Palmate Newt
Lissotriton helveticus
About This Species
A small newt found across western Europe, including Britain, France and Iberia, breeding in shallow, well-vegetated ponds and ditches in spring. Breeding males develop webbed hind feet and a short filament at the tip of the tail, features that disappear once they return to land for summer. Torchlight searches at pond margins on mild spring evenings are the best way to see one, while the rest of the year it hides under logs, stones or leaf litter near water.
Ethical Viewing Guidelines
- Avoid handling newts directly where possible, since their skin is highly permeable and easily absorbs oils, sunscreen or other residue from hands.
- If a newt must be moved or examined, wash and rinse hands first and disinfect boots and equipment between ponds to avoid spreading chytrid fungus and other amphibian diseases between sites.
- It receives some legal protection in parts of its range, including the UK, where deliberate killing, injuring or trade is restricted.
LCAmphibiaCaudataSalamandridae
Seasonal Activity
150,591 sightings · 2000–2026
Citizen science records via GBIF
All monthsThis month
Classification
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Amphibia
- Order
- Caudata
- Family
- Salamandridae
Photo
Wikimedia Commons / Wikimedia Commons
CC-BY-SA-4.0
Occurrence data from GBIF.