by Shaila Palamand, PWLTMN Member

Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported (CC BY-SA 3.0)
For many centuries, salamanders were regarded as mystical and mysterious creatures. Greek philosopher Aristotle described the salamander as having a “mastery of fire”, believing it to be impervious to fire and even able to extinguish flames, while his successor Theophrastus called the salamander “a lizard whose emergence is a sign of rain.” Although neither of these gentlemen was correct, the name “salamándra” (loosely translated as “fire lizard” in Ancient Greek) took hold, and fanciful myths about salamanders and their alleged powers continued to circulate.
The early association with fire is said to have come from observations of salamanders emerging from logs thrown onto fire. However, those logs may have been the damp, rotting type that salamanders loved (and still love) to hibernate in. Talk about being rudely awakened! The idea of salamanders scurrying out of those logs is realistic, whereas the theory that they were born of the fire or could pass through it without getting burned was certainly not.
Some credit should be given to Theophrastus, who pointed out the relationship between the appearance of salamanders and rain. There is indeed a correlation in these events (and we know now that this is related to salamanders’ breeding behavior). But the flaw in Theophrastus’s statement is that he characterized salamanders as lizards, whereas they are actually amphibians.
Other fantastic yet faulty beliefs that persisted over the years include salamanders’ alleged toxicity – for example, the claim that they could poison an entire fruit tree by simply climbing it – and on the other hand, their aphrodisiac qualities and effectiveness as an ingredient in “love potions.”
The true story about salamanders:
Salamanders are part of the amphibian class, along with frogs, toads, newts and Caecilians. There are over 400 salamander species worldwide, and over 20 of them live in Texas. At least 5 species occur right here in the east Texas Pineywoods, but due to their small size and nocturnal nature, they aren’t easy to spot.
Like other amphibians, salamanders need to keep their skin moist to survive. However, not all of them live in the water; some live on land. Terrestrial salamanders are similar to their aquatic counterparts but do have some key differences in appearance and behavior. For example, aquatic salamanders have longer, flatter tails that move side to side (like a fish) to help them swim, and they use gills to breathe. On the other hand, terrestrial salamanders breathe through their skin or lungs, and some have special pads on their toes to help them climb trees and other structures.
Both salamander types utilize “vernal pools” – seasonal pools of water created by late winter and early spring rains – for their breeding grounds. The temporary nature of these pools makes them a safe place to lay eggs (or in the case of just a few salamander species, live offspring), since fish and other aquatic predators can’t survive in them. The first warm rains of the season trigger the migration of salamanders to vernal pools, making them more visible during this time – as Theophrastus noticed so long ago.
Outside of breeding season, salamanders spend their time in cool, damp places such as under rocks and logs, among leaf litter, and even underground.
They are not fire-retardant, nor are they the best ingredient for love potions, but salamanders are still special:
- Fossil evidence shows that salamanders have been on Earth for over 300 million years. They were here before the dinosaurs!
- Salamanders play an important role in the ecosystem, not only serving as a predator of mosquitos, but also devouring large quantities of other invertebrates that generate carbon emissions through their own consumption of leaf litter.
- Most salamanders have the ability to regenerate body parts – not just tails, but other limbs, organs, and even brain tissue.
- Since they spend a good deal of time in water and many breathe through their skin, they are highly susceptible to pollution and toxins in the environment and are typically impacted more quickly than birds and small mammals. This makes them an important “indicator species” – that is, a sign of environmental health.
- Salamanders are some of the coolest looking critters around – they come in a variety of colors and patterns like stripes, spots, and splotches.
Here are five salamander species known to live in the Pineywoods of east Texas:

Eastern tiger salamander (Ambystoma tigrinum)
“Eastern Tiger Salamander (Ambystoma tigrinum) (39586153724)” by Peter Paplanus from St. Louis, Missouri is licensed under CC BY 2.0.
Marbled salamander (Ambystoma opacum)
“Marbled Salamander (Ambystoma opacum)” by Seánín Óg is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.


Mole salamander (Ambystoma talpoideum)
“Ambystoma talpoideum: Mole Salamander” by Todd W Pierson is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0.
Spotted salamander (Ambystoma maculatum)
“Spotted Salamander (Ambystoma maculatum)” by Seánín Óg is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.


Small-mouth salamander (Ambystoma texanum)
“Ambystoma texanum (Small-mouthed Salamander)” by Andrew Hoffman is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.
Learn more about these wonderful creatures:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cultural_depictions_of_salamanders
https://handwiki.org/wiki/Biology:Salamanders_in_folklore
https://nationalzoo.si.edu/animals/news/featured-creature-salamander
https://sustainability.colostate.edu/humannature/toadally-awesome-the-hidden-benefits-of-amphibians/
https://issuu.com/texaswildlifeassociation/docs/2022-5-may_texas_wildlife/s/15589637