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     The Common Newt

 

Common NewtNo longer common at all, the Common, or Smooth, Newt slithers through the water more like a snake than a fish, hiding in the sludge, the side of a plant pot, under a stone, or tucked inside a crack.  However, they will become surprisingly tame, and, as my photograph shows, may be tempted to pose for the camera with a few blood or tubifex worms.  Given time, they will appear on cue for regular feeds at the poolside - but don't put your offerings in the pond itself, as they will taint the water if left uneaten.Common newt - vertical climb!  

Surprisingly nimble, this newt  is scaling a vertical wall with speed and ease, but even so, in the shadow of a possible enemy, they will usually choose to remain statue-still rather than run.

Although the newt follows a similar pattern of growth to toads and frogs, the eggs are laid singly, wrapped in a leaf.  The tadpoles are speckled, and are a paler brown than frog tadpoles.  They have a newt-like shape and movement, swimming in their snake-like fashion.  The newt tadpole seems to be more intelligent than frogs or toads, it will spend much of it's time hidden in water plants and roots, clinging with the tiny clawed feet that quickly develop.  It swims for a purpose - usually to pounce on a smaller water insect - rather than waggling it's tail and dancing around in the haphazard way of frog tadpoles.  It is not as strong as other types of tadpole, the tiny skeleton going through the length of the body and tail is easily damaged.  However, the newt is a keen and quick predator from its youngest days, feeding on live food, not algae, and is far more dependant upon it's wits to survive.    

The newt does not undergo such a vast change as frogs and toads.  It begins life with three sets of feathery gills, and these gradually reduce in size until the young newt begins to breathe air.  As it grows, the legs develop - front first, unlike frogs and toads.  Many will not develop fully into newts until the following spring.

Adult newts spend much of their life on land, where they will find insects to feed on, but return to the water to breed, or during hot, dry weather - maybe to prevent premature wrinkling of the skin!  They will often over-winter in the bottom mud, and are disturbed when the pond is cleaned in the late autumn.

The Palmate Newt resembles the Common Newt, but is smaller - up to three inches long.  They have less heavily spotted underparts than the Common Newt, and the male develops prominent webbing between the toes of it's hind feet during the breeding season.

The Crested Newt is, potentially, the largest British species, growing up to 17.5 cm or 7 inches in length.  It has a predominantly black body, especially when living out of water.  The belly ranges in colour from yellowish to a deep red-orange.  The males have a deep crest with a jagged edge during the breeding season.  Their tails often have white or pale lines along the sides, and glands in the skin produce an unpleasant substance which deters predators.  They tend to spend far more of their life in water than our other species.

Newt eggs The egg is shown enlarged at the top of this drawing, and the actual size is represented by the ink drawing to it's right.  Below, it can be seen how a leaf is curled around the egg, held in place against it's surface, which is sticky when newly laid.