Close Encounter Of The Salamander Kind

CLOSE ENCOUNTER

Of The Salamander Kind

by Jean Eisenmann | photo courtesy of Jean Eisenmann

Last week my husband and I had a taste of Texas. It wasn’t a culinary event, but a face-to- face encounter with a Central Texas Salamander. Not the vivid green gecko with big brown eyes and endearing British accent, but the slimy, flesh-colored creature that looks like a large gummy worm. My new candy-of-choice is Skittles.

If you live in Texas, odds are you’ve Salamanders are nocturnal, so I felt been exposed to the same incident. comfortable using my office in the In warm months salamanders are daytime. For a week, when darkness everywhere, lurking around windows fell I closed off the room and stuffed and garage doors, waiting for the a bath towel under the door to keep it chance to become home dwellers. from touring the house, using our We like to call them geckos because it bathrooms and raiding the refrigerator. sounds cute, and again, it relates to the That became routine, as well as my insurance spokes-critter. In truth, daytime habit of darting my head all the two are very different: Geckos around the room to ensure I was working are lizards and in a salamander-free salamanders are amphibians. That concludes my lesson for today. Pop quiz next Geckos are lizards and salamanders are amphibians. That concludes my lesson for today. zone. Van was kind enough to point out that I had adopted the very head-darting mannerism of my nemesis! I think that triggered something issue. One evening Pop quiz next issue. (besides a headache), I walked into my for my repulsion turned home office, turned on the light, and there to compassion for the beast. Sort of. He on the wall, up-close-and-personal, was might even have squatter’s rights by now. a salamander. I judged it to be about 4 ft. Then I named him...wait for it...SAL. Not long, a veritable king of salamanders. But too many creative juices needed to flow Van, my husband, said it was more like 3 for that one. There are subtle ways to inches long and perhaps just on the king’s distinguish males from females, but I’ll let royal court. you look that up yourself. One night we fell asleep early and I neglected to cordon off my office. I awoke at 3 a.m., stumbled to the kitchen and there was Sal, on a wall off the kitchen. My first thought was that he must have used the guest bathroom and raided the refrigerator. My next thought was that he needs to return to the great outdoors!

Van was in REM stage of sleep and didn’t even move when I nudged him. You’ve heard of stories where a human being lifts an automobile off the ground to save their child’s life? I moved a 170-lb. king mattress off the bed with him in it. If you ever need a bouncer....

Trap in hand (plastic cup), the great white (haired) hunter faced his prey. At least he managed to put on undershorts first. Van, not Sal. I’ll never forget his big black eyes looking at me as the cup went down. Sal, not Van.

As my hunter gently eased Sal onto the grass in our front yard, he caught site of our two female neighbors enjoying the show. I’m glad he had the cup.

I recently read that Central Texas salamanders could be faced with extinction. Take care, Sal.