HUSTON, MM*; ASHLEY-ROSS, MA; Wake Forest University; Wake Forest University: Feeding Kinematics of the Grotto Salamander Eurycea spelaea

Typically, troglobitic salamanders remain paedomorphic due to greater availability of prey items in the water as opposed to on the dry substrate. In contrast, the cave dwelling grotto salamander, Eurycea spelaea (Stejneger, 1893) transforms from aquatic to terrestrial despite the nutrient limitations in caves. To help establish why the grotto salamander transforms, the kinematics of both larval and adult specimens were determined using high-speed video. It was found that the larvae fed stereotypically using suction feeding as expected for larval salamanders. The larvae approached the prey and lowered the nose onto the prey. The gills depressed before the mouth opened and feeding began. Individuals varied in swallowing technique, some larvae swallowed with one hyoid depression cycle, while others used two cycles or varied between one and two depression cycles. The average time from onset of strike to disappearance of the prey was 0.061s, and the average maximum hyoid depression was 1.34cm. Preliminary observations showed that the adult specimens were able to feed both aquatically and terrestrially.