Zeltus

The rain has brought out the salamanders in the forests. Yet another reminder as to why we own a house in France! :grin: Not native to the UK, they are slightly startling when first seen by us Brits. The ones around here are bright yellow and spotted, although there is a fair amount of variation around Europe (everything from pure black, to bars rather than spots and orange rather than yellow) Quite common (everything is here, it seems) they are not that often seen because they prefer to be mobile during the dusk and night time

Regrettably, the best chance of seeing one is probably when a car has run it over – like frogs and toads, they don’t hurry across nice warm tarmac.

I didn’t try to handle the one I spotted – nor did I let the dogs eat it! Their warning colours are there for a reason – the skin exudes a toxic substance that I prefer not to get on me. Although I am pretty confident that they are not that poisonous that they can’t be handled briefly. But why disturb the creature any more than I have to? I found mine by brushing the ground litter away with a stick – something I always do in the hope of finding some edible mushrooms – alas, after all this time, I never have. But the salamander was a much appreciated consolation prize.

Like the picture of the dormouse, I “borrowed” this photo from Google Images. I am ashamed to say I failed to carry a camera around with me yesterday – s’always the way, the one day you need a tool, it’s not to hand.

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