FYI: Newbie...but this is cool

J

JSkin

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I am new to this sight and would like to say Hello and thank you for having me.

I am a mom who is constantly dragging my kids out...we stumbled upon a cow pond and found two HUGE tiger salamanders. Brought them home and realized these guys need to be returned to the same pond. So, we drove the 75 miles to return them the next day...but during the one night we had them they laid hundreds of eggs (stress prolly caused them to lay the eggs)! Well as of now I have 3 healthy barred (I think) tiger sallies.

I have put the two big guys in a large tupperware container with a duetto filter. They dont seem to want to be on land as I would have thought they would after losing their gills. They are very responsive and love feeding time, my daughter is really enjoying them and they all have names and believe it or not different personalities.

Two have turned into FULL salamanders and one is still in the very small newt stage...could this small one be a different sex?

I bought some aquarium lily bulbs which I will pot once they get going. Are the lily bulbs safe for these little guys? I live in a small town and had the choice of the lily bulbs and some ugly plant.

As of now I feed them bloodworms and the occasional earthworm. As newts they loved flies but now that they have transformed into salamanders they have a hard time seeing and successfully catching the DEAD fly. Does their eyesight change?

I mostly wanted to share our story...it has been a very educational experience for our whole family!

Again...thanks for having me and thanks for your time if you read this...recommendations are absolutely welcome! :eek:





 
For the two that have fully metamophosed, they will need to be placed in a terrestrial environment. Do not keep these guys in an aquatic environment - they are mole salamanders and being fossorial need to have substrate to burrow into. Their aquatic days are behind them. For the one that has not yet metamorphosed (larva can morph at different rates), if it is close to morphing, provide it an aquatic environment with some land area.

Regarding food, you can switch to all earthworms and other invertebrates (crickets, slugs, etc.) as variety. Salamanders are carnivores and are attracted to live foods - usually shun dead foods such as the dead flies.

Here are a few articles from our Caudata Culture section that you will find beneficial:

Caudata Culture Species Entry - Tiger salamander

Caudata Culture Articles - Foods

Caudata Culture Articles - Setups Terrestrial

Caudata Culture - Frequently Asked Questions

And from axolotl.org: http://www.axolotl.org/tiger_salamander.htm

I'm not sure about lilly bulbs and their suitableness or lack thereof - for tigers, there is no need for plants. In terrestrial enclosures many keepers if wanting a natural look, use silk plants as tigers are prone to digging and uprooting plants. Real plants can be used - just require more care and thought.
 
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