» i . ORTH AMERICAN HERPETOLOGY. ©) 4 ig : i % 2. 7 ‘ : a 7 U ‘ ‘ 7 fe cs ‘ es s > 4 ' . = - ' = . ' e - ' Ad £ . 7 ® - . ‘ = . A - fone = me 12) + . * . - > a= : i : ' . ' 7 * ot ae : oO : NORTH AMERICAN HERPETOLOGY: OR, A DESCRIPTION OF THE REPTILES INHABITING THE UNITED STATES. a BY JOHN EDWARDS HOLBROOK, M. D. PROFESSOR OF ANATOMY IN THE MEDICAL COLLEGE OF THE STATE OF SOUTH CAROLINA; MEMBER OF THE ROYAL MEDICAL SOCIETY OF EDINBURGH; CORRESPONDING MEMBER OF THE AMERICAN PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY ; OF THE ACADEMY OF NATURAL SCIENCES OF PHILADELPHIA; OF THE NEW YORK LYCEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY, AND OF THE BOSTON SOCIETY OF NATURAL HISTORY. Votsv. VIE S \ © MAR & NE Do Sao ee a Se baa Sf PHILADELPHIA: J. DOBSON, 106 CHESTNUT STREET. LONDON: ROBERT BALDWIN, PATERNOSTER ROW.—PARIS: HECTOR BOSSANGE, NO. 11 QUAI VOLTAIRE—HAMBURG;: PERTHES, BESSER & MAUKE. 1842. i Ms 1 CONTENTS. Bufo lentiginosus, - - é erythronotus, - 2 a 3 quercicus, - = 2 a Americanus, - - E 2 2 cognatus, - - = = Engystoma Carolinense, — - - 7 c Salamandra gutto-lineata, - - - salmonea, - = 3 : rubra, - 5 - glutinosa, - = “ = erythronota, - = : auriculata, - = = - quadrimaculata,— - - = Jeffersoniana, - - 5 ‘ cirrigera, - - = as bilineata, - = “ 7 IV 17. Salamandra symmetrica, 18. Haldemani, 19. longicauda, 20. granulata, 21 quadridigitata, Dee venenosa, 23. fasciata, - 24. talpoidea, 25. Triton dorsalis, - 26. figrinus, — ~ Pa niger, - - 28. porphyriticus, 29. mgens, - 30. Amphiuma means, - al. tridactylum, 32. Menopoma Alleghaniensis, 33. Susca, - 34. Siren lacertina, - 35 intermedia, - 36. striata, - 37. Menobranchus maculatus, lateralis, CONTENTS. PREFACE. Besives the gentlemen already named as having aided in the preceding volumes, I must now acknowledge my obligations to those who have assisted me in this, the fifth and last volume of the external forms, colour, habits, &c. &c. of our Reptiles. To Dr. G. Mavran of Providence, Rhode Island, I am indebted for many Salamanders, and especially for a beautiful Salamandra longicauda. To Dr. Storer of Boston, for the description of the Salamandra salmonea, a new species, discovered by Dr. Binney among the Green Mountains. To 8. 8S. Hatpeman, Esq., of Pennsylvania, well known by his writings on Conchology, I owe many thanks for “observations” on the habits of the different kinds of Reptiles, as Tortoises, Lizards, Serpents, &c., and especially for several Salamanders, some of which are hitherto undescribed. To Professor Benepicr of Burlington, for some excellent remarks on the Menobranchus maculatus. # PREFACE. To the Right Reverend J. H. Hopkins, Bishop of Vermont, I am obliged for a drawing of the Menobranchus maculatus, one of the most spirited and beautiful in the whole work. To Dr. Harpen of Riceborough, Georgia, I am indebted more than to any fo) Leone) y, other person for a knowledge of our southern batrachian animals, as Hyle, 5 J Sirens, Salamanders, Tritons, &c. Dr. DeKay, State Zoologist of New York, one of the most accurate naturalists of our country, has rendered me great service by his observations on northern Salamanders, and has furnished me with many drawings, and with the description of a new species (Salamandra granulata). To Mr. J. H. Ricnarp, who succeeded Mr. Sera as draughtsman, and who has the general superintendence of the plates, 1 am greatly indebted for many beautiful drawings done from life. JOHN EDWARDS HOLBROOK. Medical College, Charleston, South Carolina, 1842. NORTH AMERICAN HERPETOLOGY. Famiry III. BUFONOIDEA. CHARACTERS. — . The head varies greatly in size and form; it may be pointed or truncated, smooth, or elevated in crests. [wy] . The upper jaw and palate, with one or two exceptions only, are entirely destitute of teeth. : 3. The tongue is long, without a notch at its posterior extremity. 4. 'The extremities vary in size, but there are always four fingers, free, and five toes, palmated or not. 5. Most animals of this family have on their plantar surface a tubercle, sometimes greatly developed, which, from its position, resembles a sixth toe. Remarks. The animals of this family seldom leave their retreats until the grey Voi. V.—2 6 BUFONOIDEA. of evening, and are truly nocturnal in their mode of life. This family has been arranged in several genera, characterized by the form and structure of the tongue; the number of toes, palmated or not; tympanum visible or not; tubercle at heel, &c. &c. Two of these genera have only yet been observed in the United States —Bufo and Engystoma. lenliginosus Bul y XN N“ > Ns N y y N 3 ~ *% N BU FO .—Laurenii. Genus Buro.—Cuaractrrs. Head large; mouth extensive; tongue elongated, elliptical, entire, generally a little larger behind, free posteriorly; jaws and palate without teeth; eyes large, pupil elliptical longitudinally, dilatable; tympanum more or less distinct; parotid glands more or less developed; males mostly with a sub- gular vocal vesicle; four fingers, sub-round, free; five toes of same form, more or less palmate, the last shorter than the penultimate; metatarsal region with two tubercles below, the one at the root of great toe largest. BUFO LENTIGINOSUS.—Shaw. Plate I. Cuaracters. Head large; snout obtuse; superciliary ridges greatly elevated and terminating posteriorly in a knob; upper jaw emarginate, lower furnished with a hook in front; parotid glands large, reniform, and reaching from below the tympanum to near the shoulder; tympanum large; vocal vesicle internal; body above warty, dusky brown, with a tinge of yellow; beneath granulated, dirty yellowish-white. Length 3 inches. Synonymes. Land-frog, Catesby, Carolina, &c., vol. 11. tab. 69. Land-frog, Bartram, Travels in Carolina and Florida, &c., p. 279. Rana lentiginosa, Shaw, Gen. Zool., vol. iil. part i. pl. 53, p. 173. Bufo musicus, Daudin, Rainettes, p. 92, tab. 33, fig. 3;—Hist. Rept., tom. vill. p. 190. Bufo musicus, Bose, Nouy. Dict. d’Hist. Nat., tom. vi. p. 490. 8 BUFO LENTIGINOSUS. Bufo musicus, Merrem, Versuch eines Syst. der Amphib., p. 181. Bufo musicus, Har/an, Med. and Phys. Res., p. 113. Carolina Toad, Vulgo. Description. The head is very large, dark-coloured, and without warts, except a few small ones on the eyelids, The mouth is of great size, without either maxillary or palatine teeth. The snout is obtuse, and from its tip runs an elevated bony line, subdividing at the nostrils, and forming the superciliary ridges; these increase in elevation as they reach the posterior part of the orbit, where they terminate in a rounded knob or tubercle; their great height gives to the upper surface of the head a canaliculated appearance; a second ridge descends from each of these, and completes the posterior border of the orbit. The upper jaw is yellowish-brown, and deeply emarginate in front; the lower is white, and furnished at its anterior part with a distinct hook, which is received in the notch of the upper jaw. The nostrils are small and round, placed near the point of the snout. ‘The eyes are large, prominent, and very beautiful; the pupil is black, the iris reticu- lated with gold and black, and has an inner margin of yellow. The tympanum is large and dusky, with a minute spot of a lighter shade in the centre. The parotid glands are large, reniform, and exude a pale milky fluid when pressed; the orifices of the canals, out of which it flows, are evident. The back and sides are dusky, and covered with warts of different sizes; a pale vertebral line extends from the head to the vent, on each side of which are found the largest warts; an irregular row of spots of yellowish-white exists on the flank, having somewhat the appearance of an indistinct band, extending from the inferior and posterior part of the parotid gland to within a short distance of the thighs. The whole inferior surface of the animal is dirty-white, with a strong tinge of yellow. The anterior extremities are short; the upper surface is dusky, with blotches BUFO LENTIGINOSUS. 9 and bars of dark brown; the lower surface dirty-white, tinged with yellow. The fingers are four in number, slightly depressed, and not palmated. On the outer margin of the carpus, and opposite the thumb, is a large warty tubercle. ‘The posterior extremities are short, dusky brown above, marked with blotches and transyerse bars of darker brown, and dingy-white beneath. ‘The toes are five in number, and semi-palmated; the fourth a good deal longer than the others; the metatarsus is furnished with two tubercles or knobs, the outer of which is carti- laginous, and so long as to resemble a sixth toe. Dimensions. Length of body, 2 inches 7 lines; of the thigh, 1 inch; of leg, rather less than an inch; of tarsus and toes, 1 inch 2 lines. GeocrarnmicaL Distrisution. This toad is found in the Carolinas, Georgia, the Floridas, and Alabama, and without doubt all along the northern shores of the Gulf of Mexico. North Carolina or southern Virginia must for the present be considered as its northern limit. Hasrrs. This animal is timid and remarkably gentle in its habits, remaining concealed during the day in some dark place, and only venturing out as the dusk of evening approaches. It feeds on various insects, which it seizes only while alive and in motion. Catesby says it lives on ants and fire-flies, and will mistake a piece of burning charcoal for an insect of the latter description. The male seeks the female in the month of May, when hundreds of them may be seen together in some stagnant pool, in which they deposit their spawn, and then return again to the land. The males at this season are extremely noisy, though at other times they are silent, or make only a slight chirp when taken. Like many of the Hyla tribe, they have a large sac under the throat, which is distended when the animal croaks. I have seen an individual kept for a long space of time, which became perfectly tame: during the summer months he would retire to a corner of the room, into a habitation he had prepared for himself, in a small quantity of earth, placed there 10 BUFO LENTIGINOSUS. for his convenience. ‘Towards evening he would wander about the room in search of food, seizing greedily whatever insect came in his way. Some water having been squeezed from a sponge upon his head one hot day in July, he returned the next to the same spot, and seemed very well pleased with the repetition; nor did he fail during the extreme heat of the summer to repair to it frequently, in search of his shower-bath. GeneraAL Remarks. Catesby first described and gave a figure of this animal under the name of Land-frog; and although his figure is badly executed, both as to drawing and colouring, (the elevation of the superciliary ridges not being marked, and the eyes represented as red,) it has been repeatedly copied by later naturalists, as Foster, Shaw, &c. The name, however, Rana (Bufo) terrestris, cannot be retained, as it is previously applied to another animal. Bosc, who, from a long residence in Carolina, had a good opportunity of examining this animal, refers it to the Rana musica of Linneus, in which he is followed by Daudin, Merrem, and most naturalists. This cannot be correct, for there are no toads, as far as has been hitherto ascertained, common to North and South America; and Linneus, in the twelfth edition of the Systema Nature, gives Surmam as the country of his Rana musica, Neither the specific name terrestris, nor musicus, can then be applied to this animal, but we must give it the one next in order under which it is found described—Rana (Bufo) lentiginosa of Shaw. Buto crvthronotus, 11 BUFO ERYTHRONOTUS. Plate I. Cuaracters. Head short, rather pointed; upper jaw entire; body short and thick, brick-dust colour above, dirty yellowish-white and granulated beneath. Length, 20 lines. Description. The head is short, brownish-red above, with the superciliary ridges but slightly elevated, and the snout rather pointed. The upper Jaw is entire, or without a notch, and brown, with a few reddish-white spots; the lower jaw is white. The nostrils are small and near the snout, with a very slight ridge extending to the front of the orbit. The eyes are very large and prominent, with a black pupil and bright golden iris, through which passes a black band. The tympanum is small, brown below and red above. The parotid glands are kidney- shaped, and secrete a greyish-white fluid. The body is short, thick, and rounded, warty or granulated above, of Spanish-brown colour, with a light vertebral line. The throat and chest are silver-white, with small dusky spots; the abdomen yellowish-white, and minutely granulated. The anterior extremities are small, pepper-and-salt grey above, with alternate transverse bars of brick-dust colour and black; there are four fingers, distinct, and nearly of equal length, with a very large wart or knob at the carpus, and a smaller one beside it. The posterior extremities are short, and coloured like the anterior; there are five toes, semi-palmate, the fourth longest; there are also two promi- nences, or warts, at the tarsus. 12 BUFO ERYTHRONOTUS. Dimensions. Length of body from snout to vent, 20 lines; of thigh, 6 lines; of leg, 6 lines; of tarsus and toes, 6 lines. Hasitrs. This animal is found in the deep forests of oak in the neighbourhood of Charleston, and is apparently rare, as in nine years I have not seen more than a dozen specimens, consequently nothing can be said of its habits. Geocrapnicat Distrinution. As yet this animal has only been observed in South Carolina. Genera Remarks. There is no doubt that this animal is an adult, though I was at first disposed to consider it the young of the large toad of similar colour mentioned by Bartram in his Travels in Florida, which as yet I have never seen. Subsequent observation has, however, convinced me to the contrary; for Bartram’s animal weighed nearly a pound, while no specimen of the Bufo erythronotus exceeded twenty lines in length; nor can it be the young of the Bufo lentiginosus, as the superciliary ridges are not elevated, and the slight elevation that does exist is between the nostrils and orbit; or the young of the Bufo Americanus, which is sometimes red, for this latter animal does not inhabit the low country of South Carolina, nor has it the spade-like process at the foot, as in that animal; nor, in fact, is it the young of any animal, as might be inferred from its size, for I have seen the male and female together, and have seen their spawn. Nr Rae Breas : ae Ke 7 Buf i sufo quercicus. 2S Duval Lith PR a 13 BUFO QUERCICUS.