114 



aquatic JLitt 



The ground color is a dull, slaty black, 

 being shiny only when the animal is 

 wet. It is elegantly marked with vari- 

 ous curious designs in pale, grayish- 

 white, the forms of which, and their 

 distribution, are well shown in my pic- 

 tures. Of these, the upper illustration 

 gives the specimen as seen directly 

 from above, while the one below pre- 

 sents a good side view. I am told that 

 the markings of the Marbled Salaman- 

 der are inclined to vary considerably, 

 when we come to compare a good 

 series of specimens selected to demon- 

 strate this feature. On its under side 

 the skin is lighter in color, being rather 

 of a bluish black than slaty. Big ex- 

 amples of this species may attain a 

 length of nearly five inches, of which 

 two inches belong to the tail ; this latter 

 is stout, and rounded at the base, being- 

 more flattened transversely, as we pro- 

 ceed toward its distal extremity. 



As to its range, it is found over the 

 central and eastern parts of North 

 America, but it is not common in any 

 locality. This is the only specimen ever 

 examined by me in life ; and I am sure 

 the many readers of Aquatic LiF£ will 

 be glad to note what the Marbled Sal- 

 amander looks like. It will eat bits of 

 raw meat and common earth worms ; 

 but, unless kept in a very large aqua- 

 rium, with a good area of terra firma 

 exposed for it to live upon, it is likely 

 to get into deep water ; and, as it is a 

 poor swimmer, it will surely come to 

 grief and promptly drown. For the 

 vivarium, however, it is a splendid pet, 

 and a very striking one thus kept with 

 other salamanders. 



Mr. Ditmars says of this species: 

 "The larvae of the Marbled salamander 

 may be found in shallow ponds in the 

 openings of woods. They grow rap- 

 idly, and leave the water late in June 

 or early in July. While developing, 



they present a dull, grayish appear- 

 ance, thickly dotted with white, which 

 latter gives way to the markings of 

 the adult a short time prior to their 

 leaving the water. In the adult form 

 this salamander selects dry situations, 

 and may be found under stone in sandy, 

 or dry and hilly country, where it bur- 

 rows to some depth." It is, in its adult 

 form, not likely to be mistaken for any 

 other species, as it never has any 

 yellow markings upon it, like the 

 Spotted Salamander or the Tiger Sala- 

 mander. 



Messrs. Orsinger and Keedy, the O. 

 K. twins of the Chicago Aquarium 

 Society, a short time since made a fly- 

 ing visit to Pittsburgh and (in smaller 

 type) to Philadelphia. We are not just 

 sure what they thought of Philadel- 

 phia, because they persisted in talking 

 Pittsburgh until the atmosphere was 

 figuratively and literally "smoky." O. 

 and K. surely put their 0. K. on Pitts- 

 burgh. We Quakers are just a wee bit 

 jealous! We console ourselves with 

 the thought that at least our fishes like 

 us and get homesick when away. When 

 O. and K. packed up their catch at the 

 home of the editor they incidentally, 

 or rather, accidentally, "copped" a red 

 female Moon-fish that was in a "con- 

 finement" tank. On the train between 

 Altoona and Pittsburgh, Mrs. Moon 

 gave birth to a litter, but, becoming- 

 homesick, the whole family passed to 

 "the Great Beyond" ere O. and K. 

 arrived at the windy city. 



Harry Peters (at the daph pond). — 

 "Well, George, where are they today?" 



George Wilt (slapping vigorously).— 

 "On the legs and neck mostly." 



Yea, 'tis a nature hard to match, a 

 great heart that's sublime, when mos- 

 quito bites one can scratch and joke at 

 the same sad time. 



