiting flowers for nectar at night. The larvae feed internally within the stems and roots of grasses, particularly Brachypodium and other coarse grass species in woodland rides, woodland margins, and rough grassland habitats. Overwintering occurs as a larva within plant stems. Like many grass-feeding noctuids, the clouded bordered brindle requires structural diversity in its grassland and woodland edge habitats, with areas of tall, tussocky grasses providing both larval foodplants and adult shelter. Population trends in parts of its European range reflect changes in land management affecting coarse grassland and woodland ride quality.