Isthmura maxima (Parra-Olea, García-París, Papenfuss & Wake, 2005)
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Open encyclopedia reference
The southern giant salamander (Isthmura maxima) is a species of salamander in the family Plethodontidae. It is endemic to Mexico and known from the Sierra Madre del Sur of western and southern Oaxaca and eastern Guerrero. It is the largest tropical salamander; the holotype had a total length of about 24 cm (9.4 in) and weighed 58 grams (2.0 oz).
Wikipedia contributors, Southern giant salamander; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T16:42:09.051487+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Isthmura maxima (Parra-Olea, García-París, Papenfuss & Wake, 2005)
- Name authority
- (Parra-Olea, García-París, Papenfuss & Wake, 2005)
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Amphibia
- Order
- Caudata
- Family
- Plethodontidae
- Genus
- Isthmura
- Extinction status
- Recorded extant
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- megaclassTetrapoda
- classAmphibia
- orderCaudata
- familyPlethodontidae Gray, 1850
- subfamilyHemidactyliinae Hallowell, 1856
- genusIsthmura Dubois & Raffaelli, 2012
- speciesIsthmura maxima (Parra-Olea, García-París, Papenfuss & Wake, 2005)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Isthmura. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Isthmura boneti (Alvarez & Martín, 1967) | PlethodontidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Isthmura sierraoccidentalis (Lowe, Jones & Wright, 1968) | PlethodontidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Isthmura naucampatepetl (Parra-Olea, Papenfuss & Wake, 2001) | PlethodontidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Isthmura bellii (Gray, 1850) | PlethodontidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Isthmura corrugata Sandoval-Comte, Pineda-Arredondo, Rovito & Luría-Manzano, 2017 | PlethodontidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Isthmura gigantea (Taylor, 1939) | PlethodontidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
Names & synonyms
Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.
| Recorded name | Source status |
|---|---|
| Pseudoeurycea maxima Parra-Olea, García-París, Papenfuss & Wake, 2005 Parra-Olea, García-París, Papenfuss & Wake, 2005 | synonym |
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=1100214 Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:3QD9T. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.