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September 29, 2020 10:13 AM Subscribe
How do I trap a salamander?
A few days ago I saw an odd-looking mouse skitter around a corner, sort of in my peripheral vision. Yesterday my husband clearly saw a salamander in the bathroom. It escaped under the door onto the carpeted hall, and then off to who-knows-where.
Salamanders are friendly, bug-eating creatures, and I don’t want to hurt it. But I doubt that the house is a healthy environment for it. Besides which, it kind of squicks me out a little. How can I get it out of the house?
(I suspect that it came inside somehow during a hot dry spell last week. Don’t they need moisture? That bathroom is not a damp place for it to live. The shower and tub are not used.)
A few days ago I saw an odd-looking mouse skitter around a corner, sort of in my peripheral vision. Yesterday my husband clearly saw a salamander in the bathroom. It escaped under the door onto the carpeted hall, and then off to who-knows-where.
Salamanders are friendly, bug-eating creatures, and I don’t want to hurt it. But I doubt that the house is a healthy environment for it. Besides which, it kind of squicks me out a little. How can I get it out of the house?
(I suspect that it came inside somehow during a hot dry spell last week. Don’t they need moisture? That bathroom is not a damp place for it to live. The shower and tub are not used.)
Salamanders will drop their tail if they are frightened, so keep that in mind when attempting to catch one. A large jar (plastic is probably preferable) will work for catching one, or even a plastic cup. They're fascinating creatures who like dark places. Good luck!
posted by Luminiferous Ether at 11:12 AM on September 29, 2020
posted by Luminiferous Ether at 11:12 AM on September 29, 2020
I've had some luck catching frogs* by throwing a dish towel over them and carefully scooping them up. But will you find him anytime soon, that is the question.
*Very bouncy stick to walls Cuban tree frogs (we think) that jumped in through my sister's open front door (Orlando, FL).
posted by Glinn at 11:59 AM on September 29, 2020
*Very bouncy stick to walls Cuban tree frogs (we think) that jumped in through my sister's open front door (Orlando, FL).
posted by Glinn at 11:59 AM on September 29, 2020
If it's a salamander, it's hiding somewhere dark and as damp as possible; maybe in the kitchen? Or the back of a closet? It's going to be hard to find it to catch it. It will probably be underneath something, though, like a sponge or a cardboard lid. They like to tuck themselves away. I use a Tupperware/Gladware type container and put a lid over it during transport, because they can climb the walls. I usually grab them with my hand to put them in there, though--maybe the dishtowel method mentioned above would be less squicky.
If it's a lizard instead (we have both salamanders and fence lizards in our yard and they make it inside sometimes) it will also be in a hidden area but is more likely to come darting out toward you, just to be forewarned!
posted by assenav at 12:00 PM on September 29, 2020
If it's a lizard instead (we have both salamanders and fence lizards in our yard and they make it inside sometimes) it will also be in a hidden area but is more likely to come darting out toward you, just to be forewarned!
posted by assenav at 12:00 PM on September 29, 2020
Response by poster: I would like to be able to tempt it out and into something that it can’t get out of. I’ll never find it otherwise.
posted by SLC Mom at 12:49 PM on September 29, 2020
posted by SLC Mom at 12:49 PM on September 29, 2020
I have caught some by hand by herding them ( by just waving my hand in front of them to get them to run in the opposite direction) into a corner when I see them, then cupping my fingers gently around them. It's not always successful. They often as not go in a different direction than I want, and hide. The thing to bear in mind is that lizards show up where there is food. Do you have ants in your bathroom? Getting rid of bugs will probably encourage the lizards to stay away also.
Whatever you do, don't use a broom. Or throw things at it. Or try to put a water glass around it, while it is on the wall. You will likely as not end up with a dead or mangled lizard, or at least its tail, squirming around on the ground. I've seen people do dumb things like that because they are afraid of them. The lizard won't hurt you - it just wants to get away.
They are easiest to spot by leaving the room dark, waiting a while, then going in and turning the light on. Even if the lizard quickly hides, you will be able to see where it is going and maybe find a way to catch it and put it outside.
posted by Armed Only With Hubris at 1:53 PM on September 29, 2020
Whatever you do, don't use a broom. Or throw things at it. Or try to put a water glass around it, while it is on the wall. You will likely as not end up with a dead or mangled lizard, or at least its tail, squirming around on the ground. I've seen people do dumb things like that because they are afraid of them. The lizard won't hurt you - it just wants to get away.
