DESMOGNATHUS FUSCA (RAFINESQUE) AND 
SPELERPES BILINEATUS (GREEN). 
HARRIS H. WILDER. 
As the two species which form the subject of this paper are 
widely distributed over the United States, it is probable that 
the differences in environment in the different regions may 
cause them to vary somewhat in their mode of life. The obser- 
vations recorded here are confined to the Counties of Berk- 
shire, Franklin, Hampshire, and Worcester, in the state of 
Massachusetts, and the statements made concerning their fre- 
quency, manner and times of occurrence, etc., are primarily ap- 
plicable to this region. It will also be noticed that the authors 
quoted, with the exceptions of BAIRD and Cops, have in mind 
a restricted locality in each case (Massachusetts, Maine, New 
York) not far from the region in which these observations were 
made, 
The object of this paper is to render available for laboratory ` 
purposes, and especially for the study of histology, two of our 
abundant native salamanders, which have hitherto been too 
much neglected, both because they are not easily found without 
a little experience and because they are apt to be confused 
with each other, especially during their larval life. The ease 
with which European investigators may obtain and identify 
their one classical species, Salamandra maculosa, without need- 
ing to be experts in systematic literature, or running the risk 
of erroneous conclusions by confusing externally similar species, 
is often envied here in America, where our very wealth in 
Urodelan material is a frequent source of vexation to the in- 
vestigator, who realizes that even in histological research he 
cannot afford to be mistaken in the species studied. The two 
species considered here present many advantages which should 
make them favorite animals for laboratory research, when the 
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