Variation in altitudinal populations of the salamander, <i>Bolitoglossa subpalmata</i>, on the Cerro de la Muerte, Costa Rica

Abstract

Altitudinal populations of the plethodontid salamander, Bolitoglossa subpalmata, are quantitatively compared for variation in color, pattern and size. The greatest diversity in color and pattern occurs at elevations aboye 2,900 m. Only the limbs and the gular region demonstrate a clinal character, in that they increase in the amount of redness present with higher elevation. No evidence of a size cline, either inverse or direct, has been obtained.