198 BACKBONED ANIMALS. 
inent tail. The gigantic Japanese salamander, over three 
feet in length, belongs to this order ; they are incorrectly 
Fic. 240.—Congo snake 
(Amphiuma means). 
supposed to pass through fire 
without harm. The largest sala- 
mander in the United States is 
the Amblystoma (Fig. 241). The 
history of Amdlystoma mavortium 
is extremely remarkable. The 
young for a long time were con- 
sidered separate and distinct ani- 
mals, They lived in the elevated 
lakes, 8,000 to 9,000 feet above 
the sea, from Montana to Mexico, 
and were well known as axolotls, 
having external gills and true 
Fic, 241.—Axolotl, a creature living and breeding for generations in the 
water. Amblystoma coming out of the water—an axolotl which has lost 
its gills and breathes by lungs alone, 
