Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume XIV.djvu/582

 558 SALAMANDER SALAMIS ef remaining unharmed in fire, to test which many have been cruelly destroyed ; this ncrid secretion seems to be poisonous to some of the lower animals, and has caused their bite and even their touch to be regarded as venomous. They rarely exceed 6J in. in total length. Some of the tritons are essentially terrestrial in their habits. Among the North Ameri- can species may be mentioned, in the genus pseudotriton (Tschudi), the red-spotted sala- mander (P. ruber, Tsch. ; S. rubra, Daudin), 4 to in. long, red above with many small, black points, sides red and abdomen orange red, both unspo'tted ; it is very common under rocks and fallen trees, and preys on insects ; it inhabits the Atlantic states from Massachu- setts to Florida ; it is handsome, and the same as the 8. maculata (Green). In this species the body is very short, and the tail is equal to or less than the body. The blue-spotted sala- mander (8. glutinosa, Green ; plethodon, Tsch.) is about 7 in. long, bluish black above, with small white spots on back and tail and larger ones of the same color on the flanks ; the tail is nearly twice the length of the body. This is common from Massachusetts to the gulf of Mexico, living in preference under fallen trees ; the specific name was derived from the great quantity of glutinous matter suddenly given off from the skin. The red-backed salamander (8. erythronola, Green ; of the same genus of Tschudi) is about 3 in. long, with a reddish brown band from the snout to the end of the tail, the sides yellowish brown, and abdomen whitish ; tail shorter than the body, and sepa- rated with great facility by the animal when seized by it, a faculty possessed by many of the family. It is very handsome and common, very agile, found under stones and dead trees with snails (helix) from the Lake Superior copper region to Pennsylvania; the eggs are deposited in packets under damp stones. The long-tailed salamander (8. longicauda. Green; spelerpes, Raf.) is about 6 in. long, of which the tail is more than half; the body is lemon yellow above with numerous small irregular black spots, tail with transverse black bands, and lower parts yellowish white; its habits are more aquatic than in most land salaman- ders; it is found from northern New York to Kentucky. The symmetrical salamander (S. symmetrica, Harlan; notopthalmut miniatut, Raf.) is about 4 in. long, brownish red above, with a row of symmetrically arranged deep red spots on eaeh side; lower parts orange with black dots ; tail longer than the body and com- pressed ; skin rough. It is found from Maine to Florida; in young specimens the whole back is covered with minute black dots, and the sides have fewer spots. The violet sala- mander (8. subviolacea, Bart. ; amblyttoma, Tsch.) is about 6 in. long, body and tail above bluish black with a row of round or oval yel- low spots on each side, the under surface of the same color tinged with purple ; it passes most of its time in moist places, and is found f from Maine to South Carolina. In the species belonging to the last two genera of Ratinesque and Tschudi, there are no sphenoidal teeth, fend the carpus and tarsus are ossified in the adults, and the tongue rudimentary in the former and large and fleshy in the latter ; in the other subgenera sphenoidal teeth are some- times present, and the tongue is generally pro- tractile. Other genera and several other spe- cies of American salamanders are described by Baird in the above mentioned journal, in vol. x. of the Pacific railroad reports, and in vol. ii. of the Mexican boundary survey. They are all not only harmless, offering no resis- tance when captured, but are positively bene- ficial from the great numbers of noxious in- sects and larvae which they devour. The com- mon salamander of Europe (S. maculata, Mer- rem) is black with more or less large yellow spots. It is found in central Europe, and in Common European Salamander (Salamandra maculata). the mountainous parts of S. Europe, in cool and moist places, and feeds on insects, worms, and small mollusks ; it attains a length of 7 or 8 in. ; it is viviparous, and produces 20 to 30 young at a birth. SALAMIS (now Kuluri), an island of Greece, in the gulf of /Egina, of very irregular form, lying near Attica, from which it is separated by a narrow channel, and 10 m. "W. of Athens; greatest length about 10 m., average width about 3 m. ; area, about 80 sq. m ; pop. 5,000. One small stream flows into the sea on the S. W. coast. The chief modern town is Euluri, on the W. shore, at the head of the bay of the same name. The island is hilly, and mostly barren, but produces some olives, vines, and cotton. On the E. shore are the ruins of the ancient city of Salamis. Salamis is said to have been made a kingdom by Telamon, father of Ajax. It continued independent till 620 B. C., when its possession was disputed by Attica and Megaris, and finally it became one of the Attic demi. It was celebrated as the birth- place of Solon and Euripides, but most of all for the great naval victory gained by the Greeks under Themistocles over the fleet of