NewtsAtTen
New member
So, basically, I just ended up with two newt larvae that hitchhiked their way into my shrimp tank on some plants I bought. I'm not complaining, they're rather adorable! I think they might be smooth newt larvae, and I have full intentions to move them out of the tank into a larger setup before they start eating my cherry shrimp, but I'm also a little nervous to fully introduce them properly back into the tank at this stage (one is separated in a fine net and the other in a fine plastic basket at the moment) as I'm a little concerned that the shrimp could potentially mistake them for detritus or that they could get hurt by the bubbles from the airstone.
I'm 99% sure I'm worrying about nothing here, but nevertheless I'm concerned. The smallest one barely moves at all, except VERY occasionally, and mostly just blows along rigidly with the current and I feel as though it could easily be mistaken for a tiny piece of edible organic matter, being only a week old and probably about 8mm long. I've put a sponge sack around my filter to stop the Daphnia I've put in to help feed the newts from getting sucked up (or the newts themselves when they go in!), but I'm not sure even the smallest Daphnia will be able to pass through the net my smallest newt is in, and I'm anxious to try and get them to explore and hunt for themselves as I don't know exactly how much food they're getting whilst separated at the top of the tank.
In fact, I'm not even sure how they eat at this age. The larger one is a tad more developed, but I don't even know if the smallest one HAS a mouth yet. What do I even feed them when the Daphnia are too big for either of them? Are larval Daphnia microscopic and do they eat those?
I'm 99% sure I'm worrying about nothing here, but nevertheless I'm concerned. The smallest one barely moves at all, except VERY occasionally, and mostly just blows along rigidly with the current and I feel as though it could easily be mistaken for a tiny piece of edible organic matter, being only a week old and probably about 8mm long. I've put a sponge sack around my filter to stop the Daphnia I've put in to help feed the newts from getting sucked up (or the newts themselves when they go in!), but I'm not sure even the smallest Daphnia will be able to pass through the net my smallest newt is in, and I'm anxious to try and get them to explore and hunt for themselves as I don't know exactly how much food they're getting whilst separated at the top of the tank.
In fact, I'm not even sure how they eat at this age. The larger one is a tad more developed, but I don't even know if the smallest one HAS a mouth yet. What do I even feed them when the Daphnia are too big for either of them? Are larval Daphnia microscopic and do they eat those?