Pleurodeles waltl
Silhouette: PhyloPic
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~50%
The Iberian ribbed newt (Pleurodeles waltl), also known commonly as the Spanish ribbed newt and gallipato in Spanish, is a species of salamander in the subfamily Pleurodelinae of the family Salamandridae. The species is native to the central and southern Iberian Peninsula and northern Morocco. It is the largest European newt species. It is known for its defense mechanisms where their sharp ribs puncture through its sides when in a defensive state, and as such is also called the sharp-ribbed newt and the sharp-ribbed salamander.
This species should not be confused with a different species with a similar common name, the Iberian newt (Lissotriton boscai). The Iberian ribbed newt typically have 8 to 10 tubercles that look like orange warts running down each side. Through these, its sharp ribs can puncture through the stretched skin. The size of their ribs are larger than most other salamanders. The ribs act as a defense mechanism, causing little harm to the newt. Iberian ribbed newts generally try to run away from predators, but if they cannot escape they resort to this mechanism. It could be considered as a primitive and rudimentary system of envenomation, but is completely... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Monfragüe National Park | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 2 | Sierra de Guadarrama National Park | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 3 | Sierra Nevada National Park | 🇪🇸 Spain |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | California Academy of Sciences | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Zlín-Lešná Zoo | 🇨🇿 Czechia | |
| 3 | Ostrava Zoo | 🇨🇿 Czechia | |
| 4 | Zoo Pilsen | 🇨🇿 Czechia | |
| 5 | Zoobotánico Jerez | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 6 | Zoológico de Brasília | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 7 | Bratislava Zoo | 🇸🇰 Slovakia | |
| 8 | Sedgwick County Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 9 | Toledo Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 10 | Wildgehege Moritzburg | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 11 | Franklin Park Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 12 | Zoo Opole | 🇵🇱 Poland | |
| 13 | Nikolaev Zoo | 🇺🇦 Ukraine | |
| 14 | Philadelphia Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 15 | Faunia | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 16 | Valencia Bioparc | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 17 | Ueno Zoological Gardens (West Garden) | 🇯🇵 Japan | |
| 18 | L'Oceanogràfic | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 19 | Zoo d'Upie | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 20 | Grodno Zoo | 🇧🇾 Belarus | |
| 21 | Zoo de Córdoba | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 22 | Sao Paulo aquarium | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 23 | Zoo Samara | 🇷🇺 Russia | |
| 24 | Grand Aquarium de Touraine | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 25 | Shanghai Ocean Aquarium | 🇨🇳 China | |
| 26 | Aquarium River of Zaragoza | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 27 | Aquário Vasco da Gama | 🇵🇹 Portugal | |
| 28 | Fluviário de Mora | 🇵🇹 Portugal | |
| 29 | Hanhwa Aqua Planet Yeosu | 🇰🇷 South Korea |
No species of the same family or order lives in Sierra Nevada National Park, so these are its closest relatives here: other amphibians.
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Spanish Newt sighting in Sierra Nevada National Park on a given day, based on 15 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. Over three days the chance rises to about 20%, and over a week to about 50%, if each day is a fresh chance.
February–April, June and October–December
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Spanish Newt in Sierra Nevada National Park on a given day, against under 5% in January, May and July–September, the lowest months.
Between 8 and 11 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Spanish Newt sightings with a recorded time, and about 7 in 10 of them come between 6 pm and 6 am: it is most active around dawn and dusk.
3rd of 3
Of the 3 parks where we can rate Spanish Newt sightings, Sierra Nevada National Park ranks 3rd at about 10%. The best odds are in Monfragüe National Park (Spain, about 30%) and Sierra de Guadarrama National Park (Spain, about 10%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Spanish Newt is recorded against all the amphibians logged in Sierra Nevada National Park (15 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