They are easiest to spot by leaving the room dark, waiting a while, then going in and turning the light on. Even if the lizard quickly hides, you will be able to see where it is going and maybe find a way to catch it and put it outside.
posted by Armed Only With Hubris at 1:53 PM on September 29, 2020
Best answer: Seconding that you won't find salamanders except where it's very wet and food filled. Salamanders will eat just about anything wriggly small enough to fit in their mouths. Do you have a pipe leaking that you haven't noticed yet? Or if you turn on the bathroom light in the middle of the night, do you see silverfish startle? They might be eating silverfish. What's your house centipede population doing these days? If it's higher than normal, that means you've got some smaller insect that's higher than normal.
We find them under the rocks around campfire rings in the woods and under trash bins in suburban yards - damp, sheltered, a little mineral-y, and bugs. So you'd need to mimic that. I might try setting up a shallow tray with very damp not quite mud dirt and enticing hiding places. If you can get your hands on some dirt from under a rotting log that's full of little larvae, or if you have rotting veg with same, I'd add that too. Leave it where you saw it, check first thing in the morning. They're fast, so I'd probably pick up the tray and take it outside before lifting any hiding places.
But they dry out really fast - we collect them for informal surveys and we can only keep them in a viewing chamber (plastic container) for at most about ten minutes in humid woods before they start to look unhappy. You've either got a leak, or the thing died.
Another option is to consider that your house is full of critters you never see and out-of-sight-out-of-mind it. But seriously, check under your p-traps and behind your vanities and toilets and against your underground walls for water damage.
posted by arabelladragon at 2:29 PM on September 29, 2020
We find them under the rocks around campfire rings in the woods and under trash bins in suburban yards - damp, sheltered, a little mineral-y, and bugs. So you'd need to mimic that. I might try setting up a shallow tray with very damp not quite mud dirt and enticing hiding places. If you can get your hands on some dirt from under a rotting log that's full of little larvae, or if you have rotting veg with same, I'd add that too. Leave it where you saw it, check first thing in the morning. They're fast, so I'd probably pick up the tray and take it outside before lifting any hiding places.
But they dry out really fast - we collect them for informal surveys and we can only keep them in a viewing chamber (plastic container) for at most about ten minutes in humid woods before they start to look unhappy. You've either got a leak, or the thing died.
Another option is to consider that your house is full of critters you never see and out-of-sight-out-of-mind it. But seriously, check under your p-traps and behind your vanities and toilets and against your underground walls for water damage.
posted by arabelladragon at 2:29 PM on September 29, 2020
There are several scientific methods of capturing salamanders. I suggest either a tupperware pitfall trap if you can somehow swing it inside your house, or an improvised coverboard: put a wet hand towel on the bathroom floor and then place a wet piece of wood or cardboard on top. Maybe sprinkle damp soil on the towel before covering it, or even add a freshly dead fly or two as bait. Keep it damp and check every morning.
posted by scrubjay at 2:39 PM on September 29, 2020 [1 favorite]
posted by scrubjay at 2:39 PM on September 29, 2020 [1 favorite]
Once you know here it is do not use a vacuum cleaner to pick it up even if you're using an attachment with a really narrow opening. I tried that once with a mouse and it sucked the poor thing up. It seemed unharmed when we released it outside but it couldn't have been good for it.
posted by any portmanteau in a storm at 2:58 PM on September 29, 2020
posted by any portmanteau in a storm at 2:58 PM on September 29, 2020
Response by poster: Success! I spotted her this morning as I was making the bed, skittering along the baseboard. She took refuge under an edge of curtain, and I scooped her up in a piece of laundry. I dumped her outside in the damp grass and she wiggled away, tail and all.
I did not think she would ever come out like this.
Thank you!
posted by SLC Mom at 11:26 AM on September 30, 2020 [8 favorites]
I did not think she would ever come out like this.
Thank you!
posted by SLC Mom at 11:26 AM on September 30, 2020 [8 favorites]
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by 41swans at 10:24 AM on September 29, 2020