Tiger salamander – the largest salamander in the world. Currently, there are eight subspecies. Head large, muzzle broad rounded. Eyes small round, widely apart. On the front paws there are four fingers, and on the back – five. There are two knolls on the foot of the feet.
The trunk of salamander is intercepted from the sides by 13 grooves. The vertebrae are biconcave, the angular bone of the skull is absent, the palatine teeth are located transversely.
Tiger salamander can eat prey, which is one-fifth the length of the most salamander. In stomachs, an salamander of 9-10 cm in length was found up to 30-60 victims. Hunts with the help of smell, attacking both moving and immovable prey.
Approaching the prey almost immediately, salamander lifts the upper jaw, pops out the tongue, seizes the prey and draws it into the mouth. Adults and larvae eat everything that is slightly smaller in size: worms, mollusks and other invertebrates.
In the afternoon, the tiger salamander hides in the holes of rodents, under driftwood, rocks, and goes out hunting at night. If nothing is suitable, then he can dig a burrow himself. Avoids the sun and open spaces. Prefer wet places, from water bodies is not removed. In reservoirs leaves during the breeding season. Wintering begins in October. It hibernates in burrows of rodents.
