238 



FROGS, TOADS, AND SALAMANDERS 



Necturus. — The necturus has a long, rather depressed 

 boel}', reiiun(Ung one of a reptile. It is found in the rivers 

 of the upper Mississippi Valle)' and in the Great Lakes and 

 the lakes of central New York. The bod}' reaches a maxi- 

 miun length of sixteen inches and has two pairs of short 

 legs. It has three bushy red gills on each side of the head 

 and is especially to be noted as an amphibian that retains 

 its gills tlirougJiout life. 



The siren, or "mud eel," which is found abundantly in 

 the ditches of the South Carolina rice fields and in fact 



Fig. 106. — Mud eei or siren : (r, gills. 



occurs throughout the southern states to Texas, is another 

 amphibian that retains its gills throughout life. It has a 

 dark-colored, cylindrical body about two feet long, but 

 has only one pair of limbs, the front pair (Fig. 166). 



HeUbender. —The "hellbender," "water dog," or "alli- 

 gator," as it is variously called, is a large amphibian 