—AHAbolbrook. Plate Li. Cuaracters. Head short; snout pointed; superciliary arches slightly elevated; body short, very flat, rounded at the flanks, above dusky, with a yellowish vertebral line, on each side of which are black blotches; abdomen silver-grey; throat dusky; groins tinged with yellow. Description. The head is short, with the snout rather pointed, and the nostrils near its extremity; from each nostril extends a slightly elevated ridge, increasing in height to the occiput, where it terminates in a small knob. The eyes are prominent and beautiful, with a black pupil and grey iris, having an inner circle of bright golden; the tympanum is evident but small; the parotid glands are oblong and large, though but slightly elevated. The body is short and greatly depressed, almost flat; while the flanks are so rounded and projecting as to give the animal an orbicular appearance. The abdomen is flat and completely granulated. The anterior extremities are small, short, and termmate in four fingers, with a small wart at the carpus; the posterior extremities are also short, small, and delicate, with five slightly webbed toes, and two small warts at the metatarsus. Cotour. The head above is dusky, with a yellowish central longitudinal line; the superciliary ridges are grey, with a white mark in the centre; on each side of this longitudinal line is an oblong black spot, extending from it to include most Vor. V.—3 = fied 14 BUFO QUERCICUS. of the posterior part of the orbit of the eye; a small part only of the orbit in front of this is light coloured; the upper jaw is light brown. The back of the animal is dusky-brown, with a vertebral line of pale yellow, marked with a few scattered small warts of reddish-brown colour; on each side of this line are irregular black blotches, with here and there a slight tinge of reddish- brown; the back is covered with innumerable warts and granulations, of variable size and colour, generally black, but the smaller ones of dusky-red; on each flank, and extending from the axilla downwards towards the posterior extremity, is an oblong black blotch, bounded with white both above and below. The throat is dusky; the abdomen silver-grey, yellowish at the groins, and with a pale tinge of yellow around the vent. ‘The anterior extremities, as well as the posterior, are dusky-brown above, marked with black transverse bars or spots; their inferior surface is coloured like the abdomen, except the fingers and toes, which are reddish-brown. Dimensions. Length of the animal from the snout to vent, } of an inch; length of thigh, 5 lines; length of leg, 5 lines; length of tarsus and toes, 63 lines. Hasirs. This beautiful little species of toad is mostly found about sandy places that are covered with a small species of oak, which springs up so abundantly where pine forests have been destroyed; whence it 1s commonly enough called the Oak Frog, which specific name I have preferred. It spends most of its time in concealment under fallen leaves, or partially buried in the sand, from which it is washed out by heavy rains. In the breeding season they seek out stagnant pools, where they deposit their spawn, during which time the male makes a slight chirp, not unlike some kinds of insects. Geocrapnicat Distrisution. As yet the range of this animal seems very limited: I have only found it near Charleston in South Carolina, and at Smithville BUFO QUERCICUS. 15 in North Carolina; further observation will doubtless prove its existence in other States. Generar Remarks. That this little animal is not the young of any other species I am certain, for 1. It cannot be the young of the Bufo lentiginosus, for the superciliary ridges are not elevated in proportion, the upper jaw is not emarginate, and with the young of that species I am well acquainted. . 2. It cannot be the young of the Bufo Americanus, as that animal is not found near Charleston, and besides, it wants the characteristic spade-like process to the foot. 3. It cannot be the young of the Bufo erithronotus, for its whole form is different. It is not half the size, nor are its toes half as extensively webbed; it is, in fact, a distinct and adult animal, for I have seen male and female together, and have seen the female deposit her spawn, even when confined in a glass vessel. Sufo Amerieariins yet LS Duvel Lith fled ie Sate BV S VWLOENA 17 BUFO AMERICANUS.—Leconte. Plate IV. Cuaracters. Head short; snout rounded; nostrils placed near the snout; tympanum moderate and very distinct; parotid gland narrow, elongated, elliptical; body short, bloated; anterior extremities large, fingers free; posterior extremities short, toes semi-palmated; a spade-like process at the root of the first toe. Synonymes. Bufo Americanus, Leconte. Bufo musicus, Harlan, Journ. Acad. Nat. Scien., vol. v. p. 344. Common Toad, Vulgo. Description. The head is short, with the snout almost rounded; the mouth is much smaller than in the Bufo lentiginosus, and the jaws are entire. The nostrils are small, and placed near the snout. The eyes are large and brilliant; the pupil dark, with the iris presenting a minutely reticulated appearance of black and gold. The superciliary ridges are but slightly elevated, and do not terminate in a knob posteriorly; the membrane of the tympanum is moderate and very apparent; the parotid glands are narrow, elliptical, and very long. The body is short, thick, and bloated, and has its superior surface covered with warts of different sizes. A longitudinal line of dirty-white runs from the occiput to the vent; on each side of this are several conspicuous, well-defined spots, varying in colour, size, and shape: we sometimes find them systematically arranged in rows. Along the flanks is a broad but indistinct band, extending to the posterior extremities; this band is so broken as to give the appearance of a 18 BUFO AMERICANUS. row of black and white spots. The abdomen is granulated, and of a dirty yellowish-white. The anterior extremities are short; their upper surface dusky, with minute spots of white; the lower is of the same colour as the abdomen; the fingers are distinct, and not palmated. The posterior extremities are short, their superior surface ash-colour, with blotches and transverse bands of black, extending to the tarsus; the leg is shorter than the thigh; the toes are semi-palmated, and five in number; a large spade-like process occupies the place of a sixth, on the metatarsus, as in Scaphiopus. Dimensions. Length from snout to vent, 24 inches; of thigh, 1 inch; of leg, less than an inch; of tarsus and toes, 1 inch 6 lines. GrocrapuicaL Disrrisution. This is the most widely diffused of all the American toads. I have observed it from the mountains of Maine through all the Atlantic states. It is, however, remarkable that this animal leaves the sea shore in the south; for I have never met with it in the low country of South Carolina, although common in the upper districts of the state. Leconte has traced it along the western side of the Alleghanies, and in the valley of the Mississippl. Hasirs. This animal is very mild and timid, living under stones or dead or decaying trees, or in holes in the earth, and frequently making its way into cellars, and dark and lonely corners: as evening approaches, it issues from its place of concealment in search of insects, and at these times frequently falls a prey to snakes and owls. It may be brought to a partial state of domestication, and will swallow flies from the hand. Early in the spring these animals resort to shallow pools in great numbers, for the purpose of depositing their spawn, and at these times their music is very BUFO AMERICANUS. 19 familiar to all, consisting of a prolonged trill, continued by different individuals, both day and night, and not unpleasant when at a sufficient distance. The toad is looked upon with aversion by the greater part of mankind; its swollen body, its warty and tuberculous skin, with the large parotid glands, give it such a repulsive appearance, that it seems hard to believe an innocuous disposition can belong to a shape and colour so offensive to the eye; hence the vulgar have always considered it venomous: it is nevertheless perfectly harmless, destroying only the insects that nature has apportioned for its food. ‘To an unhandsome exterior, however, it often owes its safety, being very abundant and entirely helpless. It has been commonly supposed that the humour exuding from the skin and glands is poisonous, yet no experiments have proved it so, and certainly no injury has ever arisen from handling or examining the animal. Experiments have been made in Europe with the secretions of the common toad of that continent, and apparently with different results; for naturalists are still at variance—Laurenti* considered the exudation innocuous, while Okent believes it poisonous, and his opinion is supported by some interesting experiments of Davy,{ which prove that “the skin of the European toad is possessed of minute follicles, secreting a thick yellow fluid, of a poisonous nature.” GeneraL Remarks. Leconte was the first to separate this toad from the southern animal, with which it had been previously confounded. Schlegel considers the Bufo Americanus as identical with the common toad of Europe, from which however it differs specifically. 1. The head is smaller in proportion. * Laurenti, Synop. Rep. p. 195. + Oken, Zool., B. IL, § 198. { Dr. Davy, Phil. Trans. for 1826, Part II., p. 127. 20 BUFO AMERICANUS. 2. The body is less full and bloated. 3. Its motion and gait are much more lively and active. 4. It differs entirely in having a spade-like process at the root of the first toe, which in a measure approximates it to the Scaphiopus. Leconte first proposed calling this animal Bufo Americanus; and although he has never published a description, still it is due to him to retain the name, which seems to me sufficiently appropriate; for although there are many toads in the United States, there are none so common, so widely extended, and so much like the Bufo communis of the old world. Indeed, we regard it as the representative of that animal in North America, and have taken it as the type of our genus Bufo. ve 'V LIS Seiden ufo codnatus = LYS Wywad 7%. BUFO COGNATUS.—Say. Plate V. Craracters. Head large, canaliculated posteriorly, smooth anteriorly; body above dusky, verrucose, and marked with vertebral and oblique lateral lines of yellowish-brown; abdomen dirty white and granulated; feet armed with a spade- like process near the root of the first toe. SynonymeEs. Bufo cognatus, Say, in Long’s Exped. to Rock. Mount., vol. ii. p. 190. Bufo cognatus, Harlan, Med. and Phys. Res., p. 109. Description. The head is large, rounded at the snout, and canaliculated or marked with a deep groove above. This groove begins at the posterior part of the head, where it is deep, but it hardly reaches the anterior canthus of the eye, when it disappears, and the remaining portion of the head is smooth. The nostrils are rather near the snout. The eyes are large and prominent, with the pupil dusky and the iris grey, reticulated with bright yellow. The mouth is very large, with the jaws entire. The tympanum is distinct, but of moderate size. ‘The parotid glands are large, and of oblong form. The body is thick, rounded, dusky-brown above, and is covered with small black warts, which are most numerous and prominent near the sides. A yellow- ish-brown vertebral line extends from the head to the rump, from which proceed oblique lateral lines of the same colour. The first oblique lateral line begins at Vor. V.—4 92 BUFO COGNATUS. the head and runs to the side, behind the shoulder; the second begins near the middle of the back by two branches which soon unite and run to the groin; a third line begins stlll further back and extends to the hips. The abdomen is dingy yellowish-white, and is thickly granulated. The anterior extremities are dusky-brown above, and dingy-white below, with four fingers, free in their whole extent. The posterior extremities are well developed, coloured like the back above, with bars of yellowish-brown, and are dingy-white below. There are five toes, semi-palmated, with a spade-like process at the metatarsus, near the root of the first toe. Dimensions. Length, 3% inches. Hasits. The Bufo cognatus “resides in prairies destitute of timber, where they are much exposed to the direct rays of the sun.” GeocrapuicaL Distrisution. This toad has as yet only been found towards the foot of the Rocky Mountains. Generat Remarks. Mr. Say was the first naturalist that observed this reptile, which he described under the specific name cognatus. I have never seen the living animal, and cannot, therefore, answer for the correctness of the colours of the accompanying plate. The specimen that I saw seemed closely allied to the Bufo Americanus, yet it is a larger animal, with the head shorter and broader, and the body differently marked; and Say observes that its habits are different, as it does not dislike the sun’s rays. Pnoystoma Ca rolineuse ENGYSTOMA —Fitzinger. Genus Eneystoma.—Cuaracters. Head small, pointed; mouth minute; tongue elongated, elliptical, movable only at its posterior extremity; tympanum concealed; jaws and palate without teeth; males with a sub-gular vocal vesicle; body oval, covered with a smooth skin; no parotid glands; anterior extremities with four fingers, free; posterior short, with five toes, not palmated. ENGYSTOMA CAROLINENSE. Plate VI. Cuaracters. Head small, short, poimted; body short, thick, nearly oval, covered with a delicate skin; chestnut above, and thickly mottled with blackish specks beneath. Synonyme. Engystoma Carolinense, Dumeril et Bibron, Hist. Nat. des Rept., tom. viii. p. 743. Descrietion. The general form of this animal approaches the oval; the skin is smooth; the head remarkably small and short, though large for the genus; its extent is marked by a delicate fold of the integuments behind the orbits; its shape is triangular, the snout being very pointed; the upper jaw is dark brown, the lower dark grey; the mouth is inferior and minute. The nostrils are very small, lateral, and placed near the snout. ‘The eyes are 94 ENGYSTOMA CAROLINENSE. exceedingly minute, and but slightly prominent; the pupil is black, the iris very dark grey. The body is round, somewhat flattened in the living animal, and smooth; dark brown along the vertebral line, and chestnut on either side of it; the sides of the head and neck below the orbits, and the flanks, are greyish; the throat and abdomen lighter, all thickly sprinkled with blackish specks. The anterior extremities are chestnut-brown above and _yellowish-brown beneath; the fingers are five in number, short, and distinct. The posterior extremities are short and thick, chestnut-brown above, with a few dark spots; the toes are five in number, short, and not palmated. Divensions. Length of body, 1 inch; of thighs, 3 of an inch; of Jeg, $ of an mch; of tarsus and toes, ~ of an inch. GerocrapuicaL Distrisution. Hitherto this animal has never been found north of Charleston; its range extending westward to the Lower Mississippi, where it has been observed by Lesueur. Hasirs. The Engystoma Carolinense passes most of its days in concealment, near old fences, or under the bark of fallen and decaying trees, emerging only towards evening and after heavy rains. They are frequently seen with myriads of the young of the Bufo lentiginosus, apparently washed from their places of concealment by summer showers, which has led many to suppose that they descended with the rain. It makes a feeble chirp at night, and at times when captured; and being but a clumsy swimmer, if thrown into water it repeats this chirp frequently in its endeavours to escape. Generat Remarks. This is the only species hitherto observed in the United States, and must not be confounded with those of South America. The Engystoma ovale is nearly twice the size of our animal, is uniformly dusky on the back, and ENGYSTOMA CAROLINENSE. 