The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1893-11-30
ABOUT SALAMANDERS.
Origin Of the Belief That They Are
at Home in Fire.
Some Funny Facts Concerning tho Fabu-
JOus Creatures, by = Man Who Is
Familiar with the Traits
OF Reptiles.

Nobody knows how the superstition
regarding the supposed fireproof quail
ity Of the salamapder had its rise. :"
said DR.. Stejneger. the reptilian expert
of the Smithsonian institution, to the
Washington Evening Star recently
"However, | can give what think is
pretty good guess at it. To explain,
shall have to tell you story.
"Once upon a time / was camping
out with party, hunting and fishing
We had lighted big fire, using for
fuel several old logs While we were
sitting around watching the progress
of some cookery in which we were en-
gagged, young lady at my side gave a
little scream and pointed into the
flames ] looked, and there was a small
lizard crawling right out from among
the glowing embers 1t walked away
unhurt, apparently, through the grass
and made its escape.
Now that salamander had occupied
a hole in one of the logs used for
fuel. Several species of it's kind live
in old tree trunks. Doubtless this one
found that it was getting uncomforta-
bly, hot and crawled out. Being moist
and Shiny, its body was protected from
injury by the fire long enough to ena-
Bile it to escape through the embers.
But the sight of the animal deliber-
ately making its appearance from the
midst of the fire was certainly very sur
prising. Any ignorant person might
easily have been led to imagine that
the creature must be fireproof. It
seems to me quite probable that the
superstition took its rise from just such
occurrences.
''There are SO many species of sala-
manders that description Of them all
would fill book. They are to be
found all over the world, except in very
cold regions. In popular sense, the
name 'salamander' is applied to all
batrachians with tails. That is rather
q loose definition. A tadpole is
batrachian with tail, but it is not
salamander. The great majority of
salamanders are small, such as the
nevis, found in springs. The biggest
species in this country is the so-called
mud eel,' or siren It has only two
feet, just behind the head, and it has
external gills when fully developed,
which is an exception to the rule
among salamanders.
''The biggest salamander in the world
is found i'll Japan. 1t attains length
of two feet and is related to the hell
bender Most salamanders live on in
sects, but the very large kinds eat
pretty nearly everything as rule.
For instance, the Japanese species is
omnivorous. So far as / am aware
none of the salamanders is considered
good to eat, by civilized men, at all
events. Two years ago l obtained
specimen of the only known species of
blind salamander. 1t came from a cave
in Missouri. A so-called blind sala-
mander exists in certain caves of Aus
tria, but it is not a true salamander,
though it would come under the popu-
lar definition, being batrachian with
a tail.
''One peculiar thing about sala-
manders is that they are not as large
when full grown as when they are
partly developed That seems funny
paradox, does it not? You see, sala-
manders 60 through a metamorphOs;s
during their lifetime. as frogs do,
though the change is not SO marked.
They have a larval period, as the tad
pole is the larvse of the frog. On be-
coming adult they shrink up consid-
erably. During the larval period they
have giils Ike a fish, which usually be-
come rudimentary. An odd exception
to this rule is the 'axolotP OF Mexico,
which does not undergo any such
and never becomes
adult in scientific sense. In other
words, it never reaches what is the
fual stage with other salamanders, but
always remains larva.
"Axolotls OF different species are
found in various parts of the United |
States. but they do undergo the change |
and become adult. However. if you |
keep one of them in water and prevent |
it from escaping it will remain larva i
always and will undergo no meta !
In order to change it has !,
to get on dry land. Having become a
land animal, its external gills disap- |
pear. being no longer required for t
breathing in water. The Mexican AK
olotl never goes on land-at any rate,
not for a longer time than its gills will /
remain wet"