The common newt (Salamandra salamandra) is more common than the two species of this genus that live in Slovenia and one of the 60 species on Earth that belong to the family of newts and salamanders (Salamandridae). The distinctly contrasting, black-yellow, pattern on its body warns predators of the animal's venom. We say that the common newt is aposematically colored. The distribution of bright yellow, differently shaped and sized spots scattered over the shiny black body is different in each individual. Only the large parotoid glands are yellow in all individuals. They lie on the nape behind the newt's eyes, and on them, as black spots, are clearly visible outlets of venom glands. These are present in the common newt also in two rows along the midline of the back and in one row on each side and run from head to tail.
The common newt is a creature with a flattened, broad head, clearly separated from the stocky body by the neck. It has two pairs of short, sturdy legs with thick short toes. The tail is round in cross-section and somewhat shorter than the trunk. An adult animal from the tip of the snout to the end of the tail typically measures from 11 to 20 cm, rarely more; females are usually stockier and larger than males.
The habitat of the common newt are deciduous and mixed forests with forest streams or springs. Adults live on land, but in dry weather they hide under dead tree trunks, under stumps or stones, and holes at the roots of trees or similar crevices are a welcome refuge for them. In the evening or on rainy days they roam the forest floor to search for food or a mate. They feed on animals smaller than themselves, for example earthworms, insects, and slugs.
Common newts mate on land, and the female not only lays eggs, but these develop inside her body. Then the female, after more than half a year, deposits into a pool of a forest stream several dozen larvae. These already have fully developed limbs, but they still breathe with gills. Larvae of the newt are distinguished from similar tadpoles by a bright ring around the legs right at their bodies. Until metamorphosis, when the larvae develop lungs and the gills wither, the larvae live in water, then as adults move to land.
As with other amphibians, the common newt in Slovenia is protected by the Regulation on freely living animal species! On the Red List it is listed in category O, which means that it is currently no longer endangered.
