Hello

Hi,
I have lurked on this site for a while so I thought it was time to introduce myself. I have been interested in newts since I was a child and could always be found at the side of a pond catching frogs and common newts. Now that I am grown up I still find myself looking at ponds wondering what it may contain ! I have observed some common newts and palmate newts in a local pond.
At the moment I keep marbled newts, italian crested newts and have just bought some young alpine newts off Rigsby.
I would really like to aquire the following, more alpine newts, banded newts, fire salamanders (various subspecies) and the spectacularly coloured newts from iran ( cannot remember the name). Also after common lizards & eyed lizards.
Anyway thats me, if anyone can help me get the species mentioned please contact me.

Peter

Hey Peter,
I'd like to formally welcome you to the forum although you were a member long before I was. A year and a half huh, you weren't kidding when you said you've been lurking for awhile. Is it the Neurergus kaiseri newt that is the Iranian one your thinking of?

Hi and welcome to the the forum - it seems to me that you have a plan to keep yourself busy!!
If you still look and wonder at ponds, and have some free time then why not find out whats in there and help the NARRS for 2009
I've put a link if you want to have a look at whats involved. The site will be updated for the 2009 project before Christmas, so I'm told. All the best and enjoy the forum!

http://www.narrs.org.uk/

Hi Guys,
thanks for the quick replys. I was a member of the forum a while ago, but my laptop died and I couldn't remember any login details. So I re-registered. The iranian species I am after is Neurergus kaiseri (absolutely stunning newt). I will check out the NARRs website and see what I can do. In this area we have palmate newts, smooth newts, common frog and toads. The palmates and toads are the most common. I have had difficulty getting the species I want so I am thinking of going to some of the herp shows in europe (like Hamm) next year, has anyone had any experiance of these shows ?

Peter

N.kaiseri is not exactly a beginner species, so unfortunately, they may be pretty hard (or expensive) for you to obtain...

Anyway, Welcome back! It's certainly nice to have you.

Quite right Nathan they are expensive and a challenge to keep, so buying them could be a fruitless and expensive mistake, thats assuming I ever find any. Despite them having different requirements from other caudates I have kept/keep, they appear to have similar requirements to some riverine fish I have kept & bred. I hope my past experiences will help if I am lucky enough to get some.

Peter