l 925 ] St over: A Synopsis of the Amphibia of California 
51 
viduals of torosus, however, remain under cover during the daytime, 
venturing abroad only at night. I do not believe that this restriction 
of daytime hunting is due to fear of enemies, as Triturus is abundantly 
supplied with dermal poison glands and it has never been reported 
as being fed upon by any of the local land-dwelling vertebrates whose 
food habits are known. In this connection see the experiments of 
Hubbard (1903). 
Little is known concerning the habits of the newts during their 
terrestrial existence. Individuals are occasionally seen walking slowly 
along paths or clearings in the brush or in the forest, but on the whole 
a surprisingly small number of terrestrial adults come to human atten- 
tion in comparison with the large numbers seen in the water. Were 
torosus to breed on land like the local Plethodont salamanders it would 
probably be much less common in collections. Most of our knowledge 
of the animals has been obtained while they are engaged in their 
spawning operations. 
The male newts in the vicinity of Berkeley usually begin going 
to the water in December. The females seem not to enter the water 
until practically ready to spawn. Active migration of the females 
toward a spawning place has been witnessed by the writer upon one 
occasion. On the morning of January 4, 1914, active migration of 
female newts was in progress at Thornhill Pond. In an area about 
5 by 100 feet in extent along a path at right angles to the direction 
of travel, 13 females were picked up one after another in quick suc- 
cession ; upon reexamining the area a few minutes later, 3 others had 
already entered it. Search of the grass-covered ground in the vicinity 
revealed other females in the ratio of one to every 50 or 75 square feet 
of ground. The grass on this date was 2 to 3 inches in height. The 
newts were making their way as best they could, sometimes pushing 
between the grass blades, again climbing and tumbling awkwardly 
over the low vegetation. All were definitely headed toward that part 
of the pond which 12 days later contained a large number of egg 
masses. One female but slightly over 2 inches in length was found in 
this migration and going in the same direction as the older ones. The 
area where these animals were found was shaded by a dense stand of 
Monterey cypress. Close to the pond 2 other females were found 
hidden under stones. All of these females exhibited the rough ‘ter- 
restrial 7 form of skin. In the pond on this date were numerous males 
and a smaller number of females, perhaps in the proportion of 20 to 1. 
