Lookie What I Found!

Look Closely...

Here is his body...


I was picking up toys in the back yard today and throwing them all on the patio so I could mow the lawn when I picked up a box the kids left out and found one of their animal figurines underneath... or so I thought! I almost THREW him! I was working so quickly just tossing things, this little dude almost met his maker as he would have inevitably been picked up, flung, and hit the side of the house as he rebounded onto the patio! He was laying there so perfect in a "S" shape, just like a platic figurine! Right when I went to pick him up I realized he was a little TOO perfect!


So... I scoop him up in a bucket to show him to the kids! They love things like that! I did a little research and he is a Yellow Spotted Salamander. They are quite common though you never see them because they often live in burrows and only come out a night. But they make really easy to care for pets and most of the ones you find in the pet store are found in the wild. So, he would adapt well to being a pet. We were thinking of getting a fish tank for the boys room, but I was against it because... we have a ton of fish! But this guy is even easier to take care of and just as fun to look at! He is fascinating! I did not get a good picture of him because I did not want to traumatize him after he spent most of his evening in a bucket. But his spots are more Gold than Yellow. They are metallic looking and shimmery! But I just left him in peace with a few worms we dug up for him!


He has a bad eye. It is shrunken and does not open all the way, so I would love to call him Captain or Matey. I am going to ask the kids in the morning. But for now they went to bed really excited about their new pet. I hope they are not too disapointed because they can not pick him up or play with him. Their skin absorbes moisture, so you can pass your human ickiness to him if you handle him too much. But, like a fish, he is fun to watch and to have around, so I think they will appreciate that. We will see how he does. If he does not seem to be doing well and eating we will send him back outside... just somewhere that does not include a backyard with a dog that would swallow him whole like mine!


I will get a better picture of him later. But for now... here is a picture of what he looks like outside the grass! Just one eye is shrunken and inset! He is like Popeye!