264 REPTILES AND BATRACHIANS 



bottom surface just below the level of the water. Many 

 such stones when lifted up reveal a shallow cavity formed 

 in the wet sand, and in these cavities the Spelerpes are 

 frequently found. 



Unlike its more terrestrial relative, S.fuscus, this species, 

 in common with most of the other members of the genus, 

 is oviparous ; the eggs, deposited in a single layer of about 

 forty or fifty, are laid under arched stones in the rapidly 

 flowing portions of the brook ; the depth of the water 

 must be such that the eggs are at all times completely 

 submerged, for otherwise they would be injured by the 

 ripples striking against them. The larvae hatch early, and 

 continue in the imperfect state for several years. 



The family Amphiumid;^, which is represented in the 

 United States and Eastern Asia, contains three genera, 

 each with a single species. 



In the perfect form the gills are absent, although gill 

 openings are sometimes present. The fore and hind 

 limbs are more or less well developed. The teeth are 

 present in both jaws. 



In Megalobatrachus, represented by a single species, the 

 Giant Salamander, M. maximus, of China and Japan, 

 the gill openings are absent. This, the largest of living 

 batrachians, attaining a length of over five feet, inhabits 

 swift-running streams, where it leads a solitary life, con- 

 cealed in dark holes under the rocks of the banks. The 

 head of this creature is large, very broad, and depressed, 

 and with a rounded snout ; the eyes are minute. The 

 tongue covers the floor of the mouth, and is entirely 

 adherent. The body is long and squat, with a fold of 



