BEIJING — Researchers in London have identified a new species of salamander that may be the largest amphibian alive today.<br /><br />Scientists used DNA taken from museum specimens collected in the early 20th century to identify two new salamander species from three river systems and mountain ranges in China.<br /><br />The Chinese giant salamanders were previously considered to be part of a single species known as Andrias davidianus.<br /><br />Scientists compared tissue samples from wild salamanders with historical specimens in the Natural History Museum London and discovered that the salamanders contained three distinct genetic lineages, according to a new study from the journal Ecology and Evolution. <br /><br />Lead author of the study Samuel Turveyl from the Institute of Zoology explained in a news release that the salamanders may have evolved between 3.1 and 2.4 million years ago due to mountain formation in China and the rise of the Tibetan Plateau.<br /><br />One of the newly identified salamander species, Andria sligoi, had its characteristics defined by a preserved salamander specimen in the British history museum. <br /><br />The other newly discovered species has yet to be named or described and is only known from its tissue samples.<br /><br />The authors of the study suggest that the Andrias sligoi is the world's largest amphibian species as it can grow to be around two meters in length.<br /><br />Andrias davidianus, the previously known salamander species, is able to grow to be around one meter in length.