95 ~ has a white line along the posterior surface of the thigh, and a white spot at the axilla. Besides this our species differs in the comparatively greater size of the head and mouth, as well as in the markings. It is possible that Bosc* referred to this animal when he says he observed in Carolina a “crapaud bossu, ou une grenouille” living under the bark of dead trees, though he describes its skin as so excessively delicate as to prevent his preserving it alive even for a short time, in order to make a drawing of it. Now, though the skin of our animal is smooth and delicate, I have kept them alive for several months, and even sent them from Charleston to Philadelphia, where they not only arrived in safety, but lived a considerable time after. Dumeril and Bibron describe an Engystoma rugosat as inhabiting the United States, and suppose that I have confounded it with the Engystoma Carolinense. Now I never saw their Engystoma rugosa, and if I had, should never have mis- taken it for the Engystoma Carolinense, which has a smooth skin. The only ecaudate batrachian animal, with which I am acquainted, resembling an Engystoma in form and size, is the Bufo quercicus; but this is a true toad, with parotid glands, warty skin, &c.; whereas all the genus Engystoma, as I receive it, have smooth skins and no parotid glands. Their Engystoma rugosa is probably a Mexican animal, as they say it came from “des parties meridionales de l’Amerique du Nord.” * Nouv. Dict. d’Hist. Nat., tom. vi. p. 489. + Hist. Nat. des Rept., tom. viii. p. 744. ’ . oh, e | hy e 4 - ‘s - e es 2 ee" d : ' * t- la Famuy II. CAUDATA. | CHARACTERS. 1. The presence of a tail, at all periods of their existence, readily distinguishes the animals of this family from those of the last, though it varies in length and in form. 2. The body is elongated, round, and covered with a skin adherent to the muscles beneath. 3. The extremities vary in number; there may be four, (Salamandra,) or two, (Siren.) — . The tongue varies in shape, size, and mode of attachment. On . The tympanum is not visible. Remarks. Fitzinger makes a very natural subdivision of this family into two tribes. Mutabilia, or such as undergo a metamorphosis, as Salamanders; and Immutabilia, or such as are hatched with the forms they are permanently to retain, like the Siren. ee: 28 Troe Il. MUTABILIA. CHARACTERS. The animals of this tribe undergo a complete metamorphosis; the young breathe only in water, and with gills, like fish; but in their adult state, respiration is performed with lungs. The tribe Mutabilia includes two genera, Salamandra and Triton, distinguished by their mode of existence, whether terrestrial or aquatic, and each with its peculiar and appropriate organization. Salamandra gutlo =linedta 1 Vaeen det PS Duoad Tith Pre SALAMANDRA —Laurenti. Genus Satamanpra.—Cnaracters. Maxillary and palatine bones armed with minute teeth; tongue more or less pediculated, and free; body elongated, round, without a sternum; ribs in a rudimental state; pelvis suspended by lgaments; tail of variable form, most commonly round; extremities four; fingers four; toes five. Remarks. ‘The animals of this genus live entirely on land in their adult state, or are only found in water during their breeding season, when they approach it to deposit their spawn. Salamanders may be arranged in two sections, according to the disposition of their teeth. I. Salamanders with palatine teeth in transverse and longitudinal series. SALAMANDRA GUTTO-LINEATA.—Holbrook. Plate VI. Cuaracters. Head short and thick; snout obtuse; body pale straw-colour above, with a vertebral line of black, bifurcating behind the occiput; a lateral black band, in which is a row of white spots, and beneath this a white line. Tail nearly twice as long as the head, neck, and body. Vor. V.—5 30 SALAMANDRA GUTTO-LINEATA. Description. The head is short and thick, with the snout rounded. The mouth is rather large; the tongue is round or mushroom shaped, attached by a small pedicle in the centre, and is very movable. The palate is armed with numerous and minute teeth; a transverse series begins on each at the internal and posterior margin of the posterior nares; run inward and backward and unite in the middle of the palate; behind these teeth, and after a smooth space of a line, begins a broad longitudinal group that occupies the centre of the palate, increasing in breadth posteriorly. The nostrils are antero-superior near the snout, and open upwards. The eyes are large and prominent, with a black pupil and a flame-coloured iris. The neck is but slightly contracted, and has a distinct transverse fold at the throat. The body is elongated and cylindrical. The anterior extremities are small, and terminate in four fingers; the posterior are larger and stronger, and end in five toes. The tail is round, and very long. Cotour. The head is yellow above, mottled with black; the upper jaw yel- lowish, the lower whitish. The neck, body, and tail above are straw-colour; behind each orbit begins an indistinct line of black, which unite half an inch back of the occiput, and form a large vertebral line, which is extended to one inch beyond the posterior extremities; from the snout runs a black band through the lower part of the iris, along the flank, to near the end of the tail; beneath this is a white line, extending from the angle of the mouth along the flanks above the anterior and posterior extremities to about midway of the tail. The whole inferior surface of the neck, abdomen and tail, below the lateral white line, is dark grey. The superior surface of the anterior and posterior extremities is yellow; both the arms and the thighs have a black line on their posterior faces; the latter a white line, continuous with the white lateral one already described. Dimensions. Length of head, 7 lines; length of body to vent, 2 inches; length of tail, 4 inches 4 lines: total length, 6 inches 114 lines. SALAMANDRA GUTTO-LINEATA. 31 Hasirs. The Salamandra gutto-lineata is a Jand animal, and only seeks the water, as do others of tle genus, at certain seasons of the year. They are most commonly found in damp, moist places, as under fallen trees, or near springs of water. GrocraruicaL Disrrinution. This animal has only yet been observed in Carolina, where I have seen them in the middle country; and Dr. Wurdeman has furnished me with specimens from Greenville, near the mountains, where he says they abound. Generat Remarks. The Salamandra gutto-lineata bears some resemblance to the Salamandra cirrigera of Green, though it is three times the size; and indeed one of the four specimens that have fallen under my observation had two small cirri to the upper jaw. These cirri, however, should not be looked upon as of any great consequence in determining the species, for some have them, others not; and the same I know to be true of the Salamandra cirrigera. They should rather be regarded as certain developments that take place during the generative season of the animal, and disappear when that is passed. The Salamandra cirrigera differs furthermore from the Salamandra gutto-lineata in having a black lateral line only; the white spots, the white lateral and black vertebral lines that characterize the latter, are wanting in the cirrigera. TWA, pins? Salamandra salmonea. PSDuval, Lot Prd? ea > oe a 33 SALAMANDRA SALMONEA.—Soorer. Plate VIII. Cuaracters. Head large, flat; snout obtuse, truncated, with a salmon-coloured line on each side to the orbits; body and tail yellowish-brown above; salmon- colour, with a tinge of yellow, at the sides. SynonymME. Salamandra salmonea, Storer, MSS. Descrirtion. The head is large and flattened above, with a broad and almost square snout. The mouth is rather large; the tongue is small, sub-round, and attached by a slender and rather short pedicle. The palatine teeth begin on each side at the outer and posterior margin of the posterior nares, which are very large; thence they run inwards and forwards to a line with their anterior border, and then suddenly turn back and run parallel to each other throughout the whole length of the palate. These teeth are all exceedingly minute and much arched backwards. The nostrils are near its extremity, far apart, and antero-superior. The eyes are very prominent and large, the pupil deep black, the iris shining copper-colour. The skin of the chin and neck is smooth, with a transverse fold. The body is cylindrical and much elongated. The tail is longer than the body, thick and rounded at the root, compressed laterally, and pointed at the tip. The anterior extremities are short and small, with four fingers, distinct, the 34 SALAMANDRA SALMONEA. 6 second and third longest. The posterior extremities are twice the size of the anterior, and terminate in five toes, distinct, the third and fourth longest. Cotour. The head is yellowish-brown above, and salmon-colour at the sides, with a very bright salmon-coloured line extending from the nostril to the superior part of the orbit of the eye. The upper jaw is pale salmon-colour, with a few brown spots; the lower is nearly white, or palest flesh-colour. ‘The chin and throat are white. The upper surface of the body and tail is yellowish-brown, with greyish marks; the flanks and sides of the tail are salmon-colour, with a tinge of yellow; the thorax and abdomen are white; the under surface of the tail is pale salmon-colour. The anterior extremities are yellowish-brown above and clear white below; the posterior are of similar colour, both above and below. Dimensions. Length of head, 7 lines; length of body to vent, 23 inches; tail beyond the vent, 23 inches: total, 62 inches. Hasrrs. But little is known of the habits of the Salamandra salmonea; it was first observed on land, in a moist situation, among the mountains of Vermont, by Dr. Binney, who kept it alive for nearly a year, feeding it on flies, which it devoured very greedily. Grocrapnicat Disrrisution. This Salamander seems peculiar to the moun- tainous parts of our country. Dr. Binney found it in Vermont; Dr. Dekay observed it in Essex county, New York; and M. Cabanis, a Prussian naturalist, procured me several specimens among the mountains of South Carolina. Generar Remarks. To my friend Dr. Storer, of Boston, I am indebted for the description of the Salamandra salmonea. ioe iia Ma h Ay ne st 1) me re i ~~ ae i oa ‘ot eT ee oe re et ny at ee Mi he a if “ , 7 cy Bi i cae a ia : ; Li eae a ile Derg ya : aoe a Dua J i ui _| 7 i ae hy Bia ni ‘ iV (a ff, Y ane He ad rm at ‘ ’ 7 % ar | \ e i wet mie 0 wernt if af Rte aa 4) on ih i ‘hy a, ae ae : Si ie Le ; ie ae ut baal : " Se AS i - pepo - say re BE GN ey ey Pm eh ia a +. sae rN vl Has ds errr | “ ey dele ae P ,e AS patra, oy Wh dish 4 ie on te" 0 M woth i. ee ae allies nla Ma ye ret rigs ne oy m4 led a i an Ss wd ut wy bin , alah idly 4 , il 4s a) en tie ; tal ee ‘ oes ; 7 , 7 a bes 9 " . rie 9 ain sien y FT er me . i yaa ; Poa MS ro ee ae A is ie ety i ; i by ee i 7 (wae 5a ho - : nes a. ve 1, i : eC aa oh at eauccumeueia a ee ni wi whey ‘a 7 a OR TR wn fi — . ) | se i 7 , nel wir 1 ea ae 7 q - 7 Ne a ‘(7 | ean a ae eee ae ee he” fi — 7 » peer -_ uy 4 a Pas > aL me ’ a al ais Y abl m n ; na Z ” el ; be y > u - ca a eae y a Oe yi; ay BARN ays . 7 4 « . ay es ae ‘i Biri ¢ Wee iid oe i & i 48 é a tis : nt 1 at a : orn ‘on us pee a eae i ee : Mi a oats ‘ aan z q » ye sags 7 La s PA ie pp ia ce a ; roa — Aa he ; ; : - , 4 - 7 he ui he £, ‘ y =i. he : nak oi) We aa sid Ja y 4 Diy + ar , ran 1 py ee | _— wr i a re eit Namey be iE “Het Pet & im y - j . 7 | Me i fi Ph " : f Lal vy iM i 1¢ ~? a + (i eal any » 7 ; oe a ; ¢ : e foe . UL Sod ‘a ' 7 A ce e', GOs a + aay ae : ¥ an j Ws _ Ca 7 : 7s ule . cider MMAR. din 4 ae = je le 7 | ae) AS tt ” ih a a _— ". 7, a il ld " i] hes Dia A, | oe ~~ om . > = ” " th aj ale icommaanle: i 7 ris we, Y ¥ ” in "hal “ am ef r pail ; - 7 7 a el 1 * ve i iiriaen aad — aaa Bis) mt _ 7 J it thes y 7 oo ’ Le 7 y My 7 bs 7 i m : ad ‘ = ay it . 2 : ae 7 if iw ms in a i aiere ie vs 7 mn we ae AE a pep a). ire \ 7 7 r 4 ie , tig ee: : a — . tm jo — . Bercy ni an 7 my) nl me . i 7 a a a " , A Aa i yh : an i - mn ye i jagei a) in sain i tag at ; Hii _ 7 ' + a J 7 Qu ar ‘teeta y rn pal Bite Pay me ) om m vy ~~ te a t ma f , ae + } |) ao fat | AS, a i We gt hp : is. & ; } "= hi ; hy he ~~ - ' a , i a w sca is hdl hs “th ig . a , cary : mt 7 : a ‘are } ” 4 » i lg ; td 7 he MA ; ite ' oa : a ; ’ ae - he ny af a a Lo a y n ag 7 ALS r y br - ara 7). : ane i \pers Me we a be tue als i ’ ae, — . 7 : io b en: 7 0, _ aay 1 mt : 7 an \ are ei ; ie ae ite (a rm ly Jha we : “ue me ipa ile a ‘olla pn ite. 1 one My one a aa m a a ; ; ; : . “—— ls ee . Ni i ha : ‘(Ne ee Ue a a EBLE, i ty a oe | hae ; i oi ee 4 Y : ‘ Lae mij hiudtey i Git aby ae Pa 2 ay nerve VA 3 i von Pi iM) a ate ri as any _ ‘Be ‘ity a) Piper " 7 Ni old Wai A AK om H wh On Storie typ f° GUCCH Salamandra rubra. LS Daval hth LR © By) SALAMANDRA RUBRA.