We’ve had this house for 27 years, but it was only last year that we
discovered this extraordinary and vibrantly coloured creature. Fair enough, we
were there, under the winter snows or the summer sun, and we crossed many
storms; though never before has mister… or miss… salamander honoured us with
its presence.
Salamandra salamandra needs humidity, though doesn’t live in water –
indeed she would drown from lack of knowing how to swim. Only the larvae (25-35mm)
are laid underwater and will develop there for 3 to 6 months depending on the
ambient temperature, an increase of which speeds up the process. Their unique
markings only appear soon before they leave their waters. Then, they live their
lives on solid ground, sheltering during the day in humid cavities. The
vibrancy of their colour comes both from the ground (the yellow loess makes it
more intense, and the peat tones it down) and the temperature. Prolonged heat
or drought weakens the animal who then becomes paler due to its dryness. Its
skin plays an important part in the salamander’s breathing, and only works best
in a humid environment.
Just behind its eyes, you can see the parotoid glands, a characteristic
for this species. To protect itself from enemies, the salamander secretes a
poison from these glands, and others on its back. If need be, it can “spray”
its poison up to a meter away. An alkaloid, this substance can burn a human –
but can have more serious consequences on an already weakened system (breathing
disorders, nausea, vomiting).
More
importantly, these secretions inhibit bacterial and fungal growth on its skin.
Much research has been carried out on these small creatures as they can re-grow
certain body parts after amputation.
Were they playing mother and father, or brother and sister ? Mystery. I
think that this is more of a game than mating as during the latter, the male
slides under the female and wraps his front legs around her. With her cloaca,
the female then absorbs a small package of sperm that the male leaves on the
ground from his cloaca. The female can keep the seed for some years, allowing
her to create new generations of offspring over time without needing another sexual
partner.
In any case, they gave us a good show, and seeing as it’s a rather slow
creature, we could watch for a good while. They must like the patio because we’ve
had two strong rainfalls, and both times we’ve spotted some on one side or the
other of the house.
To observe them “playing” or walking “prehistorically”, watch the video
here. 32 seconds of pure marvel ! (PS –
put the address in the http bar)
http://s1268.photobucket.com/albums/jj573/gambiepascaletmoi/Salamandre/?action=view¤t=P1240388.mp4
