SALAMANDERS. 
293 
eight to sixteen, and less commonly from twenty-four to thirty tadpoles make 
their appearance into the world during a period of from two to live days. 
Generally all these are in an equally advanced state of development; but sometimes 
in captivity both eggs and tadpoles are produced simultaneously, the former being 
translucent and showing the young tadpoles curled up within them. The tadpoles, 
which are generally produced in clear, running water, are blackish grey in colour, 
with a more or less well-marked greenish tinge; but there are small golden spots 
on the back, which gradually increase in size with advancing age. The skin 
also gradually becomes less shining and smooth, while at the same time the gills 
shrink, till about August or September the young salamanders quit the water 
for a terrestrial life. A few may, however, remain till as late as October. It is 
remarkable that the young salamander is rather inferior in size to the tadpole in 
ALPINE SALAMANDER (nat. size). 
the latest stage of development; and it is not yet known for how long a period 
it continues to grow after leaving the water. In aquaria salamanders develop 
more quickly, and have been known to leave the water within three weeks. 
The winter sleep generally takes place in moss-lined crannies, well protected from 
the frost, and may endure till the commencement of April. 
Alpine The Alpine, or black salamander (S. atra), inhabiting the Alps 
salamander. a q elevations of from three to ten thousand feet, is a smaller animal 
than the last, from which it may be at once distinguished by its inferior dimen¬ 
sions. Ranging from the Alps into Styria, Carinthia, and some of the mountains 
of Wiirtemberg and Bavaria, this species inhabits moist woods or the banks of 
mountain-streams, where it is generally found in small family-parties, which 
conceal themselves after the manner of their kind beneath stones and moss, or at 
the roots of the Alpine rose. Although resembling the spotted salamander in 