—Daudin. Plate LX. Cuaracters. Head short; snout rounded; eyes prominent; body above red, with numerous small black points; flanks red, immaculate; abdomen orange-red, immaculate. Synonrmes. Salamandra rubra, Daudin, Hist. Nat. des Rept., tom. viii. p. 227, pl. xcil. fig. 2. Salamandra rubra, Latretlle, Hist. Nat. Rept., tom. iv. p. 305. Salamandra rubriventris, Green, Jour. Acad. Nat. Scien. Philad., vol. i. p. 353. Salamandra rubriventris, Harlan, Med. and Phys. Res., p. 97. Salamandra maculata, Green, Jour. Acad. Nat. Scien. Philad., vol. i. p. 350. Salamandra maculata, Harldan, Med. and Phys. Res., p. 96. Salamandra sub-fusca, Green, Jour. Acad. Nat. Scien. Philad., vol. i. p. 351. Salamandra fusca, Green, Jour. Acad. Nat. Scien., vol. i. p. 357. Salamandra fusca, Harlan, Med. and Phys. Res., p. 96. Description. The head is rather large, with the snout rounded; the mouth is small; the tongue round, attached by a short pedicle, but is very movable. ‘The palate is armed with a series of minute teeth that begin on each side behind, and without the posterior nares, which are very small; these run first inwardly, but do not meet in the middle of the palate, as they suddenly turn backwards in a longitudinal direction, the two series separating from each other more and more posteriorly. The nostrils are antero-superior and near the snout. The eyes are prominent, 36 SALAMANDRA RUBRA. with the pupil black and the iris golden and large. The neck is not much con- tracted, and has a marked cutaneous fold at the throat. The body is cylindrical and stout; the anterior extremities are small, and are furnished with four fingers; the posterior are larger, and have five toes, slightly palmated at their root. The tail is shorter than the body, thick at the root, but soon becomes tapering, ends in a point, and is compressed laterally. Cotour. The whole superior surface of the animal is red, with a few scattered black points about the head, and becoming very numerous along the back and tail; the flanks are brighter red and immaculate; the whole inferior surface of the animal is orange-red; the extremities are coloured like the flanks above, and like the abdomen below, but rather less bright. Dimensions. Length of head, 6 lines; length of body, 24 inches; length of tail, 2 inches: total length, 4 inches 9 lines. I have observed individuals of still greater dimensions. Hasirs. The Salamandra rubra is a land animal, and is found under rocks, fallen and decaying trees, &c., and preying on such small insects as inhabit the same localities. Dr. Green has also frequently seen it in the water, whither it doubtless repaired during the breeding season; and he observed that it was then much more lively and active than when met with on land. GeocraruicaL Disrripution. This Salamander inhabits the Atlantic states from Massachusetts to Florida, inclusive; but I have no knowledge of its existence west of the Alleghany Mountains. Generat Remarks. Palisot de Beauvais was the first naturalist who observed this animal, which is certainly one of the most beautiful of our Salamanders; he found it under logs and in shady places in Pennsylvania, during his residence there. SALAMANDRA RUBRA. Si Daudin, however, gave the first description of it, and this he accompanied with a tolerable figure; he is wrong, however, in supposing the abdomen to be marked with a dusky line. I refer, without much hesitation, the Salamandra sub-fusca and Salamandra maculata of Green to the Salamandra rubra, although I have never had an opportunity of examining those animals, yet Dr. Pickering informs me that they are identical; and even Mr. Green was latterly in doubt whether they were distinct species. Vor. V.—6 a » Salamandra siutinosa. 10, to, 39 SALAMANDRA GLUTINOSA.—Green. Plate X. Cuaracters. Head large, semi-oval; tail round, nearly twice the length of body. Colour above bluish-black, with minute white spots on the back and tail, larger and frequently confluent white spots on the flanks. Synonymes. Salamandra glutinosa, Green, Jour. Acad. Nat. Scien. Philad., vol. i. p. 357. Salamandra variolata, Gi/liams, Jour. Acad. Nat. Scien. Philad., vol. i. p. 460. Salamandra cylindracea, Harlan, Med. and Phys. Res., p. 94. Description. The head is large and approaches a semi-oval form; the snout is rather pointed than rounded. The mouth is rather large; the tongue is thin, sub-cordiform, broadest behind, and attached by a pedicle, rather broad and short. The palate is armed with minute teeth, which begin on a line with the posterior and external face of the posterior nares on each side, and run at first transversely or inwards, and then a little backwards, but they do not meet in the middle of the palate; half a line behind these begins a group of numerous small teeth, which extend throughout the whole length of the middle and posterior part of the palate, increasing in breadth posteriorly. The nostrils are lateral, and near the snout. The eyes are large and promi- nent; the pupil black; the iris dusky. The neck is slightly contracted, with a large cutaneous fold at the throat. The body is elongated and cylindrical. The tail is nearly twice the length of the body, cylindrical, or almost imperceptibly compressed at its tip. 40 SALAMANDRA GLUTINOSA. The anterior extremities sustain four fingers; the posterior are twice the size of the anterior, and terminate in five toes, slightly united at their roots. Cotour. The ground colour of this animal is a beautiful bluish-black over the whole superior surface; the back and tail is sparsely dotted with minute white spots, more or less abundant; on the flanks and sides of the tail these spots are much larger and frequently confluent: sometimes specimens occur where all these spots are nearly wanting, and the animal then appears of a simple bluish-black colour. Divensions. Length of head, 6 lines; length of body, 2 inches 3 lines; length of tail, 3 inches 10 lines: total length, 6 inches 10 lines. Hasirs. The Salamandra glutinosa lives most of its time concealed under rocks, or under the bark of fallen and decaying trees, and is frequently so numerous that many are found under the same tree. Fallen trees seem a favourite residence of this species of animal, probably because the insects it preys upon choose the same locality; it will, however, emerge from its place of con- cealment after rains or in the dusk of evening in search of its prey. GeocrarHicaL Disrrisution. This I consider as the most common of the North American Salamanders, and most widely diffused, abounding from latitude 43° to the Gulf of Mexico. Dr. Pickering has seen it in Ipswich, Massachusetts, and Dr. Storer in the neighbourhood of Boston; Professor Green in Pittsburg, Pennsylvania; Say in Florida; and I have seen it in Virginia and in the Carolinas, and have received it from Georgia, Alabama, and Louisiana. GeneraL Remarks. To Professor Green belongs the merit of having first observed and accurately described this animal, under the name Salamandra glutinosa; and nearly at the same time, and in the same work, Gilliams gave it a new description and a new name, Salamandra variolata; long afterwards Dr. ~ SALAMANDRA GLUTINOSA. 41 Harlan adds a third specific name, cylindracea, for the same animal. I have retained, however, that imposed by Professor Green, as it has the right of priority, and is on the whole well enough, as the animal gives off a great quantity of glutinous matter when taken in the hand. ‘ie ie. by no ; i sa : 4 lS et gpa o ‘ae oo # “ . me we : = iia ‘, Me : vie Pct: a ni Bie a ay > A et + ae ‘dl Sy P Bheey Li Potth ah Ri Be "Si a ae Raat 1 Ki by. oe ee ory fer ne ‘ Ta aed a ee il " oe i ae By. a 4 a ih, ee at ions Bath ." i ae o: i: ¥ ri a ie ar 7 ot ae of on ; Yr " ae \s mh A) ur ie . oe mae 7 ‘stall PD i vy a. 7 ‘Trae i, ae ae, i iy i ey tee as re ¥ , 7 .% or. am ys a tor nm - ” - a es rw. > bgt oe ot even a cy — eB im . . * s i a _ _ at Uy i = dete Sd ~ iy a ne 7 ai 2 - a \ E: Ay ae a oh = Te me lh ar, ak BOG i) ae . 1, he ‘ iat, y yiken int rer, Me +” . i er, ee me oe a Dy a es aa i ee wi Py Lh ee ih a ae gh ig 7 ay i aN bin whe oe Nh , ra ee Vee i aa a aul 5 Oe v of Salamandra *Jeffersoniana. 14. SALAMANDRA JEFFERSONIANA.—Green. Plate XIV. Cuaracrers. Head very large; eyes full and prominent; body long, cylindrical, light brown above, marked with azure spots; tail length of body, compressed and pointed at the tip. Synoyymes. Salamandra Jeffersoniana, Green, Maclurian Lyceum, p. 4. — Salamandra Jeffersoniana, Harlan, Med. and Phys. Res., p. 98. Descrivtion. The head is very large, with the snout rounded and full. The mouth is large; the tongue is small, round, pediculated, though slightly attached anteriorly. ‘The palate is armed with numerous minute teeth, that make a trans- verse row back of the posterior nares, and with two longitudinal series reaching to the posterior extremity of the palate. The nostrils are near the snout. The eyes are remote and prominent, with both pupil and iris entirely black. The neck is contracted, and has a well marked transverse fold at the throat. The body is elongated, cylindrical; the tail is as long as the body, round, and tapering to near its extremity, which is compressed and pointed. The extremities are well developed; the anterior are provided with four fingers; the posterior with five toes, all remarkably long. Cotour. The whole animal above “is dusky-brown, interspersed with beautiful 9 SALAMANDRA JEFFERSONIANA. Or azure-blue points, scattered irregularly over the whole surface; on the tail and legs these points are so grouped as to form small blue spots, while along the g P grouy Pp g spine they are scarcely visible.” “The throat and abdomen are purple.” Dimensions. Length of head, 8 lines; length of body, 2 inches 6 lines; length of tail, 2 inches 10 lines: total length, 6 inches. Hasits. Professor Green says this animal is terrestrial, and feeds on insects, earthworms, &c., and that “it creeps with much facility along the ground, being greatly assisted in its motions by its extremely long fingers and toes.” GeocrapnicaL Distrisution. Western Pennsylvania, near Charter’s creek, is the only known locality of the Salamandra Jeffersoniana. Generat Remarks. This animal was first observed and described by Professor Green, an excellent herpetologist. Never having seen the animal alive, I cannot answer for the correctness of the colours of the accompanying figure; yet it was copied from an original drawing of Peale, done for Professor Green. Salamandra cirrigera. / yueen, de. PS Duval, Lith Pht? 15. 53 SALAMANDRA CIRRIGERA.—Green. Plate XV. Cuaracters. Head short; snout rounded; two barbels to the upper jaw, between the nostrils and lip; body above pale yellow, mottled with black points, and a dusky lateral line; tail compressed, longer than the body. Synonymes. Salamandra cirrigera, Green, Jour. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philad., vol. iv. p. 253. Salamandra cirrigera, Har/an, Med. and Phys. Res., p. 99. Description. The head is short, with the snout rounded or obtuse, and with two barbels or cirri nearly one-fourth of an inch long, in life, projecting from between the nostrils and upper lip. ‘The mouth is very small; the tongue is elon- gated, oval, thin, and very movable. The palate is armed with a transverse row of minute teeth that begin on each side at the inner and posterior margin of the posterior nares; behind these is a broad longitudinal group of exceedingly minute teeth that extend to the posterior border of the palate. The nostrils are anterior and far removed. 'The eyes are prominent and large, with a dusky pupil and golden iris. The neck is contracted, and has a transverse cutaneous fold at the throat. The body is elongated, but tolerably robust. The tail is longer than the body, compressed at the sides, tapering, and finally ends in a point. The anterior extremities are small, delicate, and terminate in four fingers; the posterior are larger, and sustain five toes. Corour. The head above is pale cream-colour, tinged with red; the upper Vor. V.—8 r 54. SALAMANDRA CIRRIGERA. jaw of similar colour, and the lower lip and throat nearly white. The back and tail above are pale cream-colour, with a tinge of reddish-brown, and speckled or variegated with numerous small dusky points; a dusky interrupted lateral line begins behind the eye on each side, runs along the flanks above the extremities, and is finally lost near the tip of the tail; below this line the flanks are mottled brown, with an irregular series of small white spots; the abdomen is yellowish- white, with a slight purple tinge along the mesial line; the extremities are coloured like the back above, and like the abdomen below, though more dusky. Divenstons. Length of head, 23 lines; length of body to vent, 1 inch 5 lines; length of tail, 1 inch 7 lines: total length, 3 inches 23 lines. Hasirs. Not much is known of the habits of this Salamander; it, however, lives on land, and probably never seeks the water but in the breeding season; and yet the barbels at the snout would seem to indicate an aquatic animal. GrocrapnicaL Distrisution. Louisiana and Mississippi are as yet the only States in which this Salamander has been observed. GeneraL Remarks. The general appearance of this animal is so much lke the Salamandra bilineata, that I was for a long time unwilling to receive it as a distinct species, not regarding the cirri as an indisputable specific character; for it is well known that many Salamanders put out “singular ornaments,” or have curious developments at certain periods of the year; yet Dr. Green believes these cirri to be permanent in the male. The distinctive characters perhaps the most to be depended on, between this animal and the Salamandra bilineata, should the barbels be wanting, which some- times happens, is the shape of the tail: in the former it is compressed laterally throughout its whole extent, and in the latter it is round; besides, one inhabits the Atlantic states generally, while the other is confined, as far as is known, to the extreme south, : aw) hy he yin ean — hae at i 5 i) Ao = : wer rt dag - , ; i, ey) a whe ae an ee id ; Niet a : ne =i : the wie o her ie Mh ae) 4 7 : | 0 7 ® Ped pa eo = —alrapin >s Va cali _ 5 Mt ne 7) . J * iy i a aa N=) ae ; ee “ys nn sl cn ws er a ; ~ dye Nay a al — ae a re ve -' Hae ni eS . ¥ a " ahem if - sews’. 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S alas a ba , a. eee rn a > ie - 7 : - We On é fe, ” Bie oe aie 7 7 ey ails Mies - A ee : Fi ij a a ei at _. SUT) © Oe * a vi — an ee 7 ie ni , pore we a Wig “ ” nee z a Peres a on Rs ny . ar" Ss 77 ‘ 7 _ » ae iy eae ye a seq ei . —= ie. 6 cer amercleemnpane<™ | is pa © anne gets an ce, nn ~ane iy a ai ist ie Z = ioe + S + enna Bs > _ a) ir af >. ‘a a i Been. ete " ) heal cs 1 > (ar Gane ve mo qs y ay 7a a 7 : ys 6 rm he i a . A i ¥ P - - : a Cheb ae 8 at wile oe % iaianey et ves ~~ y enh, a + ahs Perr i’ 7 pet ; ry oar ‘ bene ~~ A. oT bh ‘ 7 aoe ew -- ' ae Sant ass —— ina wh we @® «hi « die ore a Of - i Ez i or 7" _—= i ~~ a al - ad is a al a an - 2 " : 7 alt in ; eae ee Ads] ; wade eRhiED « * a Oe roan me f a » © 2% ayn a ee —_ 7 me aye 7 a et al vay il oa : a = ike q PR mamma ee ee ae 7 sinh a Mi a 9 ) vy » Sr (dt rege ta a eae 8 ak > 7 ae i BA! wy ts h re Ute Vinh nuh 7 a t 7 . ae a ii 1 ae ial. . ee “— a the alee a i : ‘) ; "1 4 bo Hi U «4 ve ata a ~ amity : — re uh -™ seed - @ a) : - : igevansh : i ¢ 7 r pina au prey Mel Vin el a 7 i : dies i a i ly lle peers | Ce 7 Bn) he rer a . = 5 sealed iy # Hag iy wt i se sta ee a on Ey ee neque si ah ag 1a? oe 8 aati bas is yee 7 S4 ml! ery a ~onadlioiay pie | a a — Boal iii i Al i ? ; i | ee, Ty q te = rise gen dn ne re =e) ae : - g . Le aaah (on ha rr > / oy >) dé bs 7 a a as : a ‘ _ 7 i a aa cr Sell + aiid = zi oy a a a pati wines al ut? és i) — ne pepe ae r Ter 4 : ie ' an ‘ — nail. ss ~ he e iy » | or tiie ye ay ' i y “ ey a a = ate Bik i og : 7 , : Yas hy \¥ seatit ; % BA 7 rnd My Pest f ; 3 . 7 ae A a . ; many. ( i ag a * ’ ai ; v a - y a ii oy i roe yw in ny, iF on i ‘a ; , | i a a ne ined Con a (ee 5% | a : re) # wa 1 r A 7 a a i” ? ot po). ee re | eevee ts or Tue ¥ 4 ra 7 er i: bi a . _ 7 oe a y : Uy >» ne Laie : ri 1 a Pe. tae! ea iS ane Lg 1 Gea Co) as : " Lar i? ; . ie ’ 7 es te ee Lam ai _ osh Yr : an Me H ere! i ; “J oy a : 7 5 7 - 7 , ‘aa ' i OT hi s , ve ee un , 3 4 f Dimi 7 rm : ; ; -_ ; . ay i : oe eu 7 a a") “3 A 7 _ ae: Pann ; oy 7 we he an an ; a) ier 4 ae - an ; id ‘ae. hen yd. i ae 7 7 ve | ios Ne aS Bt on a en 7a e A nine ry FOr ee am) 4 = : Pais see | 5 7 7 vat i a. J UF i nla \, afte Te de ao ee Salamandra bi hneata . © Rogers painxt PS Duval Lith qn qr SALAMANDRA BILINEATA.