Andrias scheuchzeri
Encyclopedia
Andrias scheuchzeri is an extinct species of giant salamander
, which only is known from fossil
s. It lived from the oligocene
to the pliocene
. It and the extant A. davidianus
cannot be mutually diagnosed, and the latter, only described in 1871, is therefore sometimes considered a synonym
of the former.
In his book Lithographia Helvetica from 1726, Johann Jakob Scheuchzer
described a fossil
as Homo diluvii testis (Latin
: Evidence of a diluvian human
), believing it to be the remains of a human that drowned in the biblical Deluge. The fossil was about 1 m (3 ft) long, lacked its tail and hind legs, and could thus be interpreted as showing some resemblance to the remains of a violently trampled human child. The Teylers Museum
in Haarlem
, the Netherlands
, bought the fossil in 1802, where it still is being exhibited. In 1812, the fossil was examined by Georges Cuvier
, who recognized it as not being human. After being recognized as a salamander, it was renamed Salamandra
scheuchzeri by Holl in 1831. The genus
Andrias was only coined six years later by Johann Jakob von Tschudi
. In doing so, both the genus, Andrias (which means image of man), and the specific name, scheuchzeri, ended up honouring Scheuchzer and his beliefs.
1936 science fiction
novel War With the Newts
.
Giant salamander
The hellbender and Asian giant salamanders are aquatic amphibians found in brooks and ponds in the United States, China, and Japan. They are the largest living amphibians known today...
, which only is known from fossil
Fossil
Fossils are the preserved remains or traces of animals , plants, and other organisms from the remote past...
s. It lived from the oligocene
Oligocene
The Oligocene is a geologic epoch of the Paleogene Period and extends from about 34 million to 23 million years before the present . As with other older geologic periods, the rock beds that define the period are well identified but the exact dates of the start and end of the period are slightly...
to the pliocene
Pliocene
The Pliocene Epoch is the period in the geologic timescale that extends from 5.332 million to 2.588 million years before present. It is the second and youngest epoch of the Neogene Period in the Cenozoic Era. The Pliocene follows the Miocene Epoch and is followed by the Pleistocene Epoch...
. It and the extant A. davidianus
Chinese giant salamander
The Chinese giant salamander is the largest salamander in the world, reaching a length of 180 cm , although it rarely – if ever – reaches that size today...
cannot be mutually diagnosed, and the latter, only described in 1871, is therefore sometimes considered a synonym
Synonym (taxonomy)
In scientific nomenclature, a synonym is a scientific name that is or was used for a taxon of organisms that also goes by a different scientific name. For example, Linnaeus was the first to give a scientific name to the Norway spruce, which he called Pinus abies...
of the former.
In his book Lithographia Helvetica from 1726, Johann Jakob Scheuchzer
Johann Jakob Scheuchzer
Johann Jakob Scheuchzer was a Swiss scholar born at Zürich.thumb|Herbarium deluvianumthumb|Zürich, Zwingli-Platz : Former home of Konrad von Mure and the house, where Johann Jakob Scheuchzer was bornthumb|Memorial plate-Career:The son of the senior town physician of Zürich, he received his...
described a fossil
Fossil
Fossils are the preserved remains or traces of animals , plants, and other organisms from the remote past...
as Homo diluvii testis (Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
: Evidence of a diluvian human
Human
Humans are the only living species in the Homo genus...
), believing it to be the remains of a human that drowned in the biblical Deluge. The fossil was about 1 m (3 ft) long, lacked its tail and hind legs, and could thus be interpreted as showing some resemblance to the remains of a violently trampled human child. The Teylers Museum
Teylers Museum
Teyler's Museum , located in Haarlem, is the oldest museum in the Netherlands. The museum is in the former home of Pieter Teyler van der Hulst . He was a wealthy cloth merchant and Amsterdam banker of Scottish descent, who bequeathed his fortune for the advancement of religion, art and science...
in Haarlem
Haarlem
Haarlem is a municipality and a city in the Netherlands. It is the capital of the province of North Holland, the northern half of Holland, which at one time was the most powerful of the seven provinces of the Dutch Republic...
, the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
, bought the fossil in 1802, where it still is being exhibited. In 1812, the fossil was examined by Georges Cuvier
Georges Cuvier
Georges Chrétien Léopold Dagobert Cuvier or Jean Léopold Nicolas Frédéric Cuvier , known as Georges Cuvier, was a French naturalist and zoologist...
, who recognized it as not being human. After being recognized as a salamander, it was renamed Salamandra
Salamandra
Salamandra is a genus of six species of salamanders localized in central and southern Europe, Northern Africa, and western Asia.-List of species:* Salamandra algira Bedriaga, 1883* Salamandra atra Laurenti, 1768 — Alpine Salamander...
scheuchzeri by Holl in 1831. The genus
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
Andrias was only coined six years later by Johann Jakob von Tschudi
Johann Jakob von Tschudi
Johann Jakob von Tschudi was a Swiss naturalist and explorer.Tschudi was born in Glarus, and studied natural sciences and medicine at the universities of Neuchâtel, Leiden and Paris. In 1838 he travelled to Peru, where he remained for five years exploring and collecting plants in the Andes...
. In doing so, both the genus, Andrias (which means image of man), and the specific name, scheuchzeri, ended up honouring Scheuchzer and his beliefs.
In fiction
The fictional descendents of Andrias scheuchzeri are the primary antagonists in Karel Čapek'sKarel Capek
Karel Čapek was Czech writer of the 20th century.-Biography:Born in 1890 in the Bohemian mountain village of Malé Svatoňovice to an overbearing, emotional mother and a distant yet adored father, Čapek was the youngest of three siblings...
1936 science fiction
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
novel War With the Newts
War with the Newts
War with the Newts , also translated as War with the Salamanders, is a 1936 satirical science fiction story by Czech author Karel Čapek. It concerns the discovery in the Pacific of a sea-dwelling race, an intelligent breed of newts, who are initially enslaved and exploited...
.
Sources
- Aquagenesis: The Origin and Evolution of Life in the Sea by Richard Ellis
- Fossil Salamanders of North America (Life of the Past) by J. Alan Holman
- Cradle of Life: The Discovery of Earth's Earliest Fossils by J. William Schopf
- The Swedish popular scientific magazine Illustrerad vetenskap 2/2008
- Amphibians: The World of Frogs, Toads, Salamanders and Newts by Robert Hofrichter