Newt, a common salamander, represented by several distinct species, abundant in quiet waters of the United States and Europe. It is also called eft and triton. The common newt of the eastern United States (Diemictylus) is about three and one half inches long and is shaped like a slender lizard. It varies in color, but is commonly pale greenish above and pale yellowish below with small black specks. A variety of the common water-newt is reddish with red spots, and is found in damp places in the woods. The newts feed on insects, larvæ, snails and the like. One in California reaches a length of six inches. See Gage’s Life-History of the Vermillion-Spotted Newt in the Amer. Naturalist, December, 1891.
