Onychodactylus japonicus (Houttuyn, 1782)
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 Japanese clawed salamander (Onychodactylus japonicus) is a species of salamander in the family Hynobiidae, endemic to Japan. Its natural habitats are temperate forests and rivers. The species, which is about 4 to 7 inches in length, is characterized by its thin brown skin with an orange patterned stripe along its back, as well as orange spots on their heads and on top of their legs. The diet of this species includes a variety of aquatic invertebrates such as clams, snails, and shrimp, while adult individuals also consume terrestrial invertebrates like worms, spiders, and flies.
Wikipedia contributors, Japanese clawed salamander; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T17:31:15.625122+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Onychodactylus japonicus (Houttuyn, 1782)
- Name authority
- (Houttuyn, 1782)
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Amphibia
- Order
- Caudata
- Family
- Hynobiidae
- Genus
- Onychodactylus
- 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
- familyHynobiidae Cope, 1859
- subfamilyOnychodactylinae Dubois & Raffaëlli, 2012
- genusOnychodactylus Tschudi, 1838
- speciesOnychodactylus japonicus (Houttuyn, 1782)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Onychodactylus. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Onychodactylus fuscus Yoshikawa & Matsui, 2014 | HynobiidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Onychodactylus koreanus Min, Poyarkov & Vieites, 2012 | HynobiidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Onychodactylus tsukubaensis Yoshikawa & Matsui, 2013 | HynobiidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Onychodactylus zhangyapingi Che, Poyarkov, Li & Yan, 2012 | HynobiidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Onychodactylus zhaoermii Che, Poyarkov & Yan, 2012 | HynobiidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Onychodactylus fischeri (Boulenger, 1886) | HynobiidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Onychodactylus pyrrhonotus Yoshikawa & Matsui, 2022 | HynobiidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Onychodactylus intermedius Yoshikawa & Matsui, 2014 | HynobiidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Onychodactylus nipponoborealis Kuro-o, Poyarkov & Vieites, 2012 | HynobiidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
Names & synonyms
Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.
| Recorded name | Source status |
|---|---|
| Lacerta japonica (Houttuyn, 1782) (Houttuyn, 1782) | synonym |
| Lacerta thunbergii Donndorff, 1798 Donndorff, 1798 | synonym |
| Salamandra japonica Houttuyn, 1782 Houttuyn, 1782 | synonym |
| Salamandra japonicus Houttuyn, 1782 Houttuyn, 1782 | synonym |
| Onychodactylus schlegeli Tschudi, 1838 Tschudi, 1838 | synonym |
| Molge striata Merrem, 1820 Merrem, 1820 | synonym |
| Salamandra unguiculata Temminck & Schlegel, 1838 Temminck & Schlegel, 1838 | 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=668231 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:49R6D. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.