—Green. Plate XVI. Cuaracters. Head small; body cylindrical; tail longer than the body, and slightly compressed towards the tip. Colour above brownish-yellow, with a black lateral line on each side; belly yellow. Synonymes. Salamandra bilineata,* Green, Jour. Acad. Nat. Scien. Philad., vol. i. p. 325. Salamandra flayissima, Har/an, Med. and Phys. Res., p. 97. Description. The head is small, with the snout rather rounded than pointed. The tongue is small, sub-oval, thin, pediculated, and very movable. ‘The palate is armed with a transverse row of minute teeth that begin behind the inner margin of the posterior nares; behind these teeth are two longitudinal groups extending to the posterior extremity of the palate. The nostrils are lateral, though near the snout. The eyes are prominent, the pupil black, with a golden iris. The neck is not much contracted, but there is a slight cutaneous fold at the throat. The body is cylindrical. The tail is also cylindrical, long, thick at the root, but soon becomes slender, and is slightly compressed towards the tip. The anterior extremities are exceedingly small and delicate, and terminate in four small fingers. The posterior are twice the size, and have five toes. * From an error of the press, this stands Salamandra bislineata. 56 SALAMANDRA BILINEATA. sp | Cotour. The upper surface of the animal is brownish-yellow, with a black lateral line on each side, which begins behind the orbit of the eye, and is continued without interruption along the flanks, above the anterior and posterior extremities, and is generally lost near the end of the tail. ‘The inferior surface of the whole animal is bright yellow, and the skin so delicate as to allow the intestines to be seen, which gives to the animal a darker appearance along the mesial line. Divensions. Length of head, 3 lines; length of body to vent, 1 inch 5 lines; length of tail beyond vent, 2 inches 2 lines: total length, 3 inches 10 lines. ‘ Hasrrs. The Salamandra bilineata is found on land, but in damp places only, and is more lively and active than are Salamanders in general. It lives concealed under rocks or old trees, whence it emerges after a rain, or in the dusk of evening, to seek its prey. GrocrapuicaL Disrrisution. This animal has a wide range; Dr. Pickering has observed it in Salem, Massachusetts; Professor Green in Jersey; and I have found it in the lower part of North Carolina, and have received it from Greenville and Pendleton, in South Carolina. Generat Remarks. Professor Green first observed and described this Sala- mander under the name it here bears. Dr. Harlan afterwards, apparently unaware of this, gave of it another descrip- tion as the Salamandra flavissima, a name which must consequently be erased from our catalogue of reptiles, as that imposed by Professor Green has the right of priority. Cen me ; Data Aan! f t i Fea. wae . a, . oe ‘eS oe nd) | - : ¥ a * a “f ‘ i if ij PS es i ; | s . * vn [re ; i i ; . : > is ait Wy SP ; . unt Ase } i eens Ln ey een Fr Lirthotinted’ by Lt Salamancra Symurelrica ie PS Deval Lith Phil o7 SALAMANDRA SYMMETRICA.—Harlan. Plate XVII. Cuaracters. Head, body and tail brownish-red; throat and abdomen orange- colour; a row of deep red spots on each side of the vertebral line symmetrically arranged; tail longer than the body, small and compressed; skin rough. Synonymes. Salamandra stellio, Say, Amer. Jour. of Arts and Scien., vol. i. p. 264. Salamandra symmetrica, Harlan, Med. and Phys. Res., p. 98. Description. The head is short, and the snout rather pointed; the mouth is small; the tongue is small, with a short pedicle, and is only free and movable at its sides; a transverse row of minute teeth begins on each side of the palate behind the posterior nares; these run inwards and unite in the centre. The longitudinal series is very small, yet it extends throughout the whole palate behind the trans- verse row. The nostrils are latero-anterior. The eyes are small and beautiful, with the pupil black and the iris flame-colour. The neck is about the size of the head, with a small transverse cutaneous fold at the throat. The body is cylindrical, slightly compressed at the sides; and the whole animal is covered with a rough cuticle. The anterior extremities are small and delicate, terminating in four slender fingers; the posterior have twice the bulk of the anterior, and terminate in five 58 SALAMANDRA SYMMETRICA. short flexible toes. The tail is thick at the root, but soon becomes flattened, small, and terminates in a point. Cotour. The whole superior surface of the head, neck, body and tail, as well as that of the anterior and posterior extremities, is brownish-red; the inferior surface of the throat and abdomen is reddish-orange, with black dots; the inferior surface of the tail is the same as the superior, but with a glow of orange. Dimensions. Length of head, 4 lines; length of body to vent, 1 inch 8 lines; length of tail beyond vent, 1 inch 8 lines: total length, 3 inches 8 lines. Hasirs. Although placed by some among the aquatic Salamanders, the very skin, roughened as it is, would seem to shew that this animal is destined to live on land, and that it only approaches the water at certain seasons. I have always seen it on land, but in damp places, as under fallen trees or rocks, from whence it emerges after heavy rains, or in the dusk of evening, in search of insects, earth-worms, Wc. GrocrapmicaL Distrisution. The Salamandra symmetrica has a very wide range; I have received it from Florida and Alabama, and have seen it in Carolina, Virginia, and as far north as the Green Mountains of Vermont. ‘Though abun- dant in the upper parts of Carolina, yet I have never seen them in the flat country around Charleston, or along the sea coast of the southern states. GeneraL Remarks. Harlan was the first who made this animal known to naturalists. Previous to his description it seems to have been confounded with the Stellio of Catesby, represented in the beak of the Ardea herodias. ‘They were no doubt deceived by the spots on the sides of the body, which should have led them to a distinctive mark. ‘The animal of Catesby differs from the one here described in many respects: it has the skin soft and smooth; the colour brown; the dorsal spots white; much less regular in size and disposition, and extending on the tail. ont et ane 7 aa ae eh ate Lo ee ‘ baie , * Sah y J Pete ng? ei ey » 7 : a i VAC fac is i J ‘é _ ; ali aig re a “e me Aah " Lc yee asi Mi a i Mi oo, fin Aroeh ic “¢ { wid is ave at ei Dai whic ie ee sonia ‘ oe ; 2a ~ at ivit re : Bs ni - "p es : i. a ae rane aren me a ‘ * 7 na pe Me hat ¥ ws P ues » Ope Bey ie a Re) Sie as oe aie ere nig ba: “ so —~ ch ee oe wa a - : % ie nie an 7 ie om " 7 * - rey is a 1? ete or ve ase zh >, *- 7 f 7 7 - i cae i ae eer ns : a ; 7 - ‘f i f : aa Ow ; «Sale a . hy : ; UM clea. ic ey ee i a at, ice Se yi Ue lc: er whl vA a) es ae a are * ee i ' Poy! . ny ee oe Paes ee ; ‘ay. ro Wo 6 eee Oe oe a : ie Am ao a Me ie a) ri ee pin ty pi tileag i il - 7 7 , am as AL " oct fae ee a Y r ats py : So th MS hades iis ; " i es ant wid ¥ oa i Natok i - yall _ be ‘2 he - | : ao (ipa ‘ th ii: wr 4 a si -* - _ Be ; LAS ete, i ad 7 y we " » Ba _ i ee 7 Der sb Bw ae Pie ee ot il _ A 7 a wer aa 7 - a nies A bal a aa nd nae By ean pre ‘tie ni hae ont ie i ee) we Rif ity wy eet igre oe este on ry Dn iT an "ee i NAY are oo ones kane ae i a \ Ni ; ss Hi 1 celui ili anemia a r. , . 1 CTE a es an ao 4, qu ad i veh nai a por et 2 pebodos hy ay aadh Tel : re , ola ayy (re vi a | ' °|) iia m" aa 5 ial m 7 ‘5 ney ie ety } i, 7 a) 4 if ie ea Kicters _ Vic i a a a - ia te meals Sates jo mt Wi aod p toy ot Ee SS - ; : on ks ein a ; - c. v man Bian ay . sae 4 Ws - i 1 ees “a Ry * i, ay a ah poe MK ao He Ww a ed oo. 5%. ia - A a ae eT ) ie v oa ey ‘i aa . esti bs ee [ i a ¥ i) Mantes soit M sie Ht id wh os mi) i i *. mee ihn ~ oly ia ee en | fo t ne ian Ve) avi iA , a Ae us head a : 4 : : Be ty spl fs ra site i aa hens i a - hi ae * ae pl: a ne pe i re a dll ee wa atl . oe cat ae Dela eal! . dipat ear y sel ala mr A a vik ad ang ; a ius i. : si i a - ® sneha 7 i a ‘ ui, ~ lite ” éi pide , Pay a Kia ne me) ey } ne date i ee ie : Ee ni iihadad , os engin we ae = 4 lial anes ate oy sine ye vr aia Wahl ok oki sig tS Rey yy 7 ; a 7 Py ee - : mii y ¥? - 7 ae ah) rere ay ae y ua te y a ant i a 7 rds) 1 ov . rei ia ayaa 4 an ene ic ™ rs ay oh ae af : M4 Ps) a Roe on a m ii ie hs Ay nae oe pirat! t Psy W 0 ey rd Pei m one fis o ie fe im Lila at * ie i it ; Ree ve ern. « ee . ns ee ui ia i‘ man As NO Os vec m . Vho M Logan, MD. pinet Salamandra Haldemani 18. LS Duviad, J 59 SALAMANDRA HALDEMANI.—Ablbrook. Plate XVIII. Cuaracters. Head flattened above; snout rounded; body and tail pale yellow above, slightly olive at the flanks, marked with dusky spots and blotches, disposed somewhat in three irregular longitudinal series. Description. The head is of moderate size, a little flattened above, with the snout rounded. ‘The mouth is small; the tongue is broad, sub-round, and attached by a broad, short pedicle. The palate is armed with a group of minute teeth, which begin on each side behind the posterior nares, run within and backwards, but do not meet in the mesial line; behind these, and in the middle of the palate, is a second group of minute teeth arranged in a longitudinal direction. The nostrils are near the snout, lateral, but open a little upwards. The eyes are prominent and large, with the pupil dusky, and the iris bright yellow. The neck is contracted, with a slight transverse fold at the throat. The body is cylindrical and slender; the anterior extremities are small, with four fingers; the posterior are much larger, and sustain five toes. The tail is longer than the body, slender and round, only a little compressed towards the tip. Corour. The head and neck above are pale yellow; the lips are lighter, and the throat yellowish-white. The body above is straw-colour, tinged with olive at the flanks, and marked with numerous small dusky or brown blotches, variable in size, and disposed without much order; the largest, however, are on the flanks; 60 SALAMANDRA HALDEMANI. the throat is pale yellow; the abdomen is of similar colour, with its central portion strongly tinged with purple; the extremities are coloured like the back above, but with fewer and smaller dusky spots, and are yellow below. Dimensions. Length of head, 5 lines; length of body to vent, 1 inch 8 lines; length of tail, 1 inch 11 lines: total length, 4 inches. Hasirs. Little is known of the habits of the Salamandra Haldemani, except that it is a land animal, and is found under old logs and stones, &c. GrocrapuicaL Distrisution. ‘This Salamander inhabits the states of Pennsyl- vania, Maryland and Virginia, from all of which I have received specimens, and it will doubtless be found much more widely extended when our herpetology shall be better known. GeneraL Remarks. My friend, 8S. 8. Haldeman, Esq., of Pennsylvania, to whom I am indebted for much information on the habits of reptiles, was the first naturalist who observed this Salamander, and procured me a specimen from the borders of the Susquehanna river, and to him I have dedicated the species. ag Salamandra longicauda. PS Duval, Lith Phu* ‘ JH Rickard. del* 19. 61 SALAMANDRA LONGICAUDA.—Green. Plate XIX. Cnaracters. Head narrow; snout rather pointed; body elongated, lemon- coloured above, and marked with small, irregular, oblong, or round black spots; tail more than twice the length of body, compressed at the sides, and marked with transverse black bands. Synonymes. Salamandra longicauda, Green, Jour. Acad. Nat. Scien. Philad., vol. i. p. 351. Salamandra longicaudata, Harlan, Med. and Phys. Res., p. 96. Description. The head is short, and the snout obtuse; the mouth is of mode- rate size; the tongue is pediculated, oblong, and slightly notched posteriorly. The palate is armed with minute teeth, which begin on each side behind the inner margins of the posterior nares, and then run inwards and a little backwards to unite in the middle of the palate; a line and a half behind this transverse row begin two longitudinal series of teeth, which are continued in distinct groups to the end of the palate, and separate more and more from each other posteriorly. The nostrils are lateral and near the snout. The eyes are small, but prominent, the pupil black and the iris golden. The chin and neck are smooth, with a strongly marked cuticular fold at the throat. The body is cylindrical, small and delicate. The tail is twice the length of the body, compressed at the sides, and exceedingly thin and slender. The anterior extremities are rather long and slender; there are four delicate Vout. V.—9 62 SALAMANDRA LONGICAUDA. fingers, distinct, and all nearly of the same length. The posterior extremities are nearly twice the size of the anterior, with five distinct small toes. Cotour. The head is lemon-colour above, and the chin and throat nearly the same. The body above is of similar colour, with numerous small irregular black spots; the thorax and abdomen are yellowish-white. ‘The tail is coloured like the back, but the black spots on it are lengthened into transverse bars. ‘The anterior as well as the posterior extremities are similar in colour aboye to the back; below they are straw-colour. Dimensions. Length of head, 5 lines; of body to vent, 1 inch 10 lines; of tail g yy, beyond the vent, 33 inches: total, 5 inches 10 lines. Hasirs. Dr. Harlan places this among the aquatic Salamanders; and Professor Green informs me that he has also observed this animal, which is one of the most beautiful of our Salamanders, in water, and that its motions are exceedingly graceful. There can be but little doubt, however, that it lives in general on land, as its whole organization, teeth, tongue, Wc., all place it among the true Sala- manders; besides, Haldeman assures me that he has found it on land and at a distance from water. Professor Green probably saw it in water during its breed- ing season, for he further remarked that it 1s found on land in marshy places. GeocrapuicaL Distrrisution. ‘The Salamandra longicauda is found in most of the northern parts of the United States. Dr. Smith has seen it in Massachusetts; Professor Green has observed it near Albany, and at Princeton, New Jersey; and Dr. Pickering informs me that they are found in the neighbourhood of Pitts- burgh, west of the Alleghany Mountains. Generat Remarks. This is another of our Salamanders observed and first described by Professor Green, of Philadelphia. 3 ag Ss iS zy 5 c ss i B i g H ° AY nN 3 A a is & a 5) y Y : THK, 63 SALAMANDRA GRANULATA.