GIGANTIC SALAMANDER,. Sieboldia maximu. 



Dr. Von Siebold brought the first living specimen to Europe, and placed it in a tank 

 at Ley den, where it was living when the last accounts were heard, having thus passed a 

 period of many years in captivity. Its length is about a yard. Two specimens were 

 brought over at the same time, being of different sexes, but on the passage, the male 

 unfortunately killed and ate his intended bride, leaving himself to pass the remainder of 

 his life in celibacy. It fed chiefly on fish, but would eat other animal substances. 



A fine specimen is now living in the Zoological Gardens, and has attracted much notice 

 in spite of its ugliness and almost total want of observable habits. It is very sluggish and 

 retiring, hating the light, and always squeezing itself into the darkest corner of its tank, 

 where it so closely resembles in colour the rock- work near which it shelters itself, that 

 many pevsons look at the tank without even discovering its presence. The length of this 

 specimen is about thirty-three inches, and if it survives, it may possibly attain even a 

 larger size. 



The head of this creature is large, flattened, and very toad-like in general aspect, except 

 that it is not furnished with the beautiful eyes which redeem the otherwise repulsive 

 expression of the toad. The head is about four inches wide at the broadest part, and is 

 covered with innumerable warty excrescences. The eyes are extremely small, placed on 

 the fore part of the head, and without the least approach to expression, looking more like 

 small glass beads than eyes. 



The whole upper part of the body is covered thickly with excrescences, and even the 

 under part of the rounded toes are studded with little tubercles, which can be plainly seen 

 with a magnifying lens as the creature presses its feet against the glass wall of its tank. 

 Despite of its sluggish nature, it is quite able to obtain its own subsistence by catching the 



