Hi. Yes I had seen these already but was trying to see if there was any more information/experiences available. Also any info on wild hibernacula from USA members would be appreciated. Thanks.
The tigers around here (A.tigrinum) spend the winter under ground. In order to induce spawning in captivity the temperature is extremely important. Ideally you should cool them down to as close to freezing as you can without actually freezing the animals. A good way to do this is to leave them near a window that is open slightly (some use their garage as long as it doesn't get too far below the freezing point). As the days get longer and the temperature rises to about 50 degrees F (late February through early April here) the tank should be flooded, for best results it should be done on a day with heavy rain outside as the barametric pressure also plays a role in the whole process. Some say tigers are tricky to encourage breeding in captivity, but most of those people probably keep them too warm over the winter. Don't be afraid to cool them way down, normal basement temperatures almost certainly will not be cold enough, it needs to be extra cold.
I also notice that tigers here are difficult to find on the surface from November through the time they emerge to breed. They do "flock breed" as you mentioned, but I have seen individual pairs mating far from any others, so as long as you feed the animals well prior to winter and cycle them properly you should have a better chance of finding eggs in the water when spring arrives.
However, A.mavortium are subjected to different conditions in the wild than the tigrinum found by me, so perhaps someone who lives in their range can help.
