page_title: Japanese giant salamander
section_title: Behavior
hierarchical_section_title: Japanese giant salamander / Behavior
caption_attribution_description: Kyoto Aquarium (京都水族館), Kyoto, Kyoto prefecture, Japan
context_page_description: The Japanese giant salamander is a species of salamander in the family Cryptobranchidae. The species is endemic to Japan, where it is known as Ōsanshōuo, literally meaning "giant pepper fish". With a length of up to 5 feet, it is the third-largest salamander in the world, only being surpassed by the very similar and closely related Chinese giant salamander and South China giant salamander. There are currently only five known members of the family Cryptobranchidae: the Japanese, Chinese, and South China giant salamanders, an undescribed Andrias species from eastern China, and the hellbender.
  Japanese giant salamanders are widespread across rivers in southwestern Japan. The species frequently hybridizes with Chinese giant salamanders, which were introduced to the area.
context_section_description: The Japanese giant salamander is restricted to streams with clear, cool water. Due to its large size and lack of gills, it is confined to flowing water where oxygen is abundant. it is entirely aquatic and almost entirely nocturnal. Unlike other salamanders, which lose their gills early in their lifecycles, it only breaches its head above the surface to obtain air without venturing out of the water and onto land. The salamander absorbs oxygen through its skin, which has many folds to increase surface area.
  When threatened, the Japanese giant salamander can excrete a strong-smelling, milky substance with an odor resembling Japanese pepper (hence its common Japanese name, giant pepper fish). It has very poor eyesight, and possesses special sensory cells covering its skin, running from head to toe, the lateral line system. These sensory cells' hair-like shapes detect minute vibrations in the environment, and are quite similar to the hair cells of the human inner ear. This feature is essential for hunting prey due to its poor eyesight.
  
  It feeds mainly on insects, frogs and fish. It has a very slow metabolism and can sometimes go for weeks without eating. It lacks natural competitors. It is a long-lived species, with the captive record being an individual that lived in the Natura Artis Magistra, the Netherlands, for 52 years. In the wild, it may live for nearly 80 years.
caption: Japanese giant salamanders in Kyoto Aquarium
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