Cracking The Mystery Of Crater Lake’s Unique Newts

Why does Earth have such an incredible variety of plants and animals? One little newt helps tell the story. In Crater Lake, the world’s clearest lake, a uniquely colored newt was discovered. Early explorers named it the Mazama newt. For more than 100 years, the newt has been considered a subspecies of the more common rough-skinned newt. A “subspecies” refers to a collection of animals or plants that can interbreed but can often be separated from other individuals of the same species by appearance. Nobody knew exactly how unique the Mazama newt was until scientists took another look. Using a mix of clues, like DNA, skin color, and even poison levels, scientists are cracking the mystery of how the Mazama newt differs from its neighbors. Learning about the newt’s unique characteristics and about other members of the Crater Lake ecosystem is important for protecting biodiversity and lake health.