New paludarium (what should I put in it?)

Hello, everyone!

I read about N. Strauchii a few weeks ago, and I fell in love with the species. Since they had both a terrestrial phase and an aquatic phase, I figured a paludarium would be perfect for them- that way, they could decide when they wanted to be aquatic/terrestrial themselves instead of me switching them between the two. Unfortunately, I don't think the set up I ended up creating will work for them, so I'm seeking something else.

The tank is a medium low exo terra terrarium. The bottom is waterproof, and it comes with the sculpted background. This is the picture from Petco's website:

The water area is about four inches high, and goes halfway to the back of the tank (about nine inches), separated from the ground area by the Tetra reptile waterfall filter (keeps the water extra clean ) and a rock wall. It has about a half an inch of sand in the bottom, and is planted with anubias, amazon sword, and what was called an umbrella plant on the box but looks nothing like the picture they have on their website xD Land area is likewise planted. That's what I believe I have, anyway- I threw out the containers and their website is unhelpful :\ I'll be taking pictures to upload soon, so I'm sure that'll be more helpful xD

The land area was made by wrapping the back in mesh (forming a basket, so to speak), and then filling it with medium gravel. Buried the plants' roots in the gravel, then covered it with a layer of coconut coir. It's nine inches long by six or seven inches deep.

So what do you think? Would any critters find this an acceptable home? I'll post pictures as soon as I can get them- I can't seem to take any that actually show the tank xD

<3 Silver

I've been doing some reading on my own, and Taricha Granulosa sounds like it would be a perfect species for this set up. They like land and water areas and they tend to be kept in water between 8 and 15 centimeters deep (mine is a little over 10 cm).

From the Caudata Culture care sheet:

"Though aquatic adults may become terrestrial for months to years at a time, this species can be treated as semi-aquatic, with some individuals preferring to be more aquatic or terrestrial than others. They will need a large tank with numerous rocks or driftwood breaking the surface of the water or a planted land area."

What do you think? Should I look into a slightly less aquatic taricha species?

EDIT: Triturus marmoratus also sounds fairly promising.

I'd like to stay away from toads/frogs. I'm just not as fond of them as I am other critters. Newts are a special favorite of mine

The tank, before putting anything in it:



Terrible pictures of what it looked like when I finished setting it up:

I can't tell if there is a water area at all, and the substrate looks way too moist. How warm does this enclosure get as well, most newts like it much colder than frogs and reptiles.

The water area was hard to get a picture of, but it's nine inches long and four inches deep. The land area was too moist, but I fixed it, so no worries there the tops of the waterfall and log are also completely dry. Between fifty and seventy five degrees F.

Silver said:

Between fifty and seventy five degrees F.

Click to expand...

the difference between 50 and 70 degrees is enormous. Try finding a way to lower the temperature to at least the mid-upper 60's. Not many newts tolerate a warm enclosure, and many like it downright cold.

It has a raised bottom, so once I have animals living in there, I'll have ice packs under it. Any species suggestions? There's a fish in there right now to kick start the cycling process, but he'll go back in his own tank in a couple of weeks. I'm not looking to put anything in it immediately- I want the tank to establish itself first. After the first of August it will be moved to a room that will always stay 55-60.

I know people weren't really following this thread, but I recently remodeled the tank (the substrate was too wet and plants were dying). I got so excited about the change that I decided to share!

The tank went from:



To:

Love the remodel; such a cool habitat!