—De Kay. Plate XX. Cuaracters. Head large; body elongated, cylindrical; tail round, slender, slightly longer than the body and head; skin granulated, greenish slate-colour above, varied with grey and brown beneath. Synonyme. Salamandra granulata, De Kay, New York Fauna, vol. ii. Descrietion. The head is large, flattened, and smooth above, sub-truncate or rounded in front. The tongue is pediculated. The eyes are prominent, with the upper margins of the orbit very projecting. The neck is contracted, with the gular fold very distinct. The body is elongated, cylindrical, and covered with a granulated skin; that under the lens exhibits the appearance of chagreen. ‘The tail is long, slender, very slightly compressed, and ending in a slender, acute point. The anterior extremities are very small, with four minute fingers; the posterior are much larger, and sustain five toes. Cotour. The colour of the whole animal above is a lustrous dark greenish- slate, of a uniform hue. The chin and throat are mottled grey; the gular fold is a soiled white, and the abdomen is mottled with brown and grey; the tail below is uniform ashen-grey; the soles of the feet white. “These colours must be received with some reserve, as they were taken from a specimen preserved in ul 64. SALAMANDRA GRANULATA. spirits, and sent to me by Dr. Emmons from the northern district of New York; yet that gentleman, who saw it alive, says the colours are but little changed.” Divensions. Length of head to fold, 7 lines; from the fold to vent, 2 inches 5 lines; length of tail beyond vent, 3 inches 6 lines: total length, 6 inches 9 lines. GeocrapuicaL Distrisution. This Salamander has as yet only been observed by Dr. Emmons in the northern districts of New York. GeneraL Remarks. I have never seen the Salamandra granulata, and am indebted to my friend Dr. De Kay for the above description, as well as the accompanying plate. At first it would seem to resemble some varieties of the Salamandra glutinosa where the white dots are wanting; but the granulated skin prevents their being confounded. at : PATA NNG TM de le Sale oan ie % an) bt a ; a 2 Nhe yey st UY hee by, y i tp ying : ae ae a. bi aan og: i Made fh ” ai Si paps ay Omani ; Pee Mid sea Me : 5 : se aa ri ut ha j Mahe: a: ne = eae 4 ni ig hes a h jae yo A eS, Mak eae aml apie Hho 4 1 Ve eabcute ae r Be: inti. a: a ——- ’ r fi n : ay ey: i a: * Soe Lae et % an va Dah Bao pee ye Mia ai ay. a i bi he reny seer ¢ are ‘ a w4 ca iia Me 1) ie 1a aaa q il : ee bat aga) A a a sida a RY .* -- mh Are ‘5 - i Mon . i a 4 be hs ae oe ari: My _] mit * sa ~— ry 4 er a“ : i on br) © oe eee he lei re any, ube +a Re: ahald a = Me 1 Yen F Bees “ 4 ae aie va Byiy, m) ‘Nd Hi es cy a ares A ar ag " f ae i a JGR lian aiiiaies ie ulti Riis oe ; ar a) wy ik c iat hi as 7 ¥ os i iy «& on ia iy a ak w) aii ) ~~ idee su a gt. aa, fg ope | ‘ wine ah: ioe, ik Lay i . . 2 1, we J be a * om vee ae af . oi iene cu tet os ¥3 Eh iy (is i af on a - iff ai een - eit, ey ” sites i _ er hd i neiee } at Av oe as oe ‘ak cm io, ae of 1 ee f a j ‘ a rae rele oP ‘ A ra. ee a r Bie oyna aay oa . in me pit “ a — ue ey + oe ae ange nt aoe ae ; pe glia NES Pancih cy Ties 7 ia a ee ae) widia ry Ta a Ov, o's Dat fae a blot Oey a ‘qth a4 Salamatndra 21 4- digitata PS Diwud; Lith, Phu * 65 SALAMANDRA QUADRIDIGITATA.—Holbrook. Plate XX. Cuaracters. Head large; body long and slender; tail very long; fingers four; toes four. Description. ‘The head is very large for the size of the animal, with the snout full and rounded. The tongue is round, flattened, and sustained on a short pedicle. There are a few scattered exceedingly minute teeth just behind and between the posterior nares. The nostrils are latero-anterior, and near the extremity of the snout. The eyes are large and prominent, with a dusky iris and a golden pupil. The neck is smaller than the head, with a narrow cutaneous fold at the throat. The body is much elongated and cylindrical. The tail is very long, round, or is compressed only towards its tip. The anterior extremities are very small, and are provided with four minute fingers; the posterior are rather larger, with four toes, equally minute. Cotour. The whole animal above is pale straw-colour, with a few minute dark brown spots or vertebral lines; the flanks are marked with an irregular series of dark brown spots, sometimes approaching a lateral line; the abdomen is bluish silvery-white. Dimensions. Length of head, 4 lines; length of body, 1 inch; length of tail, 2 inches: total length, 3 inches 4 lines. - 66 SALAMANDRA QUADRIDIGITATA. Hasirs. ‘The Salamandra quadridigitata is entirely a land animal. In general it remains concealed under fallen and decaying trees, and only ventures abroad after heavy rains or in the dusk of evening, in search of small insects, on which it feeds. GrocrapuicaL Distrisution. This Salamander is abundant in the middle section of our state, which must for the present be considered as its northern limit; hence it inhabits the intervening country to the Gulf of Mexico. Mr. Couper and Dr. Harden have both furnished me with specimens from Georgia, and I have also received them from Florida. GeneraL Remarks. ‘This animal bears some resemblance at first view to the Salamandra gutto-lineata, from which, however, it differs in many and important characters. This is the only one of our Salamanders with which I am acquainted that has four fingers and four toes, and from this circumstance is its specific name derived. Salamandra venenosa h Phil* II. Salamanders with transverse groups only of palatine teeth. Remarks. The animals of this section approach in their form, as well as in the arrangement of their palatine teeth, Wc., the Tritons or Aquatic Salamanders. In some the tail is round, but in most it is compressed laterally, and yet they are as terrestrial in their habits as any other of our Salamanders. SALAMANDRA VENENOSA, Barton. Plate XXII. Cuaracters. Head moderate; snout slightly rounded; body and tail above bluish-black, with a row of round or oval yellow spots on each side; under surface bluish-black, tinged with purple. SynonymeEs. Salamandra venenosa, Barton, Daud. Hist. Nat. des Rept., tom. viii. p. 229. Salamandra sub-violacea, Barton, Trans. Amer. Phil. Soc., vol. vi. p. 112, pl. iv. fig. 6. Salamandra sub-violacea, Harlan, Med. and Phys. Res., p. 93. ° Description. The head is of moderate size, with the snout full and rounded; the tongue is large, flat, sub-oval, and broadest before; it is adherent by an extensive base below, and by a narrow point behind, and is only movable at its lateral margins. The palate is armed with a transverse row of minute teeth, which pass from side to side behind the posterior nares, the row being a little arched backwards in the centre. The nostrils are ]atero-superior and near the snout. The eyes are small, but prominent, with a black pupil and dark grey iris. 68 SALAMANDRA VENENOSA. The neck is slightly contracted, and has a large, transverse, cutaneous fold at the throat. The body is elongated, tolerably thick, cylindrical, and covered with a smooth skin. The tail is cylindrical at its root, but soon becomes more or less compressed laterally and terminates in a point. The anterior extremities are small, with four fingers, all nearly of the same length. The posterior are larger, and end in five toes, of which the third and fourth are longest. Cotour. The head is bluish-black above, with four or five round yellow or orange spots; a small one is at the back of each orbit, and another behind the temples; both the upper and lower jaws are black; the chin and throat are bluish- black, with a purple tinge. 'The whole superior surface of the body and tail is bluish-black, with a row of yellow or orange spots, round or oval, on each side, extending to the tip of the tail. The belly is bluish-black, with a strong tinge of purple or violet. The extremities are coloured like the back, and are each marked with one or two small round yellow spots. Dimensions. Length of head, 10 lines; length of body to vent, 2 inches 5 lines; of tail, 22 inches: total length, 5 inches. Haszirs. This is another land Salamander, passing most of its time in moist places, as under the trunks of fallen and decayed trees, or under rocks and stones, and only appearing abroad after heavy showers of rain, or at the dusk of evening, in search of its food, which is earth-worms, as well as various small insects. GerocrapuicaL Disrrisution. The Salamandra venenosa is abundant at the northern portions of the United States. Professor Green informs me that it is common near Albany; Dr. Binney has observed it in Vermont; Dr. Storer in Massachusetts; and Say saw it in Ohio. For the present, Maryland must be considered as its southern limit—south of that state I have no evidence of its existence. Daudin, Harlan, and some other naturalists, however, speak of it as SALAMANDRA VENENOSA. 69 inhabiting South Carolina, and refer it to the Salamander represented in the beak of the Ardea herodias of Catesby, which animal Say supposes to be identical with the Salamandra dorsalis. Catesby’s Salamander is probably neither one nor the other, if his description is to be relied on. Generat Remarks. The history of our acquaintance with the Salamandra venenosa is as follows. In 1803, Dr. Barton obtained a living specimen of it from the neighbourhood of Philadelphia, which he presented to the American Philo- sophical Society, accompanied with a description and figure of the animal; but under what specific name does not appear, for Ihave consulted the records of the society, and they simply state, that a paper of this kind was read by Dr. Barton, and referred to a committee, consisting of Latrobe and others. Now it is possible that Latrobe, or perhaps Dr. Barton himself, might have given some account of the animal to Rafinesque, or that he (Rafinesque) might have been present at the reading of the paper, for certain it is that he sent a good description to Daudin, who published it in his work under the specific name it now bears, which was probably given by Barton, and communicated through Rafinesque to Daudin, for the latter gives the specific name as one imposed by Dr. Barton. Six years after, Barton published his account of the same animal in the sixth volume of the ‘Transactions of the American Philosophical Society, under the name Lacerta (Salamandra) sub-violacea, from its colour. It would appear then that the specific name Venenosa is the appropriate one, at least so far as regards priority, as it was first published by Daudin, with a reference to Barton, who had no right to change a specific name, even though imposed by himself, after it had been once published to the scientific world. Vor. V.—10 Salamandra fasciata Ore Store BY TS QULELe PS Duval Lith, Pleat” 23 SALAMANDRA FASCIATA.— Green. Plate XXTI. Cuaracrers. Head short, broad; snout large and rounded; body and tail above palest ash-colour, with irregular transverse bluish-black blotches on the back, and bars on the tail; throat and abdomen indigo-blue, tinged with purple; tail length of body, and compressed laterally. Synonymes. Salamandra fasciata, Green, Jour. Acad. Nat. Scien. Philad., vol. i. p. 350. Salamandra fasciata, Harlan, Med. and Phys. Res., p. 94. Descrirtion. The head is large, short, broad, thick, and rounded in front. The tongue is sub-oval, elongated, thin at the margins, attached behind, and movable at all other margins, less so in front. The palate is armed with a trans- verse series of minute teeth, arranged in three groups; the two external are behind the posterior nares; the central and larger group occupies transversely the middle of the palate. The nostrils are latero-superior, and nearer the snout than the orbit. The eyes are very prominent, with the pupil black and the iris of darkest grey. The neck is but slightly contracted, with a well marked transverse cutaneous fold at the throat. The body is sub-cylindrical, a little compressed, and covered with a smooth skin. The tail is thick, rounded on its superior and inferior margins, though compressed laterally. The anterior extremities are short and rather stout, with four fingers, distinct; i SALAMANDRA FASCIATA. the posterior are nearly twice the size of the anterior, and have five toes, the third and fourth longest. Cotour. The head is palest ash-colour above, with two or three bluish-black blotches, the largest of which is about the occiput; the upper jaw is bluish-black, and the lower is of similar colour, but of lighter tint. The body is also of palest ash-colour above, marked with irregular blotches of bluish-black, placed transversely; the abdomen is uniform indigo-blue, with a tinge of purple; the tail is coloured like the back, but has transverse bars instead of blotches. Dimensions. Length of head, 5 lines; of body to vent, 1 inch 7 lines; of tail, 1 inch 4 lines: total length, 3 inches 4 lines. Tiasirs. This is another true Salamander, and one of the most beautiful of the genus. Ihave kept them alive for many months in a small box filled with meadow moss, (Sphagnum,) which was occasionally moistened; and it was observed that. they always chose the superior surface of the moss for their resting place, while their fellow prisoner, a Salamandra venenosa, was always found deeply buried. GeocrapnicaL Distrisution. Professor Green first observed this animal in New Jersey; Professor Hitchcock found it in Massachusetts, and furnished my friend Dr. Storer, of Boston, with the fine specimen from which the accompanying plate was taken; in the west it has been observed by Dr. Hildreth, near Marietta, Ohio, who sent a specimen to the Academy of Natural Sciences in Philadelphia; at the south Dr. Blanding saw it at Camden, South Carolina; I have found it near Charleston, and lately Dr. Binney observed it in Georgia. Generat Remarks. The Salamandra fasciata was first accurately described by Professor Green, of Philadelphia, who has done so much to elucidate the history of this obscure family of reptiles; and it is remarkable that so large and so beautiful an animal should so long have escaped the observation of our herpetologists. Nalamandra talpoidea Fe Duval tthe L7ad& On Store BUSS PueCE. 24s, 73 SALAMANDRA TALPOIDEA.—Holbrook. Plate XXIV. Cuaracters. Head very large; body short, thick, clumsy; tail short, thick, compressed; colour above dusky, almost black; beneath dusky, with a tinge of purple. Description. The head is very large and flattened, with the snout full and rounded. ‘The mouth is large; the tongue is of sub-rhomboidal form, smallest behind, where it is perfectly adherent; at all the other margins it is free. The palate is armed with a transverse group of minute teeth, extending across behind the posterior nares, which are large; the series is a little arched backwards in the middle, where the teeth are largest and most numerous. The nostrils are near the snout, latero-superior, and open a little upwards and backwards. The eyes are small, but prominent, with the pupil black and the iris The neck is contracted, with a well marked cutaneous fold at the throat. The body is short, thick, clumsy, rather flattened than cylindrical, and covered with a smooth skin. The tail is short, very thick at its root, and compressed laterally throughout its whole extent. The anterior extremities are short, thick, and stout, ending in four short fingers. The posterior extremities are still stouter in proportion, and terminate in five toes, slightly united at their roots. 