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Firebelly Salamander missing

lotty

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I have tried to look in the tank today for my small fire salamander to show my grandkids. I cant find it anywhere. Do they bury themselves in the soil. The tank has about 3 inch of cocosoil coir and a lot of oak leaves and hiding places. I lost one and dont know if it has buried itself in the soil or one of the larger salamanders ate it, but the other one is in a tank on its own. I am hoping they burrow. The soil is very soft, being coir. There is no way it can climb about 8 inches straight up class is there. It wasnt in the coconut hide, under the leaves or the branches. I moved everything but not the soil. Thanks
Forgot to say, the salamander is only about 2 1/2 inch big. Its only a baby really.
 

Blackbun

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Hello Ian, my biggest worry is if any of my salamanders escape. Firstly, unlike lizards, when a salamander escapes it starts losing water and so you're up against the clock straight a way so act quickly. Obviously the smaller the animal, the more urgency is needed. Young salamanders WILL easily climb up the vertical glass wall of a table. They are able to do this very successfully owing to their moist and flat bellies. Tank lids must be secure with no gaps at all,or they will squeeze out and be gone. Obviously vents are needed but these account for the contained animals. Salamanders do bury in compost/leaf mound and can be difficult to locate so you need to sieve through the substrate thoroughly and once you have done so do it again. If one has gotten out, start looking under things and use the room walls to guide you as a salamander will travel out until it meets an obstruction. If it has been out it'll need rehydrating. I do hope you find it and I'm certain, kind of, it'll be in the tank. Please let us know.
 

Otterwoman

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Put a wet towel on the floor near the tank or where it might be hiding, the dark. It might find its way to the towel.
 

lotty

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Thanks for the advice.
I have emptied the tank out of logs, water bowl, rocks, plants and leaves. sifted through the coir with my fingers, going left to right, front to back and right to left. I cant find it in the tank. Buried a few crickets though. I hope they can dig themselves out.
I will put a wet towel down to see if it is hiding anywhere, it will come to it.
I have checked all around my room, moved all furniture, checked in drawers, under cuppboards, stands etc, and cannot find it anywhere. I have been n the kitchen and moved the cooker and fridgefreezer out but not in the kitchen. Looked in the cupboard under the stairs and nothing. There are no gaps to go under the cupboards in the kitchen so it cant get under them. Nowhere it can get out of the tank as the lid is heavy and a good fitting one. No cable holes as no cables going in the tank. There are no tares in the material under the suite and it is on legs, so cant get into the chairs or sofa. Its not hiding along the skirting board / carpet join. No gaps under the skirting boards. I have just checked the vacuum as well, incase it had been sucked up, but not in there.
 

Blackbun

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What you've just described is common practice. I think a lot of keepers have gone through that routine. OK, leave a torch out for Santa so he can check once the house is dark and quiet tonight. I had some young Corsica this year and to start off with they were all in together until one went on a growth spurt and not for one minute did I trust it with its smaller siblings. Never felt that issue before once they'd emerged from water, in water aquatic stages definitely cannibals.Ian, try tonight with the torch.
 

lotty

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Will do. Thanks. I am thinking of putting a wet towel on a plastic tray and putting it on the floor in front of the tank.
Whats with the torch. Do I leave one on all night or just look when it is dark in the room before i go bed.

Both little ones I have lost. The other was while all 4 were in the same tank. I thnk it was eaten by one of the larger ones. After separating the sals up into the tanks, I only found 1 small and the two larger ones in the other tank. Hopefully, it will come back. If not, I have a tank with crickets in. Will have to put one of the bigger sals in it to have the crickets. lol.

Had this before with a fish tank. I had 12 neon tetras and 6 fresh water puffer fish. 2 puffer fish and 2 neon tetras vanished. Nothing else in the tank was big enough to eat them. The fish just vanished. No sign of them. Not even when I closed the tank down and set up a bigger tank.
 

Blackbun

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Use the torch in the dark if your salamanders are like mine they might hide in the light. When you put the damp tray down put something on it for the salamander to hide in else they'll disappear again as it gets light in the morning.
 

lotty

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2 nights now using a wet towel and no show.
I would have thought it would have dried out by now if it has got out. The central heating comes on in the morning and from afternoon around 4:30 until 9pm. It is about 4 days now since I have seen it. in the tank. I still expect it to be under the leaves in a morning.
 
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