Have you seen one of these?

[Donkey Shade Farm]

No idea what the real name is, but that looks just like a waterdog, a kind of salamander. We used to buy the smaller ones for catfish bait. I've also heard of people using them in cattle tanks, large multi-thousand gallon metal or concrete ones, to eat the moss and bugs that gather. This is the first time I've seen one "in the wild", very cool.

Yep, Bignoles is right. You got yourself a salamander. You can narrow it down to type by # of "feet" it has. Some even have an odd number (3 or 5). Thanks for sharing. Another pic to gross out the wife. Anything snakelike spooks her.

 

[BrentD]

Most definitely a salamander. Looks like an Amphiuma to be exact:

Amphiuma - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

[Big Bri]

Most definitely a salamander. Looks like an Amphiuma to be exact:

Amphiuma - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

i'm no expert but i think we have a winner. reading wiki file it sounds just like what i found. . . now we know

 

[Starboard]

I have heard them called Conger Eels.

 

[cowboy357]

We have something similiar around here ,I,ve allways heard them called mudpuppys . Thanks for the pics . Bob

 

[JayC]

Most definitely a salamander. Looks like an Amphiuma to be exact:

Amphiuma - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Those things are just creepy looking. I've never seen one before.

holly crap where did my tractor go

that was a good movie. . . didn't thay go to trimers 4?

lol Just remember to park it on some large rocks and it will be there in the morning. However, you may not be.

Yes, there was a Tremors 4. I never seen it start to finish, but it was actually a prequel to the other three. Tremors 4 took place in Perfection in the 1800s. There was also a Tremors TV series on SciFi channel, but it didn't last long. Seeing the amphiuma you found really made me think that might have been the inspiration for the movies.

 

[brandoro]

I have the set, Tremors 1 through 4. It was on the sale rack in a store and I couldn't resist. 4 is pretty good, better than 2 or 3 I think. Has some bonus footage showing how they did some of the monster shots too. If you liked the first one you should like the fourth.
Getting back to the OP, have never seen anything like that around here.

 

[MossRoad]

Most definitely a salamander. Looks like an Amphiuma to be exact:

Amphiuma - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

WOW! Weird critter. Good find. Now, how many toes does it have?

 

[Tvern13]

I live in Lacombe, LA. We just replaced a pond on my property with a pool. We drained the pond. These were everywhere. Now the pond is gone. The ground is dry as a bone with the heat we've been having. These are still coming up out of the ground from time to time. I just recently caught one and released it to the ditch at the back of my property. I was a zoology major at LSU but I didn't peg what these were until about a week ago when I caught the last one and took a close look and saw the vestigial legs.

 

[workmytractor]

Years ago while my grandfather was digging his pond, I would climb in and play in the mud . Those things were everywhere, but I always just thought they were eels. Now I know better.

Thanks for the post.