CHAPTER XI 
THE COLOURS OF AMPHIBIANS AND REPTILES 
Colours and Pigments of Amphibia—The Colours of the 
Larvae—Development of Colour—The Relation of the 
Larval and Adult Coloration—Colour Variation in Larvae 
—Colours of Reptiles, especially Lizards and Snakes—■ 
The Origin of Markings in Snakes. 
In Amphibia the colours are not infrequently sober 
and incline towards the so-called protective tints, but 
in some cases they are bright and conspicuous. The 
skin is smooth, soft, and scaleless, and the power of 
colour-change not infrequently well marked. As a 
whole, the prevailing colours are dull brown or 
black, shades of green, or vivid reds and yellows, 
thrown up against a dark background. As ex¬ 
amples of forms showing dull coloration we may 
mention the Mexican axolotl and the common 
newt. A green colour is well shown by the tree- 
frogs (/ Tyla), often kept as pets in ferneries. The 
spotted salamander (Salamandra maculata), with its 
vivid colouring in black and yellow, and Mr. Belt’s 
famous blue and red frog show, however, that more 
brilliant types of colouring are far from being absent 
Q 
