SIGHT — FIELDWORK AND EXPERIMENTS 45 



which may be in the vicinity of ponds. They will, in the case 

 of our largest newt, the Great Warty Newt, look Hke a very 

 dark brown lizard without scales, but with a dull — not shiny 

 — body. They will usually be sluggish and easily caught with 

 the hand. The Common or Smooth Newt, and the rarer 

 Palmate Newt are smaller in size and their skins have a 

 velvety look. In colour they may vary from dark brown to 

 a pale tawny yellow. These newts are equally easy to catch. 

 Any newts, of whichever species, should be transported in a 

 linen bag with some slightly damp moss. When you transfer 

 them to a tank (with cover) the bottom of the tank should 

 have about two inches of soil, and a few pieces of growing 

 moss must be placed on it. A shallow dish of water and a 

 piece of tree bark for shelter will complete the experimental 

 tank. 



I have always found that newts in their terrestrial stage 

 feed mostly at night or at dusk, and this poses quite a nice 

 problem. When in water it is well known that newts, in addi- 

 tion to their keen sight, can detect smells very well and it is 

 not Hkely that on emergence from the water they will lose 

 this sense — nor is there any evidence that this happens. 

 When, therefore, I have left newts overnight in pitch dark- 

 ness with a dishful of suitable food which cannot crawl out 

 of the dish, I have been struck by the fact that on inspecting 

 the tank in the morning the food has vanished. Under the 

 conditions which I arrange, the degree of nocturnal vision 

 which newts undoubtedly possess cannot supply the solution 

 to the disappearance of the food. The newts must detect it 

 by scent, not vision. At the same time there is no doubt at 

 all that newts use their eyes for finding food whenever the 

 light conditions permit. They can be watched feeding in day- 

 light so long as they are not fed during the previous night. 

 Their food consists of small worms, any soft-bodied grubs, 

 slugs and even snails. Their jaws are shown to be powerful 

 in that they can cope with the shells of young snails. Young 

 woodlice are also taken, as are tiny flies and beetles which 

 are often so minute that they are not easily seen with the 

 naked eye. Newts detect the slightest movement of their prey 

 and are very quick to grab it so long as it is within reach. 

 They can move along quicker than one would suppose when 



