Andrias Japonicus

The Japanese giant salamander is a fully aquatic species of giant salamander found only in Japan, growing up to five feet long and about 55 pounds, which makes it the third largest salamander species in the world. It has mottled brown and black skin, very small eyes with no eyelids, and a wide mouth stretching across its head. It lives in fast-flowing mountain streams in the western part of Honshu, with smaller populations on Shikoku and in northern Kyushu. It is rated vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, was designated a special natural monument by Japan in 1951, and is listed on CITES Appendix I.