Life is a continuum of learning and I will never forget a time when I was a teenager working as a camp counselor in the Mendocino Woodlands.  Coming home to my unit by a stream with my kerosene lantern, I was fortunate, indeed, to spot a large tiger salamander, black and pink beside the stream.  He/she was completely still and I watched for a few moments and then went on to bed.  I now hear, compliments of the Honolulu Zoo Society “Zooview” that salamanders world wide are in great danger of extinction.  Some are already extinct. One thing we can all do is to bring our own chopsticks when we go for sushi or chinese take out.  The forests of Asia are being decimated to make throw away chopsticks and they are next turning to the Appalachin forests when out of trees in Asia.  These forests house our salamanders.  I also recommend that you become familiar with what they look like and should you be digging up soil for your garden and come across one, gently release it.  Go to www.savethesalamanders.com