SALAMANDERS 147 



to change from water to land. Of all members of the Order 

 Urodela, this is to me the mosL wonderful. 



Salamanders, Generally. — In shallow brooks, in still 

 pools of all kinds, from the shaded woods of the East to the 

 wind-swept, sun-bathed prairies and bad lands of the West, 

 and both on and in the damp earth of forests high and low, we 

 occasionalh' find little smooth-skinned, lizard-like animals. 

 They are slow in movement, weak and incapable of either 

 defence or flight, and are at the mercy of almost any species 

 larger than themselves. These are Salamanders, and in view 

 of the fact that some are wholly aquatic and others wholly 

 terrestrial, it is difficult to choose from our sixteen species 

 one which may stand for the majority. The diversity of 

 habit of these animals is greater than their differences in form. 

 The various members of the group inhabit all sorts of quiet 

 situations from the rocks and dry ground of the Blotched 

 Salamander^ to the mountains of the Blue-Spotted Salaman- 

 der^^ and the swift-running streams of the Dusky Salamander? 



Very frequently, salamanders are found underneath fallen 

 trees, or stones, or under the bark of decaying logs; and on 

 the western prairie farms the ploughshare turns into the 

 broad light of day many a burrowing amphibian. 



On the whole, the Spotted Salamander^ appears to be 

 the best species with which to introduce the North x^merican 

 group. It is distinctly marked, and of wide distribution. Its 

 length is Q}4. inches, its body is broad and full, and its tail is 

 shorter than its body. Above, its ground-color is dark brown 



1 Am-blys'to-ma o-pa'cum. ^ Pleth'o-don glu-ti-no'sus. 



3 Des-mog-na'thus fus'ca. * Am-blys'to-ma punc-ta'tum. 