74 SALAMANDRA TALPOIDEA. Corour. The whole animal above, head, body, tail, and extremities, is of a dusky uniform colour, approaching to black. ‘The throat, belly, and under surface of the tail are also dusky, but have a strong tinge of purple. Dimensions. Length of head, 5 lines; of body to vent, 1 inch 5 lines; of tail, 1 inch 3 lines: total length, 3 inches 1 line. GeocrapuicaL Disrrisution. ‘The only locality that I have at present for the Salamandra talpoidea, is the sea islands on the borders of South Carolina, where it was discovered by Dr. Burden, one of my pupils. GeneraL Remarks. The habits of this animal are not a little curious, as it burrows in the ground like a mole, where it seems constantly to dwell. It chooses light soil for its residence, and if disturbed, it will bury itself in a few seconds, and there continue its course concealed from view; but its track can often be followed by the elevation produced on the surface of the soil, similar to that seen in fields infested by moles (talpa). It is curious that this animal has the teeth and tail of a Triton, and yet has never been seen in water, but always on land. + or TRITON —Lawrenti. Genus Trrron.—Cuaracters. Palatine teeth mostly in transverse series; tongue adherent, except at its edges, never pediculated; tail compressed; fingers four; toes five, more or less palmated at their roots. Remarks. ‘The animals of this genus are entirely aquatic, and soon die if taken from their accustomed element; yet, as their respiration is carried on with lungs, they cannot breathe under water, and are, consequently, obliged to approach its surface for atmospheric air. Another remarkable feature in the character of the animals of the genus Triton, is their power of restoration of parts when mutilated, or their complete reproduction of organs destroyed. This reproductive power is so active, that the limbs of a Water Newt may be removed, and in less than one year they will be perfectly restored.* The newly formed extremities may in turn be amputated, and will in turn be replaced by others. Even the eye may be extirpated, and, in less than eighteen months, this delicate organ, with its complicated apparatus of humours and transparent media, will be perfectly reproduced.t In arranging the Tritons in two sections, it is to be understood that I speak only of those inhabiting the United States; and they all, so far as [have observed them, have the tongue more adherent than Salamanders, and never pediculated; the tail is always compressed; and the palatine teeth, with one or two exceptions, are arranged in transverse groups. * Blumenbach, Spec. Phys., p. 31. + Vid. anatomical part of this work. , - = no) “a Ye ss i a a “5 " & Triton dorsalis TI Trchard, del 77 I. Tritons with transverse and longitudinal series of palatine teeth. TRITON DORSALIS.—Harlan. Plate XXV. Cuaracters. Head and body above olive-brown, with a tinge of green; on each side of the mesial line is a row of bright vermilion circular spots; throat and abdomen orange, studded with small black dots; tail longer than the head, neck, and trunk; greatly compressed laterally throughout its whole extent. Synonyms. Salamandra dorsalis, Harlan, Jour. Acad. Nat. Scien. Philad., vol. vi. p. 101. Descrirtion. The head is short, broad behind, and rather pointed at the snout. The mouth is large; the tongue is broad, flat, entire, adherent in all parts, except at its lateral and anterior margins. The nostrils are anterior; the eyes are full and prominent, the pupil black, the iris flame-colour; the neck and body are the same size as the head, and cylindrical in form, with a transverse fold at the throat. The anterior extremities are small and delicate, and terminate in four small fingers; the posterior extremities have more than twice the bulk of the anterior, and terminate in five short flexible toes, united at their roots. The tail is thick at the root, but soon becomes compressed at the sides throughout its whole extent. Vou. V.—11 78 TRITON DORSALIS. Cotour. The whole superior surface of the Triton dorsalis, head, neck, and body, as well as the tail and extremities, is of an olive-brown colour, with often a tinge of green, and numerous small dots of black, most abundant on the tail; on each side of the vertebral line is a row of bright or red spots, symmetrically disposed; these spots vary a good deal in size in different individuals, but their colour is almost always the same. The inferior surface of the animal, throat, abdomen and tail, as well as the anterior and posterior extremities, is orange, studded with small black dots, most numerous about the abdomen and throat. Dmensions. Leneth of head, 5 lines; length of body, 1 inch 44 lines; leneth foo) t=} y ©. of tail, 2 inches: total length, 3 inches 9 lines. Hagirs. The Triton dorsalis is eminently aquatic in its habits; I have never heard of its being found on land, and indeed, when taken from its native element, its progression is difficult, its skin becomes dry, and it soon dies. In water it is very hardy, supporting great cold, and is torpid only during the excessive cold of winter; for I have frequently observed them under ice of an inch thickness, swimming with great vivacity. Geocrapnicat Distrisution. ‘This animal is found from one end to the other of the Atlantic States; I have seen it in Maine, Pennsylvania, and Georgia. Genera Remarks. The Triton dorsalis was first described by Dr. Harlan. Triton térins lH Richard, del PS Duvat, Lith.Pru*® 26. TRITON TIGRINUS.—Gieen. Plate XXVI. Cuaracters. Head large, snout rounded; body elongated, bluish-black, with irregular lemon-coloured blotches; tail longer than the body, greatly compressed at the sides, ancipital, and coloured like the body. SynonymeEs. Salamandra tigrina, Green, Jour. Acad. Nat. Scien. Philad., vol. v. p. 116. Salamandra tigrina, Harlan, Med. and Phys. Res. p. 93. Descrietion. The head is large, broad, flattened above and rounded in front. The mouth is large; the tongue is broad, sub-round, entire, adherent posteriorly, a little less so anteriorly, and is loose and movable only at its lateral margins. The palatine teeth are arranged transversely in three groups; one begins behind the outer margin of the posterior nares on each side, and runs for two lines inwards and backwards; between the internal extremities of these groups, but on a line a little in front, begins the largest group, which also runs transversely, but is a little arched forward in the middle of the palate. The nostrils are latero-superior, near the snout, and open upwards. The eyes are large and prominent, the pupil black, the iris golden, reticulated with brown. The neck is contracted; the chin is smooth, and the throat has a transverse strongly marked cutaneous fold. The body is robust and cylindrical; the tail is longer than the body, and compressed at the sides so as to offer a narrow margin above and below. 80 TRITON TIGRINUS. The anterior extremities are short and thick; there are four fingers, short, distinct, the middle ones longest, and nearly of the same length. The posterior extremities are larger than the anterior, and have five toes each, palmated at their roots. Cotour. The whole superior surface of the animal, head, neck, body, tail, as well as the extremities, is bluish-black above, marked with irregular spots and blotches of lemon-colour. The chin is dusky-yellow; the throat and abdomen are cinereous, with blotches of dusky-yellow; the inferior surface of the tail and extremities are clouded yellow. Dimensions. Length of head, 10 lines; of body to vent, 24 inches; of tail, 3} inches: total length, 6 inches and 7 lines. Hasirs. This animal is found on land, under rocks and stones, or under decaying vegetable matter, as leaves, Wc. in forests. GrocrapuicaL Distrisution. This species of Salamander inhabits the northern states from New Jersey to Massachusetts. Generac Remarks. The Triton tigrinus appears to be somewhat allied to the Salamandra venenosa in the general arrangement of its colours, but it is found, on closer examination, to be widely different, as may be seen in their respective descriptions, by which one will be found to be a land, and the other a water animal, RY 7 did < ie, 4 Loi : ne mi a Tay my 7 ve "7 Ue, set , hi Pitan a a ¢ ie > 2S ” , a val! ip - ae a oan one oe i mn | on Fi an rus ar se a : ; re : i alll . he . 7 | - * Set = 7m 7 7 v i “Ae nae a ee of 7) Se aD we ra OS “ae eS es io : - ahd Babel one del I Qucete 27. 81 TRITON NIGER.—Green. Plate XXVIII. Cuaracters. Body above black; abdomen purplish, with a few white spots; tail round at base, flattened and ancipital at tip. Synonrmes. Salamandra nigra, Green, Jour. Acad. Nat. Scien. Philad., vol. i. p. 352. Salamandra intermixta, Green, Maclurian Lyceum, p. 5. Salamandra picta, Harlan, Med. and Phys. Res., p. 98. Salamandra nigra, Harlan, Med. and Phys. Res., p. 97. Descrietion. The head is small, with the snout rather pointed. The mouth is of moderate size. The tongue is sub-oval, thin, broadest behind, narrow and adherent in front, loose and most movable at its posterior margin. ‘The palate is armed with a transverse group of minute teeth, and others are placed in a longitudinal direction along the mesial line. The nostrils are small and latero-superior. The eyes are prominent, with a black pupil and dusky-grey iris. The neck is slightly contracted, and has a large transverse fold at the throat. The body is stout and sub-cylindrical; the tail is thick and round at the root, but it soon becomes compressed, and is ancipital near the tip, which is pointed. The anterior extremities are short, and sustain four fingers; the posterior are much larger, and terminate in five toes, slightly united at their bases. 82 TRITON NIGER. ~ Corour. ‘The whole superior surface of the animal is black, with a slight bluish tinge. The throat and abdomen are purple. ‘The young animals are often rather brown than black, with a few amber-coloured spots on the flanks. Divensions. Length of head, 4 lines; length of body, 2 inches; length of tail, 2 inches: total length, 4 inches 4 lines. Haszirs. The Triton niger is entirely aquatic in its habits. GrocrapHicaL Distrisution. This animal inhabits the Atlantic states from lat. 43° to the Gulf of Mexico. Dr. Pickering found it near Salem, in Massachu- setts; Professor Green observed it in Pennsylvania; I have seen it in Carolina and Georgia, and have received specimens from Louisiana. GeneraL Remarks. Professor Green was the first naturalist who observed and described the Triton niger under the specific name it here bears. i Day aa ng tad Lon a Uy oe Ty i ii as aa a re a ey, D cin a war a dS. epee 7 tw We Na a ay f } no oa 4 a O y / on ; ry a iy: q a - “ e i : os 7 - } 7 a «4 a. y : Teer bn om u 7 ¢ : if yo : o ba = . a , » - i 7 : ‘hy 7 T _ , U as + ¥ - A d 7 ‘at ; iy c vy ere) (¢ : : 7 a : SS ‘Me 7 r - , ; : : 7 7 : i ae 7 ne ¥ ¥ ' 7 : 7 7 i: i oo F , i : ot + se i: - 7 r ,¢ j rt i ; . 6 - ; “ - oy a : “ _ mn ‘| 7 a : a ; a m : Pao v7 ' on ! 7 7 ' 0 i wo S } 7 - — J an i, oo Y 7. che a : = ar 7 ‘ " : al Bt eka ‘. it : oo ; ; 7 : ‘ 7 ee : : =P : 7 - oo Oy 7 Pe ; 1 a ‘ Hi i - 7 ’ il (Gig a A iv ae Diet hy i - 7 mT oa o i n a) 7 i! _ 15 : ar a : a vs rie on ae ; ~ A ye F : ie m - Tne Bo ie i : a DH A 7 a 4 : a ia Ry i : ve : mt Otay "le 4 Hl Ni yer Triton porphyritice 26 83 TRITON PORPHYRITICUS.—Gieen. Plate XXVIII. Cuaracters. Head moderate; snout obtuse; body elongated; tail length of body, compressed, and slightly carinated on the upper and lower margins of its posterior half; superior surface of the whole animal dark brown, interspersed with irregular whitish spots. SynonymeEs. Salamandra porphyritica, Green, Maclurian Lyceum, p. 3. Salamandra porphyritica, Harlan, Med. and Phys. Res., p. 98. Description. The head is rather large, with the snout obtuse and rounded. The mouth is moderate. The tongue is broad, elongated, thin, attached poste- riorly, less so anteriorly, and most movable at the lateral margins. The palate is armed with a transverse row of minute teeth, beginning on each side behind the outer margin of the posterior nares. The nostrils are latero-superior, near the snout, and open upwards and a little outwards, with a slight ridge extending from them to the anterior angle of the eye. The eyes are rather small, with a black pupil and dusky iris. The neck is contracted, and has a large transverse cutaneous fold below. The body is cylindrical and long. The tail is much compressed, carinated on the upper and lower margin of its posterior half; in length it is equal to the body. The extremities, with the fingers and toes, are but slightly developed. Cotour. The whole superior surface of the animal is brown, more or less 84 TRITON PORPHYRITICUS. dusky, interspersed with irregular whitish spots, which on the flanks are arranged in irregular longitudinal series. ‘The throat and abdomen are whitish, shaded with dusky-brown. Dimensions. Length of head, 6 lines; length of body to vent, 2 inches; length of tail beyond vent, 1 inch 11 lines: total length, 4 inches 5 lines. Hasitrs. Professor Green says he found this animal abundant in French creek, and that it does not differ in its habits from the water Salamanders in general. GeocrapnicaL Distrisution. The only known locality of the Triton porphy- riticus is the western part of Pennsylvania. GeneraL Remarks. Professor Green was the first naturalist who observed this animal, and he gave an excellent description and plate of it in the Maclurian Lyceum. Never having seen the Triton porphyriticus alive, f cannot vouch for the correctness of the colour of the accompanying plate, yet it was copied from the original of Professor Green. Triton imevens 29 85 TRITON INGENS.—Green. Plate XXIX. Cuaracters. Head large, depressed; snout full and rounded; body bluish slate-colour, with light ash-coloured sub-ovate spots; tail large, broad, much compressed; fingers four, slightly palmated at roots; toes five, slightly palmated, external toe fimbriated, as in Menopoma. F Synonyme. Salamandra ingens, Green, Jour. Acad. Nat. Scien. Philad., vol. vi. p. 254. Description. The head is very large, rounded at the snout, and flattened above. The mouth is large; the tongue is broad, circular, extensively attached, and is only slightly movable at its anterior and lateral margins. The palatine teeth are arranged in three groups transversely, a small group behind the posterior nares, with a larger group occupying the middle of the palate. The nostrils are antero-superior and very near the snout. The eyes are large and prominent, with a black pupil and dusky-grey imis. The neck is contracted, and has a large transverse fold at the throat. The body is large and sub-cylindrical. ‘The tail is stout, longer than the body, much compressed laterally, and terminates in a rounded extremity. The anterior extremities are short, thick, and sustain four fingers, slightly palmated at their roots. The posterior extremities are much larger, and termi- nate in five toes, the external of which is fimbriated on its outer margin. Vor. V.