Ambystoma Tigrinum Larvae

[caudatadude28]

Well, today I went herping in a promising spot about an hour away from home. It is a wetland praire with roughly one-hundred ponds in it. It proved successful. I wasn't sure I would find ambystomid larvae in the first few ponds I tried because there were so many ponds. But after about ten minutes of dip netting the edges, it was too deep for me to walk all the way through it, I found an ambystoma tigrinum larvae. I proceeded to dip net it for an hour and I found five ambystoma tigrinum larvae. They are 2-3 inches long. I currently am feeding them earthworms, tadpoles, and some whiteworms. I was wondering if I could feed them feeder guppies or tiny minnows in addition to this. They are in a ten gallon planted tank with a sponge filter. Here are some pics:

And just for fun here are my first three morphs of 12 of my A. maculatum.

 

[shmifty5]

Loevly tigers, i wonder what colors the larvae will develope as they grow, maybe they will be mutants with purple spots or maybe they will be classical and lemon yellow, ooh the possibilities!

 

[eljorgo]

Hey AJ. outstanding... I wish I had acess to such species just near my home as that...They are gorgeous... I wish I breed my ambystomas next winter so I can photograph larval ambystomids! How bigger your maculatum morphed? What are they feeding now?

 

[caudatadude28]

Thanks Eljorgo! The macs morphed out at 2-3in. I am feeding the macs chopped earthworms, whiteworms, and isopods. Its amazing how many tadpoles and worm chunks an a. tigrinum larva can eat. They eat till they look like balloons with legs and a tail!

 

[caudatadude28]

Here is another pic. I find the indents in thier faces(the larger larva) odd. Why do they have these indentations? Im pretty sure its not from aggression as I have never seen aggression in them because I feed them so much and have a good amount of cover in thier tank. Maybe it is just a characteristic of tiger larvae. I am not familiar with tiger larvae.

 

[Azhael]

It is perfectly normal. Those points are sensorial organs. You can see they follow a pattern in the head, and they probably also appear in the equivalent of the fish´s lateral line.
I´m not sure as i´m not familiar with them either, but in other species, these organs appear visible when the larvae are reaching a big size and are coming close to metamorphosis.

 

[caudatadude28]

Well, I figured it was time to update this thread. I need to update my n.v.l. thread too.... Anyways, I now have seven a. tigrinum larvae. The three large ones(5.5-6.5in) are in a ten gallon with lots of plants and a sponge filter and the four small ones(3.5-4.5in) are in a 20 gallon long tank with lots of plants and a box corner filter. Here are some updated pics:

 

[Nathan050793]

I didn't know A.tigrinum larvae grew so large before morphing! I bet that sure makes feeding a heck of a lot easier. Stellar pics, by the way- the fourth one on the top row is great!

 

[beefsteak]

I have noticed if you keep the the larva well fed they morph much slower and grow much faster than already morphed ones. Same if you stop feeding, they morph rite away. If well fed, they can grow full sized in the larval stage.

 

[brewmaster15]

Well, I figured it was time to update this thread. I need to update my n.v.l. thread too.... Anyways, I now have seven a. tigrinum larvae. The three large ones(5.5-6.5in) are in a ten gallon with lots of plants and a sponge filter and the four small ones(3.5-4.5in) are in a 20 gallon long tank with lots of plants and a box corner filter. Here are some updated pics:

Excellent Job so far! Those guys look very happy! Thanks for the pics and update!

Take care!
-al

 

[caudatadude28]

I just got back from a short vacation so I thought I would update this thread. None of the tigrinum larvae are showing signs of morphing. The large batch of larvae are around 7 inches now and are starting to get adult coloration but keeping their gills and tail fin. Pictures to follow.

 

[eljorgo]

Hey Aj. In the last bunch of pics metamorphsis sings are visible. The tail muscles are getting diferenciated from caudal membrane. I can see a clear rifling in those zones. People usually think metamorphosis almost begings the day before they get outta water.
But metamorphosis begins way much back than that. Depending on species of course, some may take more and others less but never less than 5-4 days.

 

[caudatadude28]

Well, they certainly have grown fast lately. One is in the process of morphing. It is the smallest of the large group at 6.5-7in long. It has a reduced fin, only on the top half of its tail now, reduced gills, and the eyes are popping out now. He also has a reduced apetite. Both groups, with the exception of one tiger in the small group, are developing some adult coloration. The small group is 5.5-6.5in and the large group is 6.5-7.2in. I hope they morph out close to adult size and breed next spring in a project I have planned.... Are there any reports of ambystoma tigrinum tigrinum breeding in captivity? Well here are some pics.

PS Jorge: Lovely avatar!