In the tops of California redwood forests, a creature called the wandering salamander – Aneides vagrans – lives, feeds and glides through the air in an interesting way. Scientists are keenly following free-diving amphibians and their ability to effortlessly glide and perform complex aerial maneuvers.
A study led by researchers at the University of South Florida (USF) and the University of California at Berkeley investigated the gliding abilities of the wandering salamander using a wind tunnel to capture slow motion images of amphibians in action. The wind tunnel mimicked the conditions of a fall in midair. The research was published Monday in the journal Current Biology.
These creatures can turn, correct themselves if they flip over, maintain a freediving stance in mid-air, and wag their tails up and down to perform horizontal maneuvers, USF biologist and lead author Christian Brown said in a UC Berkeley press release Monday.
Their control abilities are impressive
The research team compared wandering salamanders to other salamanders, including ground dwellers. Ground-dwelling amphibians failed in the wind tunnel experiment. “They look crazy in the wind tunnel,” Brown said. “By comparison, A. vagrans was comfortable and dexterous in the air.”
Biologists climb trees to study animals, and this is the first time they have noticed the leaping and gliding abilities of salamanders. Wandering salamanders seem to use their flying skills as a way to stay in the tree cover at the moment of a fall or when they need to jump to avoid predators or descend from a tree. Considering that these creatures live in redwoods rising up to 46 meters above the ground, you can imagine how useful these gliding abilities are.
A UC Berkeley video shows how salamanders look as they jump…
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