—12 86 TRITON INGENS. Cotour. The whole animal above is bluish slate-colour, marked with irregu- larly sub-ovate pale ash-coloured blotches, disposed without order. ‘The lips and throat are dark brown; the belly is slate-colour. Dimensions. Length of head, 1 inch; length of body to vent, 4 inches; length of tail, 5 inches: total length of the animal here described, 10 inches. I have seen one specimen more than 12 inches long, Hasits. I know nothing of the habits of the Triton ingens, save that it is entirely an aquatic animal. GeocrapmicaL Distrisution. ‘This reptile has as yet been observed only in our western waters. Professor Green received his first specimen from Louisiana; Professor Kirkland has since observed it in Ohio, and Professor Troost in Ten- nessee; and to him am I indebted for the accompanying plate, which was done from life. GeneraL Remarks. Professor Green was the first naturalist who observed this animal, and he describes it under the appropriate specific name ingens, as it is in fact the largest of all our Salamandroidea. 87 Trisze I. IMMUTABILIA. CHARACTERS. I. The animals of this tribe undergo no metamorphosis, but come into life with the forms they are permanently to retain. II. The body is elongated and cylindrical. III. The tail is long, round, or compressed, and sometimes ancipital. IV. The extremities vary in number; in some there are four, (Menopoma,) in others only two, (Siren.) Remarks. This tribe of reptiles embraces some of our most remarkable species, as the Siren, Lacertina, Menobranchus, Lateralis, &c. Fitzinger has again subdivided this tribe into two families, each of which includes two or more genera. Famity lL CRYPTOBRANCHOIDEA. CHARACTERS. The reptiles of this family are destitute of gills at all periods of their existence, and breathe by means of exposed spiracles or branchial orifices at the neck. wee a To ye ae i ony Fae ti ' 7 eS. 0 7 A =) : = e D4 7 : + eo. < ' ay Uae a gt 7 > rhe i Ned ¥ 7 o i] J : t | a ; ; ot : a : : | : os 7 or ao iol - ae ae a - i A ar a ae _ » : = - _ > i : _ 7 aT ae > Ri alate | an vee Pie. Bh ee l - 7 . ie f Wwe > 4 ’ ane eS = ; a ; : 7 fi 9 es en a / a i: : oa be x > Z : se) 7 2 a 4 ae a - ae + > i 4 A ost a 7 * Ph fe ; yoo ia ee - : 7 ; q > 1 Sete, 7 er a ht, . a ae ACA pe ae ay i) ee 1? 7s : 7. - any } is (ina) ie ‘ie 7 a ‘re 7 7 i 7 oe . i a ne A O57 6% : * 4, a — & 7 | i. 5) 5 a 7 D , ali i - ; ‘ek y : Dy ‘ ay Se ; \ he h ae tH i Me io _ _ és Ay * .7 re ‘ Mos on ‘a #) aw : ‘i iy yy 1 , : nu i , - es A : ae w iD 4 >| an) au : i 4 ne vs an be een , ii r ae yh — a re oe 7a) in] 7 7 1 ; 7 -~— oe ee , , Phrpe PS. Diveal, Lith, Pht Vhoi Ml. Logan, UD ginx? 89 AMPHIUM A —Garden. Genus Ampnruma.—Cnaracters. Head large; lips thick and extensive; supe- rior maxillary bone with a thick series of small teeth; palatine teeth in two longitudinal rows; inferior maxillary bone with a single series; a single spiracle at each side of the neck; body eel-shaped; extremities four, imperfectly developed. AMPHIUMA MEANS.—Garden. Plate XXX. Cuaracters. Head large, sub-oval; snout depressed and rounded; neck con- tracted, with a transverse fold at the throat; body eel-shaped, and of a bluish- black colour, tinged with violet; anterior extremities very small, with two fingers; posterior still smaller, with two toes. Synonymes. Amphiuma means, Garden, Smith’s Correspond. of Linneus, vol. i. p. 599. Amphiuma means, Harlan, Med. and Phys. Res., p. 85. Chrysodonta larveeformis, Mitchell, Med. Record., No. 19. Congo Snake, Vulgo. Description. The head is very large, elongated, sub-oval, and flattened above, especially near the snout, which is full and rounded. The mouth is large, extend- ing to one-half the length of the head, and is provided with rather thick movable 90 AMPHIUMA MEANS. lips. The tongue is broad, oblong, flat, smallest before, attached posteriorly, and is only free at its anterior and lateral margins for about two lines. The upper jaw is armed with a thick series of minute teeth, that are all arched a little backwards; the lower jaw has also a single row, but less numerous. The palatine teeth are arranged in two rows, which begin near the superior maxillary series in front, run along the palate, separating more and more from each other, and terminate behind the inner margin of the posterior nares. The nostrils are small and anterior, being placed at the very margin of the upper lip, and are near together. The eyes are distant from the snout, superior, very small, and covered with a production of the cuticle; a slightly depressed line runs from the eyes towards the nostrils, and marks the position of some minute glands. The neck is contracted, with a transverse fold at the throat, and a single spiracle or branchial orifice at each side, which is partially covered in front by a thin fold of skin. The body is eel-shaped; and the vent appears like a longitu- dinal fissure just behind the posterior extremities. The tail is very long, round near the root, compressed laterally towards the tip. The extremities are but imperfectly developed, and seem but little larger in the old than in the young animal. The anterior are very short, small, placed near the spiracle, and terminate in two small fingers. The posterior are placed before and a little on the sides of the vent, and sustain the same number of toes. Corour. The whole superior surface of the animal is deep bluish-black, tinged with violet; the lips and throat are rather lighter in colour, and the belly is dark purple. Dimensions. Length of head, 2 inches; length of body, 20 inches; of tail beyond the vent, 6 inches: total length, 28 inches. AMPHIUMA MEANS. 9] Hasirs. The Amphiuma means lives in muddy waters or in mud. Harlan says they have been found at Pensacola, three feet or more deep in mud, of the consistence of mortar, in which they burrowed like earth-worms. They inhabit the ditches of our rice-fields, and feed on small fish and various fresh-water shells, as Unio, &c.; beetles and other insects have also been found in their stomachs. Sometimes like eels they are found on dry land, but for what purpose they approach it is unknown. GeocrapuicaL Disrrisution. North Carolina must, for the present, be con- sidered as the northern limit of this animal, and it is even very rare in that state. In South Carolina it is more common, but is only abundant in some districts, as about Combahee river. ‘The Amphiuma means is also found in the Floridas, Alabama, and Mississippi, and is said to be abundant in Louisiana. Generat Remarks. ‘This singular reptile was made known to Linneus by Dr. Garden of Charleston, South Carolina, so often mentioned in the progress of this work, but at too late a period to allow him to give it a place in any of the editions of the Systema Nature published during his life time. Garden, in his letter to Linneus,* describing this reptile, calls it “an unknown ’ and further he says, “at first sight I suspected animal, the only one I ever saw;’ it to be another species of Siren, but upon nearer examination I found so many differences, that there proves to be no relationship between them.” Two years subsequent to this, I find Dr. Garden, in a letter to Mr. Ellis, of London, for the first time calls this animal “Amphiuma means.” As Linnexus never published any account of this animal, Garden’s description was of course locked up in manuscript, and thus our animal remained unknown to other naturalists for just fifty years from the time of its discovery. In 1821, Sir James Edward Smith, the eminent botanist, published the “Correspondence * Smith’s Correspondence of Linnzus, vol. i. p. 333. t Ibid. vol. i. p. 599. 92 AMPHIUMA MEANS. ~ of Linneeus with other Naturalists,” in which is contained the letter of Garden describing the Amphiuma means. The next account, so far as I know, of our animal, may be seen in the work of Rusconi, an Italian naturalist, “Amours des Salamandres Aquatiques,” and is but an extract of a letter from Dr. Pockels, of Brunswick. Pockels observed it in the Hunterian Museum, and supposed it to be the Siren lacertina in its perfect state,* and as such sent a description and drawing of it to Rusconi, which agree perfectly with the Amphiuma means, and not at all with the Siren lacertina. It must be remembered, that most naturalists of that period, considered the Siren lacertina as the larva of some large and unknown Salamander. Dr. Harlan, in the third volume of the Journal of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia, published some interesting remarks on the anatomy of the Amphiuma means, and says that he never saw the slightest appearance of gills even in specimens that did not exceed three inches in length. To Cuvier we are, however, indebted for the best account of the anatomy of this animal, and he clearly proves that it cannot be the Siren lacertina in any stage of development whatever, its organization is so entirely dissimilar. The Amphiuma means is known to the negroes with us under the name of Congo Snake, and is regarded, without the slightest appearance of truth, as exceedingly venomous. * Pai découvert un fait selon moi tres-intéressant; j’ai vu dans le Muséum Hunterien une Siréne lacertina avec les rudiments des pieds de derriere, &c. &c. Rusconi, loc. cit., p. 11. 7 : : > Jo 7 a oe od aU a EY Gest mile mur vay - s ‘ A? Tg sh oa ve 7 ; ina rer if a i ¢ be 2 a u ; i i 6 Ve ; * ae aT a 7 Mi - a para - " LS : Jabs th py oe of * ien ‘a Lad i“ ai are eae ail Itty Poe = ‘ " iy Aimphitma Iridactyla. Si. 24 AMPHIUMA TRIDACTYLUM.—Cwvier. Plate XXXII. Cuaracters. Anterior extremities with three fingers; posterior with three toes. Synonymes. Amphiuma tridactylum, Cuvier, Mem. du Mus. d’Hist. Nat., tom, xiv. p. 17. Amphiuma tridactylum, Harlan, Med. and Phys. Res., p. 86. Description. The description of the Amphiuma means will apply in almost all respects to the species with three toes. Its general form is the same; its length is twenty times its diameter; the length of its head is nearly one-fourteenth of the body; the tail constitutes exactly one-fourth. In a word, in order to dis- tinguish them, it is necessary to confine our attention to the extremities, when we observe that the hands and feet are divided each into three toes, perfectly distinct, which constitutes the only visible external character.” Hasirs. I am unacquainted with the habits of the Amphiuma tridactylum, but suppose them to be similar to those of the Amphiuma means. Grocrapnicat Distrizution. This reptile is found in Louisiana, from which state Cuvier received his first specimen. They also inhabit Mississippi and Arkansas, as Dr. Pitcher observed them in Neorho river, and presented the _ Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia with a fine specimen procured near Fort Gibson. Genera Remarks. It is to Cuvier that we are indebted for the description of this animal. Ver. %—13 > e Menopoma Alleghanensis TR Peal prrsxt P.S Duval, Lith Phu* MENOPOM A .Harlan. oe Genus Menoroma.—Cuaracters. Head large, flat; upper jaw with two con- centric series of minute teeth; inner series less extensive and terminating before posterior nares; lower jaw with a single series; single spiracle on each side; extremities four; fingers four; toes five, all short and palmated. MENOPOMA ALLEGHANIENSIS.—Latreille. Plate XXXII. Cuaracrers. Head very large, broad, flat; mouth large, with thick lips; two series of teeth in the upper, and a single series in the lower jaw; body short, pale cinereous, with dusky blotches; extremities short; fingers and toes short, more or less palmated. Synonymes. Salamandra Alleghaniensis, La¢reid/e, Hist. Nat. Rept., tom. ii. p. 253, pl. 1. Salamandra Alleghaniensis, Dawdin, Hist. Nat. des Rept., tom. viii. p. 231. Molge gigantea, Merrem, Versuch eines Syst. der Amphib. Salamandra gigantea, Barton. Abranchus Alleghaniensis, Harlan, Lyc. Nat. Hist. N. Y., vol. i. p. 233, pl. 17. Menopoma Alleghaniensis, Harlan, Med. and Phys. Res., p. 87. Hellbender, Vulgo. Description. The head is large, flat, and broad, with the snout full and rounded. The mouth is large, and covered with thick fleshy lips. ‘The tongue 96 MENOPOMA ALLEGHANIENSIS. thin, broad, flat, rounded in front, attached behind and below, free and movable only at its anterior and lateral margins. The superior maxillary teeth are arranged in two concentric series, of which the internal are most prominent, but are less numerous as they terminate before and on the outer side of the posterior nares. The nostrils are anterior and very small. The eyes are very minute and black. The neck is contracted, with a single spiracle or bronchial opening on each side, but there is no cutaneous fold at the throat. The body is stout, thick, sub- cylindrical, and the vent appears a circular orifice, with a plaited margin, unlike the longitudinal fissure of the Salamanders. The tail is large, much compressed laterally, broader below, with a rayless fin along its whole superior border, and is ancipital only for an inch or two from its tip. The anterior extremities are short, thick, and fimbriated throughout their whole external border; there are four fingers, short, flattened, without nails, and palmated at their roots. ‘The posterior extremities are also short, thick, and still more broadly fimbriated on their posterior border; there are five toes, palmated, the two internal have the web least extensive. Cotour. This animal I have never seen alive, but Dr. De Kay represents it as pale slate-colour, mottled with dusky; and from his plate was the accompanying figure coloured. Dimensions. Length of head, 14 inches; length of body, 9 inches; length of tail 43 inches: total length, 15 inches. Hasrrs. The Menopoma Alleghaniensis lives entirely in water. It is car- nivorous and very voracious, feeding on fish, worms, and shell-fish. GrocrapuicaL Distrisution. The Menopoma Alleghaniensis is found in the # MENOPOMA ALLEGHANIENSIS. 97 » Alleghany river and its tributaries, and doubtless inhabits many of the branches of the Ohio and Mississippi rivers. ad : ; Generat Remarks. This reptile was first described by Latreille from a fine specimen procured by Michaux, the botanist, in Virginia, among the Alleghany of “ _ Mountains. To Dr. Harlan, however, we are indebted for an excellent description of the anatomy of this animal, and he first recognised the impossibility of placing it among the Salamanders, and established for it a new genus, Menopoma. o tp Ph ras oe Y a Bra, . Maly gl cae - i . a a See eal nah hist ha att The | ame : 7 La ‘ : scien P ee vi Bini oo ye yh : a by aa ny 1 ' r a by -, arnt Hid i. a ia of Pe uf ee a : i a | a mat aes tux? pe T) Uaed Th . eae y ‘i : aa | 0) a by if