I08 CADUCIBRANCHIATA. 



15. Triton, Laurenti. 



Palatine teeth in two longitudinal series, almost paral- 

 lel or approximated in front, and divergent behind; 

 tongue fleshy, papillose, round or oval, free only upon its 

 sides, in T. -punctatis slightly so all around ; fronto-tem- 

 poral arch usually incomplete or wanting; parotids not 

 very prominent ; body smooth or warty, flattened below ; 

 digits developed, four in front and five behind ; tail much 

 compressed, with vertical cutaneous margins at the pe- 

 riod when the animal inhabits fresh water. 



This genus is especially difficult to understand. This 

 difficulty results from the changes they undergo. Some- 

 times they exist upon the land, and then resemble the 

 terrestrial Salamanders. At other times, especially near 

 the epoch of fecundation, they betake themselves to wa- 

 ter, assume more beautiful and varied colors, produce a 

 dorsal crest in the male, and exchange their round tail 

 for one exceedingly compressed. These changes are so 

 great, and the difference between the sexes so marked, 

 as well as the variations due to age, that at times we can 

 scarcely believe that certain animals observed are the off- 

 spring of a common parent. Robin (34) has some very 

 interesting observations on the fecundation of Triton 

 cristatus, alpestris, -palniatus, and -punctatus. He there 

 shows that in them, as also in the Siredon, spermatozoids 



