R
rheann
Guest
Today I received my Fire Salamander =).
I must say, what a truly beautiful animal and it is a male. I believe his sub species is Salamandra salamandra terrestris, or Salamandra salamandra fastuosa but I am not sure and I am far from an expert on this. I will post pictures later and maybe someone can help me identify his sub species.
His current home is a plastic bin with a tight fitting lid poked with breathing holes. Inside the bin is pea gravel for drainage, top soil, and ground moss. There are also some little rocks and a larger rock that he can burrow under. The temp inside the container is currently 67 degrees.
He seems very happy. I have some wonderful plans for him. I plan to use a 20 gallon tank and build inside of it a background made from expanding foam, peat, and coco fibers mixed with wellbond glue. Pea gravel will be in the bottom, and I may cut a small drainage hole in the bottom and install a plug.
From the bottom up I will build pea gravel, top soil, coco fibers and ground moss. Plants will include miniature ferns and ivy. I will also install into the back pieces of grapewood so that they come out giving the Ivy room to grow.
I know that Fire Salamanders are terrestrial - however I would like to know if it would be alright to make his enclosure semi-aquatic or is this not advisable? So far I do not plan to make a semi-aquatic home. I would prefer to just have a small water dish - but it would also be nice to have a small water fall feature in the tank
.
In the summer time because I live in California and it can get pretty hot, I will have him hibernate in the fridge or possibly a cooler during the hotter months. I understand that they need to be fasted 8 days prier before hibernation occurs. I hope this is accurate information. If it is not, please let me know.
Is there any advice anyone would like to give me about the terrarium? Anything I might have missed as far as concerning setup?
Comments are much appreciated, thanks guys
I must say, what a truly beautiful animal and it is a male. I believe his sub species is Salamandra salamandra terrestris, or Salamandra salamandra fastuosa but I am not sure and I am far from an expert on this. I will post pictures later and maybe someone can help me identify his sub species.
His current home is a plastic bin with a tight fitting lid poked with breathing holes. Inside the bin is pea gravel for drainage, top soil, and ground moss. There are also some little rocks and a larger rock that he can burrow under. The temp inside the container is currently 67 degrees.
He seems very happy. I have some wonderful plans for him. I plan to use a 20 gallon tank and build inside of it a background made from expanding foam, peat, and coco fibers mixed with wellbond glue. Pea gravel will be in the bottom, and I may cut a small drainage hole in the bottom and install a plug.
From the bottom up I will build pea gravel, top soil, coco fibers and ground moss. Plants will include miniature ferns and ivy. I will also install into the back pieces of grapewood so that they come out giving the Ivy room to grow.
I know that Fire Salamanders are terrestrial - however I would like to know if it would be alright to make his enclosure semi-aquatic or is this not advisable? So far I do not plan to make a semi-aquatic home. I would prefer to just have a small water dish - but it would also be nice to have a small water fall feature in the tank
In the summer time because I live in California and it can get pretty hot, I will have him hibernate in the fridge or possibly a cooler during the hotter months. I understand that they need to be fasted 8 days prier before hibernation occurs. I hope this is accurate information. If it is not, please let me know.
Is there any advice anyone would like to give me about the terrarium? Anything I might have missed as far as concerning setup?
Comments are much appreciated, thanks guys