Recent rains have dampened the soil enough to bring slender salamanders up to the surface from their moist hiding places. After spending the past 7 months or so underground, they are now out and about looking for food and love. Weather conditions have been perfect, so they are plentiful and easy to find. Over the past 5 years I have only identified one species of this tiny amphibian in the garden – Black-bellied slender salamander, a California endemic.
