New function for the granular skin glands of the eastern long-toed salamander,Ambystoma macrodactylum columbianum

✍ Scribed by Williams, Thomas A. ;Larsen, John H.

• Book ID: 102336405
• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 1986
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 446 KB
• Volume: 239
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0022-104X
• DOI: 10.1002/jez.1402390304

✦ Synopsis

While it has been accepted for over 50 years that salamanders use their tails for fat storage, no caudal adipose tissue was detected in the eastern long-toed salamander, Ambystoma macrodactylum columbianum. We provide evidence to show that a proteinaceous material, sequestered in the epidermally derived caudal granular skin glands, is the storage product. An increase in the size of these glands, at the expense of fat deposits in the tail, is interpreted as a solution to a conflict between two of the tail's major functions: nutrient storage and predator deterrence. Loss of caudal lipid allows for larger granular glands. With more secretory product available for defense, the possibility of the salamander's surviving an encounter with a predator is apparently enhanced. Storing protein is energetically beneficial because salamander diets are primarily protein, and it has been demonstrated by previous investigators that converting protein to fat for storage is metabolically ineficient.