J. Ehmcke et G. Clemen, Development of the pattern of dentition and dental laminae of Costa Rican Plethodontid Salamanders (Amphibia : Urodela), ANN ANATOMY, 182(4), 2000, pp. 327-338
The pattern of development of teeth and dental laminae of three Costa Rican
plethodontids (Amphibia, Urodela, Plethodontidae) was investigated using t
ransparent preparations, light microscopy and scanning electron microscopy.
The teeth of the jaws are monostichously positioned, those of the posterio
r vomeral parts are polystichously arranged. The anterior vomeral parts car
ry monostichously positioned teeth at the caudal margin; yet, the adult Bol
itoglossa subpalmata possesses two lines. As a sex dimorphism adult males d
isplay long monocuspid premaxillary teeth which protrude to the outside of
the mouth cavity. All species studied possess paired dental laminae in the
lower jaw.
Nototriton abscondens possesses an unpaired dental lamina in the upper jaw,
which is constricted between the unpaired premaxillary and the maxillaries
. In contrast, the dental laminae in the upper jaw of B. subpalmata and Oed
ipina uniformis are segmented into a premaxillary and two maxillary laminae
. All species possess a pair of anterior vomeral and a pair of posterior vo
meral dental laminae in the adults, whereas the vomeral dental laminae of t
he subadults are unsegmented. The pattern of dentition is compared with tha
t of Gyrinophilus and Eurycea.