Caudata.org: Newts and Salamanders Portal

Register a free account today to become a member! Once signed in, you'll be able to participate on this site by adding your own topics and posts, as well as connect with other members through your own private inbox!
Did you know that registered users see fewer ads? Register today!

Neurergus kaiseri eggs - are they ok?

neel

New member
Joined
Aug 10, 2007
Messages
6
Reaction score
2
Hi all,

My N. kaiseri started tail fanning about a month ago. I hadn't looked for eggs in a week or so, but today I noticed one of them laying an egg, and there were 2 eggs that I could see. They look a bit different than I expected, and I'm wondering if they're healthy or perhaps unfertilized.

If they're not duds, how long should I expect them to take to hatch? Any advice on how to remove them safely from the enclosure?

Thanks,
-Neel

P.S. For those of you curious about the conditions I was keeping them in (probably no magic here):

I finally got around to getting a proper aquarium chiller a couple months ago. I've had a group of N. kaiseri that I've been keeping almost exclusively terrestrially for over a year now (some for 18-24 months). I figured that they would probably have no clue that it wasn't spring yet, and decided to give an aquatic setup a try. I had an under-gravel filter, which when combined with the flow from the chiller creates a slight current in the tank. There is a tiny bit of crushed coral mixed in with regular gravel substrate to keep their pH slightly above 7. I kept their water temperature at 63 F and all of them readily entered the water and started showing courtship behavior almost immediately. I'm not sure if I should have waited until the actual spring, but I'm hoping this is going to work out :)
 

Attachments

  • kaiseri_eggs_edited1.jpg
    kaiseri_eggs_edited1.jpg
    52.8 KB · Views: 503
  • kaiseri_eggs_edited2.jpg
    kaiseri_eggs_edited2.jpg
    69.3 KB · Views: 404
  • kaiseri_eggs_edited3.jpg
    kaiseri_eggs_edited3.jpg
    112.8 KB · Views: 601

coendeurloo

Member
Joined
Feb 9, 2006
Messages
357
Reaction score
14
Location
Scharendijke
Nice achievement Neel, I can't help determinating the fertility of the eggs for you, but I can congratulate you on having eggs ;-) Please keep us updated. I am currently keeping my Neurergus kaiseri group at 10-12 degrees celcius (50-53 fahrenheit), and will continue to do this until february/march (not sure yet). Then I will increase the temps gradually, transfer them to a more aquatic environment and see what will happen.
 

markusA

New member
Joined
Oct 8, 2007
Messages
59
Reaction score
5
Hi Neel,

I think the eggs look good. It takes at 18°C about 3-4 weeks until they hatch.
If they are fertile the light grayish yolk turns into darker gray and you will see partitioning of the yolk and developing of an embryo. Unfertile eggs get infected by fungus after 1 week.

You can remove the eggs easily by sucking them with a pipette (wide entrance acording to egg diameter necessary) or just a rubber tube. The eggs are not as sticky as it looks.

You can offer aquatic plants to the female. My females lay more than half of the eggs in plants.
These plants you can remove more easy into another box.

regards,
Markus
 

John

Founder
Staff member
Joined
Feb 6, 2001
Messages
8,167
Reaction score
424
Location
USA
Congratulations Neel. They look very promising.
 

ajc

Caudata.org Donor
Joined
Oct 7, 2003
Messages
928
Reaction score
13
Location
Leicester, UK
The eggs look good. Mine continue laying over an extended period of time, 6-8 weeks. Egg eating minimal if you feed the breeders well!
 

neel

New member
Joined
Aug 10, 2007
Messages
6
Reaction score
2
Thanks for the reassurance and advice!

The only other eggs I've had were unplanned kids from C. cyanurus, and their eggs had an extremely pronounced larval shape inside them, although they probably sat unnoticed for a couple weeks. It might just be that these haven't developed to that stage yet.

Markus: I had only a few artificial plants in their enclosure, and there were no eggs on them up until last night. On your advice I added some more and I noticed about a dozen more eggs have been laid all over the plastic plants now. No preference for any particular shape of plant or leaf, and they're readily laying eggs on plants that my C. cyanurus refused to touch, as well as those that they loved :) Not so fussy I guess...

I'll post again when they hatch, and thanks again everyone!
-Neel
 
General chit-chat
Help Users
  • No one is chatting at the moment.
    There are no messages in the chat. Be the first one to say Hi!
    Top