No Newts...yet...what to get?

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cjonard

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Hello everyone! My name is Chris and I am quite a fan of amphibians. At the moment all I have are bullfrogs (3 of them) and toads (4 of those) but I have a tank where I think I could make them happy. Question is, what is the best "starter" newt?
 
Welcome! Is the tank already set up? If so, what does it look like? What are the winter/summer temperatures likely to be in the tank? These factors may help you decide what species would be appropriate.
 
Hello and welcome.
The summer/winter temperature is the most important question.

How big is you tank or terrarium? Some newts get very big.

What type of living environment would you be able to and enjoy providing? Aquatic, Semi-Aquatic or Terrestrial? Take a look at the links in Jennewt signature. One of my favorites is;
Caudata Culture Articles - Setups
and
Caudata Culture Species Database - Salamandridae

Enjoy!
 
As has been said, there are a lot of factors to take into account before a recommendation can be made, however, judging by the typical conditions that are largely common to most hobbyists´ circumstances, i think it´s fair to say that quite possibly, the best starter species is Pleurodeles waltl. Other species are equally excelent, yet may not be suitable for every case, but P.waltl perhaps has the broadest spectrum of tolerance in captivity.

Make sure to do as much research as you possibly can before acquiring any animals. Have everything ready, a cycled tank, food cultures, etc. There is a lot to learn before taking the plunge.

Anyway, welcome to the forums and good luck! You´ll find that caudates are extremely addictive.
 
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Jennewt said:
Welcome! Is the tank already set up? If so, what does it look like? What are the winter/summer temperatures likely to be in the tank? These factors may help you decide what species would be appropriate.
Click to expand...

I have many aquariums..I was thinking a 20 gallon. Of course, I would make sure it was cycled before I got anything, but I am in the planning stages still--not getting anything yet. We have some mudpuppies endemic to this area--which would go great with my endemic species collection. Of course, axolotls are sweet, too. I can create about any environment needed, really. I love the pictures on the set up link you included...Thanks for that. I was just wondering, really, if there was one species that was more susceptible to "beginner's errors" than others.
I live in a temperate area, so the summer & winter temps are pretty varying.
 
The classic beginner's error is leaving the lid off, or having gaps in the lid where the animal escapes.

Pretty varying temps are generally good, as newts need winter cold in order to breed. But if you have winter/summer temps of 40F/70F you would have a very different choice of species than you would if your tank expects 65F/80F.
 
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  • Shane douglas:
    with axolotls would I basically have to keep buying and buying new axolotls to prevent inbred breeding which costs a lot of money??
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  • Thorninmyside:
    Not necessarily but if you’re wanting to continue to grow your breeding capacity then yes. Breeding axolotls isn’t a cheap hobby nor is it a get rich quick scheme. It costs a lot of money and time and deditcation
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    @Thorninmyside, I Lauren chen
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  • Clareclare:
    Would Chinese fire belly newts be more or less inclined towards an aquatic eft set up versus Japanese . I'm raising them and have abandoned the terrarium at about 5 months old and switched to the aquatic setups you describe. I'm wondering if I could do this as soon as they morph?
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