First time salamander owner

[Risigan]

Ok, so i recently got a two-lined salamander. This is the first time I have taken care of a salamander so I am a little lost. Right now it is in a terrarium by itself. The substrate is play sand and there is a small pan of water that is buried in the sand. A piece of wood is leaned up against the glass and there are a few rocks. The salamander is tiny; only 1.5-2in long. I just want to know if I should change the habitat and also, what should I feed it. I was thinking flightless fruit flies but what else? PLEASE HELP!!!!

 

[jclee]

There are some great resources on this forum that you should have a look at. I'm not sure from your post exactly which Eurycea species you have, but there is a species overview that seems to cover a bunch of them, so start with this: Caudata Culture Species Entry - Eurycea - Two-lined and Junaluska


If you go to the caudata culture mainpage, http://www.caudata.org/cc/, you can poke around to get some ideas for housing, feeding, and care. I would not keep a salamander on dry sand. Perhaps, while you do some reading, you could change out the sand for moist paper towels, until you're ready to redo the enclosure.

I've never kept two-lined salamanders, so I'm sure that more people will be in to post with further species-specific info and suggestions.

 

[Risigan]

I have a southern two lined salamander. The sand is regular play sand but it is kept moist.

 

[Risigan]

Anybody?

 

[Jan]

Your set-up does need to be changed.

As offered by jclee, you need to read this caresheet: Caudata Culture Species Entry - Eurycea - Two-lined and Junaluska

This provides information on housing this animal as well as feeding.

Google 'southern two lined salamanders' - you will find several more information pieces especially relative to natural habitat...the goal - being to try to mimic.

 

[Risigan]

Ok, I changed the enclosure but the biggest problem I have is feeding. I have tried pillbugs, small beetles, and pieces of small worms. It will crawl up to the food, but I never takes it. PLEASE HELP!!! I don't know what to do and it has not eaten anything in 3 days!

 

[Nathan050793]

At this point, it's really persistence that will pay off. Keep trying with different, small live foods both aquatic and terrestrial. 3 days without food isn't much of a problem for salamanders, so it's not quite time to be worried. Perhaps someone can add to this whose had experience with two-lined sals.

 

[Risigan]

Ok, so my salamander still isn't eating and its enclosure is not working. Right now the substrate is still sand ut it is underwater. I then made a ramp of smooth river rocks. It won't go in the water at all and it just climbs on the glass. I think my salamander is more terrestrial. Any new food/habitat ideas?

 

[Azhael]

Pinhead crickets and fruitflies may work.
Please don´t take it as an attack, since this intends to be constrcutive, but if you don´t know how to care for this poor animal wouldn´t it be better to release it back where it belongs?? It´s the animal who will pay the price if things go wrong...
First thing one should do before getting any kind of animal is to research the species. Learn as much as possible, have everything ready, in other words, be prapared.

It probably won´t go into the water because its quality is not good enough. Caudates are VERY sensitive to water quality and they can sense when it´s not in excellent conditions.

 

[Risigan]

I am not taking anything as an attack. I just see it as helpful advice. I did a lot of research before I found the salamander (I have been looking for a while) but the info that if found does not seem to apply to this salamander. I found this salamander quite a distance from water and the semi-aquatic habitat that I found does not work. My original plan was fruitflies but won't they drown in the half land half water enviorment that my salamander is supposed to live in?

 

[Mac Myers]

Use flightless fruit flies and yeah.... some of them may drown depending on your set up. In a "well defined" dual water/land set up you won't lose very many. :happy:
Can you post some pictures of the set up and the little guy?

 

[pete]

Often times caudates can be a bit tramatized following the transition to a new set up, and they can lose their appetites for a few days. You have several great suggestions in this thread. I'd focus on trying to create the optimal stress-free habitat that you can create, and continue to try to feed him different items. Sure some things will drown and some will escape, but your perstistance will hopefully pay off.

 

[Risigan]

Thanks everybody! I would post a pic, but I don't know how. Can anybody tell me how to? Also, my tank is only 2 liters.

 

[Nathan050793]

I would post a pic, but I don't know how. Can anybody tell me how to?

Here, this may be helpful: http://www.caudata.org/forum/f1-gen...-forum-questions/55492-how-post-pictures.html

Good Luck!

 

[Azhael]

Just 2 l??? Ok, then water quality must be awful.
These don´t need lots of space, but certainly more than just 2l.

 

[tmarmoratus]

Yeah 5-gallon tank, minimum, in my opinion. 10 or 20 long would probably be ideal.

 

[Risigan]

Ok, so I will make the enclosure larger. Right now the water is a buried pan (larger than before) that I am replacing daily with bottled water. I just want to say that I got my tank size from the two-lined salamander caresheet from this site. It said that you can house 3-4 in a 2.5 gallon aquarium. Can anybody tell me how I should set up my new terrarium? Right now the substrate is the soil that I found the salamander in (no pesticides/fertilizers).

 

[Risigan]

Thank you everybody for your help and advice. Sadly, I decided that I wasn't ready for the salamander yet and I released it where I found it. Now I have a two-lined salamander larvea. I have had better luck with them in the past because I find that they eat better. I just need to know how often to feed my new larvea and what, other than earthworms, can I feed it. I will post pics soon, but until then, it is a little over 2in (larger than my adult salamander was!).