Nathan found this "Mr. Slimey Lizard" in the yard today, between our house and the forest, in the forest is a stream that drains into East Devils Lake.
We’ve been trying to do Saxon 7/6 today – but life keeps happening. 

• A trip to the beach
• a car accident on the way to the beach
• lunch with dad
• the prospect of meeting a homeschool family
• and now Mr. Slimey Lizard.

So – it is another day – when we don’t have time to “school” because life is just too exciting.

We looked up Amphibians – Salamanders in our Reader’s Digest North American Wildlife.

We narrowed our search to an Ensatina Salamander or a Pacific Newt.

Looking online did not lead us closer to a decision.

For now, I’m going with Pacific Newt, as when we measured Mr. Slimey Lizard, he came out over 8 inches long, and the Ensatina Salamander only measures up to 3 and a half inches.

The online sources told us that they like to burrow in mossy areas, eating 1-2 worms 2-3 times a week. They secrete a white liquid when they are scared, which we enjoyed seeing. 🙂 We will keep him inside for a few days and then place him back in the forest, from which he likely crawled.

Here are a few pics:

From page 167 of Reader’s Digest North American Wildlife:

When attacked by a bird, snake, or other predator, a Pacific newt lifts its head and tail and displays the bright warning colors of its underside. If the predator ignores this warning and puts the newt into its mouth, it receives a further check; the “warts” on the salamander’s skin are clumps of glands that give off an irrating secretion. Pacific Newts, unlike eastern ones, do not go thorugh a land dwelling eft stage.
Unschooling Homeschool at its finest. 🙂
Both boys thought God was Good to let them capture/discover a species that is very rare – on a day when meeting a new homeschool family.  Jon says – God is Awesome. I quite agree.