SREL Reprint #3366

A note on predation of the Greater Siren (Siren lacertina)

Christopher M. Schalk1,2, Brian A. Crawford1, and Thomas M. Luhring1,3

1Savannah River Ecology Laboratory, Drawer E, Aiken, South Carolina 29808
2Department of Wildlife and Fisheries Sciences, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas 77843-2258
3Department of Biology, University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri 65211-7400

Abstract: The predators of the greater siren (Siren lacertina) have been poorly documented (Petranka, 1998). On 19 June 2008, a greater siren (approximately 200 mm in total length) was captured at Peat Bay, a 14.3-ha semi-permanent wetland located on the Department of Energy’s Savannah River Site in Barnwell County, South Carolina, USA. The siren was placed in a 45.7 l cooler with two two-toed amphiumas (Amphiuma means) from the same wetland to be transported from the field to the laboratory. Upon opening the cooler in the laboratory, the siren had been consumed by one of the A. means. One of the amphiuma had a total length of 738 mm and weighed 460 g. The other amphiuma had a total length of 836 mm and weighed 788 g. Siren lacertina and A. means are frequently found together in wetlands throughout their overlapping ranges. However, interactions between these giant salamanders are not well known.

SREL Reprint #3366

Schalk, C. M., B. A. Crawford, and T. M. Luhring. 2009. A note on predation of the Greater Siren (Siren lacertina). Bulletin Chicago Herp. Soc. 44(4): 56.

This information was provided by the University of Georgia's Savannah River Ecology Laboratory (srel.uga.edu).