Journal of Herpetology , Vol. 0, No. 0, 000–000, 0000 Copyright 2015 Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles Ageing and Growth of the Endangered Kaiser’s Mountain Newt, Neurergus kaiseri (Caudata: Salamandridae), in the Southern Zagros Range, Iran HOSSEIN FARASAT AND MOZAFAR SHARIFI 1 Razi University Center for Environmental Studies, Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Baghabrisham 67149, Kermanshah, Iran ABSTRACT.—The development of appropriate management and recovery plans requires a better understanding of the demography of endangered amphibians. ?1 In this study longevity, age at maturation, age structure, growth rates, and growth patterns of a local population of the endangered Kaiser’s Mountain Newt, Neurergus kaiseri, in southwestern Iran were studied using skeletochronology. To estimate the age of individuals, numbers of lines of arrested growth was used in the periosteal bone obtained from cross-sections of 73 live newt toes. The maximum observed longevity was 14 yr in males and 12 yr in females. Mean 6 SE longevity recorded for males (6.81 6 0.58 yr) and females (7.74 6 0.34 yr) was not significantly different (P = 0.14, t-test, n = 73). The minimum age at sexual maturity in both sexes was 4 yr. Mean 6 SE snout–vent length (SVL) in females (63.31 6 4.58 mm) was higher than in males (54.68 6 3.74 mm) (P = 0.007, t-test, n = 73). The growth curve for SVL was best described by the von Bertalanffy model compared with Gompertz and logistic growth models (on the basis of Akaike information criterion and coefficient of determination). One effective method to understand the conservation status of a species is to provide data on population size and population trends for the whole species or a representative population of that species. Provision of this data requires the knowledge of individual ages and population age structure, which may be useful for understanding the causes of population instability and for developing appropriate manage- ment and conservation plans of populations in their natural environments (Driscoll, 1999). Data obtained for the age of individuals also is critical to understand the ecology and construct life tables for populations (Krebs, 2001; Gerber and Heppell, 2004). Various products of a life table, including survival curve, life expectancy, age-specific mortality and fecundity, innate rate of natural increase, and net reproductive rate are dependent on the data collected on individuals present in different age classes (Gabre et al., 2005). Mark-and-recapture methods provide the most accurate and reliable data for age determination, because the age of known individuals is measured directly. Such methods, however, require long-term studies that might slow the development of a conservation management action (Chinsamy and Valenzuela, 2008). Mark-and-recapture methods also require much time and effort in tagging individuals and may be especially difficult in small larvae and pre- or postmetamorphic juveniles (Smirina, 1994; Smyth and Nebel, 2013). Many herpetologists have used indirect age estimation by correlating age and body size (Liao, 2011). An alternative way to estimate the age of individuals is through skeletochronology, a histological analysis of growth marks in the skeleton (Oromi et al., 2012; Baskale et al., 2013). Because seasonal variation in growth rates creates recognizable marks in the skeleton, skeletochronology is especially effective for ectothermic vertebrates that live in highly seasonal environments, such as amphibians that inhabit temperate climate regions (Castanet et al., 1993). This method also has been used to estimate growth rates, the age at sexual maturity, the annual life cycle, and provide data on geographic differences in demographic characteristics of various species of amphibians (Morrison et al., 2004). Neurergus kaiseri is a species endemic to Iran and one of three species of the genus Neurergus reported from the Iranian Plateau in the southern Zagros Mountains in Lorestan and Khuzestan provinces. Neurergus kaiseri is easily distinguishable from the other two newts of the genus Neurergus in Iran because of a distinctive long, narrow band of orange with several round areas of white. Neurergus kaiseri is a critically endangered species by International Union for Conservation of Nature criteria (Sharifi et al., 2009), and has been amended to Appendix I of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora. This newt is reported from 13 first-order highland streams in the southern Zagros Range (Sharifi et al., 2013). These streams are separated from one another by steep, rocky terrain with vegetation cover of thin oak–pistachio woodland to mature open oak woodland. In a recent study Sharifi et al. (2013) surveyed 12 of the 13 localities and counted a total of 1,277 adults, postmetamorphic subadults, and larvae, from which 86% were found in just two of the localities (Bozorgab and Kerser). The present study was conducted in Bozorgab Stream at an altitude of 1,330 m above sea level (Figs. 1 and 2), one of the two localities with the highest visual count reported by Sharifi et al. (2013). Terrestrial habitats around Bozorab streams where N. kaiseri is seen include diverse community types known as oak–pistachio open woodlands dominated by Quercus brantti, Pistachio spp., and Salix alba. The aim of this study was to compile and analyze aspects of life-history traits, growth, and age structure of a population of the endangered Kaiser’s Mountain Newt inhabiting Bozorgab Stream. This study emphasizes the skeletochronological estima- tion of 1) age at attainment of sexual maturity, 2) longevity, 3) age structure, and 4) growth pattern of the newt. MATERIALS AND METHODS Sampling.—Newts used in this study included 12 larvae, 27 adult males, and 46 adult females, all caught in the daytime on 18 June 2011 and 8 April 2012. Newts were caught by hand and quickly placed in wet cotton pouches. Coordinates for Bozorgab Stream (32856 0 N 48828 0 E) were recorded using a global position- ing system (Garmin 60CSx, Garmin International, Inc., New York, NY, USA). The sex of each mature individual was determined according to sexual dimorphism reported for this species: males have a fleshy protuberance at the base of the tail, whereas females have a prominent cloaca but without the protuberance (Sharifi et al., 2012). Juveniles have a smaller body length than adults and lack both the protuberance and a 1 Corresponding Author. E-mail: sharifimozafar2012@gmail.com DOI: 10.1670/14-142 //titan/production/h/hpet/live_jobs/hpet-49-04/hpet-49-04-17/layouts/hpet-49-04-17.3d  25 June 2015  8:17 am  Allen Press, Inc.  Customer: 14-142R Page 1