Young fire bellies??

Bkaufmann · Jul 4, 2010

So I just bought 3 firebelly newts from an exotic reptile store,
and last time I purchased two they were a bit bigger and there bellies had more ov a design to them. These little guys are orange on the bottom with a whole bunch of dots, does this just mean they are very young?? Also if that does mean they are very young is there any thing special I should do to care for very young newts, fore example feeding schedules or what they can eat?
Any help would be greatly appreciated

Ben

Azhael · Jul 4, 2010

Belly coloration patterns are highly variable. Some animals have no spots or very few, others have a complex design.
If they are bigger than 5,5 cm long, i´d assume they are most likely already adult.

Make asbolutely sure to read and learn as much as you can. It is very important that these newts receive excellent care and conditions in order to recover from the horrors of importation.

Bkaufmann · Jul 4, 2010

Head to tail the biggest one is 2 1/2 inches so these are tiny compared to the ones I had before, and don't worry their being treated great,
temp is 24 c, big tank, water filter 50/50 water to land ratio

now just can't wait untill they start to eat!

Bkaufmann · Jul 5, 2010

i'm starting to think this is another kind of newt, heres a pic, you be the judge

if you can I.D. this newt that would be great!!!

although great news, one of the newts started eating a earthworm i got for him but it was a little to big so he spit it out, looks like ill have to find smaller ones or cut them in half

Azhael · Jul 5, 2010

It´s not 100% clear since the image is small, but i bet those are Notophthalmus viridescens. Completely different species xD
Read about them here:
Caudata Culture Species Entry - Notophthalmus viridescens - Eastern Newt

24ºC is not an adequate temperature. They should be below 20ºC. They can tolerate, and in fact they thrive at temps as low as 3-4ºC, but high temps are a real danger. They supress their inmune system, leaving them defenseless against infections and other problems. This species appears to be particularly sensitive to fungae.

The gravel slope is really not a good idea. It will trap large amounts of debris, and in the deeper parts, oxygen will be exhausted, anaerobic conditions will appear, and the chemistry of your tank can pretty much suffer a localized version of the apocalypse.
Read this:
Caudata Culture Articles - Aquarium Substrates

Bkaufmann · Jul 5, 2010

thank you very much for the information, i was just about to post and ask if it was Notophthalmus v. piaropicola

and i thought it was 20 degrees to 30 degrees,
any reccomendations on how to lower it?

Azhael · Jul 5, 2010

Bkaufmann said:
and i thought it was 20 degrees to 30 degrees

That´s the kind of thing i was refering to when i said "make sure to read and learn as much as you can" hehe. There´s a lot of misinformation around, and particularly pet-shops tend to give very bad advice.
You are on the right place to learn, though!! The only way to learn is to accumulate information so READ! xD

You can find several ideas for cooling the tank here:
Caudata Culture Articles - Cooling

If i were you i would start reading all those articles until you know them by heart xD

Bkaufmann · Jul 5, 2010

I appreciate your help very much and i have already lowered the tempature to 20 degress and i'm continuing to lower it.
I have also took out the substrate, and it already seems like they are much happyer!

Ben

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