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Alpine Newt (Mesotriton alpestris) set-up?

philbaker76

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Joined
Aug 16, 2007
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Hi guys,

I've been offered some Alpine Newts. I've toyed with the idea of keeping some Newts in the past ~ but never got around to it.

Done some reading up on them ~ including the caudata.org care sheet.
http://www.caudata.org/cc/species/Triturus/T_alpestris.shtml

They are Mesotriton alpestris ~ I'm assuming they are Mesotriton alpestris alpestris and come with papers (or something) from the guy who bred them. I'll try and identify them myself when I see them.

Just wanted to get some advice/feedback/tips from any members that keep (or have kept) these newts.

I like the idea of having a mainly aquatic set-up ~ as I'm used to managing these; with my Axolotls. OK ~ here are my questions... (sorry if they're repeated posts - I did search the forum before posting).
  1. I'm considering a 2 or 3ft tank ~ how many (adult) Apline Newts could I happily keep together?
  2. Will a mainly aquatic set-up be OK for M.a. alpestris some care sheets suggest they are more terrestrial than other M.a. species. If not ~ how much (%) land space will they need?
  3. I read somewhere that males can be terratorial; is this true?
  4. Finally, from reading up on them - they seem pretty easy to keep; but are they a good novice species?
Thanks in advance.
Phil
 
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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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