~*Need Newt Environment Help*~

Hey! Can you all help me? I'm going to get an FBN this summer for the first time and need help with the tank setup. Can you tell me what is unsuitable and what is good about the environment for my future newt? (this is with regular 10-20% water changes, etc. of course).

*10 gal. with SECURED screen lid

* 1-2 FBN (c. pyrrhogaster if I can find them)

*sm. air pump (no current)

*thin layer of natural gravel (not small)

*maybe a few live plants (I work at a Pond Store and we sell anacharis/elodea and various other aquatic plants, can you suggest some?)

*thermometer

*"ornamental things" for entertainment/decoration

* ~6 inches water

*ammonia test kit (...decholrinator/chloramine, etc)

*dried bloodworms

*siphon (turkey baster)

*****The one thing I really feel I need help with is creating an environment with 6 inches of swimming water while having a terrestrial place for him/her/them at the same time. How do you create a "shelf" type area for newts???****

Thank you sooo much!!!!

Lindsay

http://www.caudata.org/people/JM/divtank.html

Try this sight, it worked well for me. jennifer macke might have some more to say on this one.

Oh! and say that I do get 2 newts, should they preferably be of the same sex or do males not do well together (territorial, etc). I would rather not have a M and F because I don't want more newts. It seems they aren't very successful breeders though. help?!

(Message edited by Lindsay on April 29, 2005)

Hi Lindsay,

For a 10 gal tank, go for 8 inches of water. Since you can get Elodea, get lots. The newts will also rest on mats of these plants should they decide to get out of the water. I would not encourage the Chinese Fire Belly newts to go terrestrial. I do have in a couple of my tanks, a wine glass with a plate on top for an island area. (The wine glass (being thin stemmed) provides height without giving up much water area.) You can also spruce it up with gravel, plants, etc. (My newts rarely use islands at all.) I also use the same set up to baffle water flow from waterfall type filters.

Also, go for the frozen bloodworms, not the dried ones. Thaw and rinse them, then put them in a small bowl, or plate, that is located on the bottom of your tank. It will be their dinner plate. (Not everyone does this, I just have had better luck doing it this way.)

As far as the Chinese Fire Belly is concerned, you can mix males with males, females with females, and a mix. They are not aggressive. You might get an individual that is, but IME it is pretty rare.

There isn't a good chance that you will get the Japanese Fire Belly (cynops pyrrhogaster). They have not appeared on the market for awhile. You will more than likely have access to the Chinese Fire Belly (cynops orientalis) though.

And, like Lays Potato Chips, you can't have just one. Get at least a couple of these little guys. The 10 gal is big enough, as long as it is planted, filtered, and monitored. These little guys are just too much fun, so enjoyable, and relaxing to watch 'em.

Sounds like you are ready, and that the newts will have a nice home.

Sounds like you are preparing carefully, Linsday, that's great! All sounds good, with the possible exception of food. I'd suggest frozen, not dried, bloodworms. You may also have to tempt them with other kinds of food at first until you figure out what they will eat. They need some kind of island to climb out on, but it does not necessarily need to be a shelf.

Thank you! I'm glad to hear I'm on the right track. I just bought some freeze dried bloodworms ahead of time. I'll use them as a treat for my betta and save some for my future newt(s) as some variety. Where would you suggest I pick up frozen bloodworms? Do you guys think old monroe rock from my work that we use in ponds or thick gravel would be better for the tank? How big of a land area would be preferable for these guys? When the pet stores sell c. orientalis, are they usually young and still growing or are they adults?

I have one more little question, thanks again! If I do accidently get a male and female, is it likey they will breed?

~Lindsay

Well it all depends, If you don't try to make them breed (e.g. a winter cooling period) then they don't usually breed, but some animals are ready to breed right after the come out of the pet trade as soon as they are put in better conditions. Other animals after several months or years of setteling in will breed spontaneously. If they do breed and you don't want to raise any newtlets, don't worry, just leave the eggs in the tank and the parents will eat the babies, there may be a few though that reach metamorphosis and you could sell them here, though I might add that there isn't a very high demand for c.b. Cynops orientalis.

Since you have access to many plants, I recomend that you fill your tank so densely with oxygenators that you cant see through it and leave a little clearing where they can feed, your newts will like a lot of plants in their aquarium.

Most pet shops have some frozen fish foods, including bloodworms. What is monroe rock? If you use any gravel, I'd suggest a thin layer. A lot of the C. orientalis coming into pet shops are young and still growing, but some are adults. It's impossible to know their age. Try to pick out ones that are staying in the water, and don't give them much land area; it's a lot easier to get them eating if they are in the water.

Thanks, I'll keep that in mind. Old Monroe is just a type of rock we use for the bottom of our ponds. It's bigger than gravel but still pretty small. It looks like rocks/stones you'd pick out of a river or creek (white, brown, gray, etc).