The Spotted Salamander

Look who we found when we were stacking winter firewood a couple days ago. 

The bottom layers of the woodpile had sat on the ground for the past year and it had to be re-stacked... When I lifted a fairly big piece, there he was all curled up under a concave section of it.  It was damp and cool there,  just what he liked.

He was very well fed too from the look of him.

  There were so many earthworms, grubs and slugs hiding under there, it was a Salamander's paradise.

They can live up to 20 years.

His skin seemed very thin and delicate, bluish-black and moist.. with two stripes of asymmetrically placed vibrant yellow spots. 

 His eyes were big... better to see in the dark.

He had 4 little toes on his feet and was about 7"-8" long from nose to tip of his tail, which he  kept slightly curled. 

 He was such a gentle little thing.

We didn't keep him out of his moist environment for very long... just time enough to take these pictures... 

then sat him down by the woodpile again, out behind the house...he quickly climbed back into a new hiding spot.  

He was really quite striking.

and we felt very lucky to see him up close and hold him in our hands.

...Max Ackerson took all the photographs.... That's me in the work gloves....
 from up on the bluff at Desideratum Art Studios overlooking St. Martins and the Bay of Fundy.