Salamanders and newts are small and often brightly coloured. The bright contrasting colours are a warning to others as all salamanders and newts produce toxic skin secretions, some of which are highly poisonous. This family is informaly split into two groups: the smooth-skinned 'true salamaders' found predominantly in Europe and the rough-skinned newts that are more widely distributed through Europe, Asia, North Africa and North America. Currently, the number of species in this amphibian family stands at around 75.

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