Question: C. Orientalis Egg

stanleyc · Feb 6, 2010

1 of my fire bellies just laid an egg on the side of a flower pot I had in the water. My questions are, should I be expecting or looking for more eggs? I was looking at the article on this site about raising eggs and wanted to ask about cleaning the tank or container come time the egg hatches, is the siphon really a good idea for cleaning when the larvae are so small, could I get more instruction on getting rid of debris and monitering water quality? Lastly, where can I readily get daphnia, red or black worms, are tubifex worms any good for feeding larvae?

Thanks alot

Jennewt · Feb 7, 2010

Hi Stanley, I'm a little unclear on what your question is regarding cleaning. Are you moving the egg (and pot?) to another container, or leaving it in the adults' tank? It is likely that there are other eggs. Look closely at any live (or even fake) plants. You might want to consider adding some egg-laying strips, if there are no live plants:
Caudata Culture Articles - Egg Strips

Regarding foods, most of them have to be mail ordered, or cultured yourself. The easiest option would be to find a pet shop within driving distance that sells live blackworms - get on the phone and call all the independent aquarium shops within range. Don't bother asking PetStupid or PetCo.

stanleyc · Feb 7, 2010

I have moved the pot along with the egg into another container. I'm planning on feeding the larvae with baby brine shrimp and chopped up tubifex worms, would this diet work?

Jennewt · Feb 7, 2010

Yes, this diet would be good. Are you sure you have tubifex worms? Live? They might actually be blackworms, as live tubifex are available in Europe but not the US. If they are a dark black-red color, they are blackworms. Tubifex are a light orange/pink color.

Do you have the brine shrimp eggs? It's a good idea to do a test-hatch ahead of time, as the eggs go bad over time.

What kind of tank or container do you have available to raise the larvae? This will dictate the cleaning ritual. You can't really siphon, but you can use a turkey baster to suck out debris.

Good luck!

stanleyc · Feb 7, 2010

Yeah i heard they are commonly available here too, but pretty sure they are tubifex, light pink in color, and the guy at the store said tubifex. I have just ordered the shrimp eggs online, I'll do a test hatch as soon as they arrive.

Right now I have the egg in a 2-3 gallon (guessing) plastic storage tub, but since so far, I have still only found 1 egg, I'll probably move it to a smaller container when it hatches.

Thanks a lot for the help.

Also, I'm planning on putting some elodea in whatever container I'll be using when it hatches, is this a good idea?

Jennewt · Feb 7, 2010

that would be really interesting if your pet shop has actual tubifex worms. I wonder where they come from.

Yes, elodea is a good idea.

stanleyc · Feb 7, 2010

Not entirely sure, but if they are blackworms, they should work fine chopped too right?

Also, I had just put some new elodea in the adults' tank and the pregnant mommy is currently grabbing onto a branch with her hind legs, I'm guessing she's laying eggs?

stanleyc · Feb 7, 2010

Yep she's finish, it is in fact an egg. How many eggs should i be expecting and how long does this period of egg laying last usually, she still looks a bit bloated with eggs.

vistajpdf · Feb 8, 2010

Hi Stanley. I would imagine you could be in for a lot more eggs. I have 50+ juveniles. My female began laying eggs almost a year ago and it continued for months. I fed my newly hatched larvae Daphnia at first, then blackworms and white worms. Because of their yolk sacs, they don't need to eat the first couple of days. You will see them eat when they appear to hop in the water.

I lost very few. As Jen said, look closely at everything in the tank as there may well be more eggs already there. Our first one went undected until he was swimming along in the tank. When I knew what to look for, I saw LOTS of eggs. They are interesting to watch develop and by the time they hatch, you can see the little larvae in there wriggling around. I, too, separated them, did frequent water changes, etc. Good luck!

Dana

stanleyc · Feb 8, 2010

Holy, that's a lot of eggs, I think I'd need to give most of them away.

Thanks for the help, excited and scared at the same time.

vistajpdf · Feb 8, 2010

Stanley,

Don't fret just yet! The larvae are very easy to care for once you get past the Daphnia stage - or BBS. I had no luck keeping the Daphnia going and also wasn't sure I wasn't throwing a lot of it out with water changes!

I separated my pair when I saw the eggs, but yesterday, she had climbed over the tank divider and was with him. Not sure I'm ready for another year of this! However, I was able to give away eggs to a couple of forum members and am considering doing the same for my juveniles when I feel they can be safely shipped. I had NOT planned on breeding anything!

Embrace this occasion as it is miraculous to watch the metamorphosis!

Dana

stanleyc · Feb 9, 2010

I will probably give away a bunch of juveniles to forum members as well, so if anyone is interested...

Should i start the larvae with the shrimp first? or chopped tubifex/blackworms?

Stanley

stanleyc · Feb 9, 2010

Also could you give me an estimate of when the eggs will hatch, when the larvae will metamorph?

vistajpdf · Feb 9, 2010

Hi again. The eggs will hatch in a couple of weeks. You will see noticeable development in viable eggs (some are duds - more towards the end in my limited experience.) The inside of the egg will appear to have a tiny mustard seed in it. It will lengthen, then have the newtpole inside clearly visible, even moving around as the time for hatching nears. They morph about 3 months after. You will see front legs then hind legs develop, then the gills (frilly, around the neck) will begin to shrink. They can shed just before or after morphing. One day, you'll see the little guy totally out of the water, on a rock, turtle rock or whatever you use for the land part. They don't need any land while larvae, but be sure to provide it as they approach the next stage or they can drown. Your food for them will also change. I've been feeding mine springtails, flightless fruit flies, and pinhead crickets. Be prepared, though they often don't eat for at least week, up to several weeks, in fact.

Check out Caudata Culture: Caudata Culture Articles - Raising Newts and Salamanders from Eggs

Good luck,
Dana

stanleyc · Feb 10, 2010

Foods like Springtails, fruit flies, and others you mentioned, could I get them at pet shops/aquariums, order them online, catch from wild?

-Stanley

Jennewt · Feb 10, 2010

Springtails - order a starter culture online (or beg from other members). Culture is very easy from there.

Fruit flies - either buy them online regularly, or order a starter and some medium and grow your own. For the small, flightless flies, it's not very difficult. The larger flies (hydei) are harder to grow.

Pinhead crx - ask your local non-chain pet shops if they can special order them for you. If not, then you are stuck with online order.

stanleyc · Mar 8, 2010

1 of my eggs have just hatched! However, after moving just a couple of times, it has not moved for more than an hour, is this normal?

stanleyc · Mar 9, 2010

He has moved a couple times since last night, so I know he's alive. But is it normal for him to just stay put for so long.

Azhael · Mar 9, 2010

Indeed it is.
It will just lay there on one side until it develops the balancers. After that, and until it fully develops it´s front legs, it will keep moving very little.
It´s all perfectly normal, don´t worry the least bit.

stanleyc · Mar 10, 2010

Thanks, it's looking to be doing fine, should have a couple more eggs hatch by tomorrow.

Can i start feeding them with chopped tubifex or black worms?

Question: C. Orientalis Egg

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