Chinese fire belly newt

{{Short description|Species of newt}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2023}}

{{Speciesbox

| name = Chinese fire belly newt

| image = Chinese firebelly newt (2).jpg

| status = LC

| status_system = IUCN3.1

| status_ref = {{cite iucn |author=IUCN SSC Amphibian Specialist Group |date=2020 |title=Cynops orientalis |volume=2020 |page=e.T59442A63868627 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-1.RLTS.T59442A63868627.en |access-date=20 November 2021}}

| genus = Cynops

| species = orientalis

| authority = (David, 1873)

| synonyms = Hypselotriton orientalis (David, 1873)

}}

The Chinese fire belly newt (Cynops orientalis) is a small ({{convert|2.2|-|4.0|in|cm}}) black newt, with bright-orange aposematic coloration on their ventral sides. C. orientalis is commonly seen in pet stores, where it is frequently confused with the Japanese fire belly newt (C. pyrrhogaster) due to similarities in size and coloration. C. orientalis typically exhibits smoother skin and a rounder tail than C. pyrrhogaster, and has less obvious parotoid glands.{{cite web|url=http://www.caudata.org/cc/species/Cynops/C_orientalis.shtml|title=Caudata Culture Species Entry – Cynops orientalis – Chinese firebelly|website=Caudata.org}}

C. orientalis is endemic to subtropical forests in East-Central China and prefers to live in shallow, semiaquatic environments such as abandoned paddies and ponds with dense vegetation.{{Cite journal |last=Yu |first=Tong Lei |last2=Chen |first2=Jian Bin |date=30 January 2015 |title=Microhabitat selection of the Chinese Fire-bellied Newt, Cynops orientalis (David, 1873), in the lowlands of the central plains of China |url=https://www.zobodat.at/pdf/HER_27_3_4_0159-0162.pdf |journal=Herpetozoa |volume=27 |pages=159–162 |via=ZOBODAT}} Like many amphibians, the Chinese fire belly newt hibernates. In order to maintain homeostasis, clusters of melanin cells will gather in the liver, darkening the skin of the newt.{{cite journal|last1= Xie|first1=Zhaohui|title=Histological Study of the Liver Pigmentation of Chinese Fire-bellied Newt (Cynops orientalis) During Activity and Hibernation Periods|journal=Asian Herpetological Research|year=2012|volume=3|issue=4|pages=322–326|doi=10.3724/SP.J.1245.2011.00322 }}

gsdf, or Gonadal Soma-Derived Factor, is a gene functioning in testis development within fish, and had previously only been seen in fish until a transcriptome of the Chinese fire belly newt revealed that it is also present in some tetrapods.{{Cite journal |last=Biscotti |first=Maria Assunta |last2=Carducci |first2=Federica |last3=Barucca |first3=Marco |last4=Gerdol |first4=Marco |last5=Pallavicini |first5=Alberto |last6=Schartl |first6=Manfred |last7=Canapa |first7=Adriana |last8=Adolfi |first8=Mateus Contar |date=2020-03-25 |title=The transcriptome of the newt Cynops orientalis provides new insights into evolution and function of sexual gene networks in sarcopterygians |url=https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-020-62408-x |journal=Scientific Reports |language=en |volume=10 |issue=1 |pages=5445 |doi=10.1038/s41598-020-62408-x |issn=2045-2322|hdl=11368/2977952 |hdl-access=free }}