How moist for a tiger salamander

[Sarramy]

I have a newly morphed tiger salamander who is now in his new home. I've read that it's a good idea to only mist one side of the tank so to provide a moisture gradient but I haven't found into on how moist it should be. I have a humidity gauge, what percent should it read?

 

[Cephalotus]

Do you have a nice deep moist substrate for digging? Tigers usually self regulate humidity by burying/unburying themselves.

 

[jewett]

I have a moisture gradient in my Ambystoma habitats. I like the damp end to have enough water in it that I can wring a few drips of water out of the substrate when I squeeze it. Hope that helps!

HJ

 

[Wy Renegade]

Mine bury in soil that is dark from saturation, but not so wet that it has standing water in it. I usually water once a week and mist twice a day. Not sure that that helps you, but maybe it will.

 

[Sarramy]

This all helps a lot, thank you. His substrate is moist but maybe not moist enough. He digs a lot, we rarely see him anymore.

 

[JM29]

Well, there are different ways to create moisture gradients.

The most well-known is making a slope with the substrate. The deeper the animal buries, the wetter substrate it gets.

Another solution is green spots with live forrest moss. If you give this moss all the water it can retain, then you crate a wet point wher your salamander can hydrate if it wants (easier to see it by the evening).

A third solution : putting a leaf litter on the substrate and sraying it from time to time.

Measuring humidity of a substrate is difficult (where to measure?) and may be unuseful since the substrate is probably not homogenous. Moreover, it's difficult to know what value is preferable.

 

[Sarramy]

I do like the idea of using moss. I love the look of it so I was wanting to find some anyway. Is forest moss a particular species of moss? Or is there one you'd recommend? I'm going to need to order some online.

 

[JM29]

I don't know what mosses you can find in Colorado forests. Other people on the forum may give a better answer.

In western Europe, mosses of the genus Thuidium, which look like tiny cypress, are easily found around the base of big trees or dead wood. They stay alive for a long time in terrarium if they are sprayed with rather soft water and they don't need much light.

These mosses are easy to collect and they often contain small animalls (insects, worms) the salamanders can eat.

 

[jewett]

Well, there are different ways to create moisture gradients.

The most well-known is making a slope with the substrate. The deeper the animal buries, the wetter substrate it gets.

Another solution is green spots with live forrest moss. If you give this moss all the water it can retain, then you crate a wet point wher your salamander can hydrate if it wants (easier to see it by the evening).

A third solution : putting a leaf litter on the substrate and sraying it from time to time.
.

Also, simply pour aged/ treated water over the substrate on one end of the habitat until it is reaches the level of moisture you are seeking. I do this in addition to sloping the substrate (the most shallow end is also the most damp) and piling dried maples leaves in various spots. With this method I don't spray, just monitor the soil moisture by feel and add water as needed (about every other month as I use rubber maid containers for my Ambystomids and they hold moisture really well!)

I notice my tiger salamander prefers the middle section of the habitat most of the time, but my marbled salamander moves about her habitat to various levels of dampness and cover fairly often as I find her in a different spot whenever I look for her at feeding times (once to twice a week), but maybe this migration is because she is shy and feels threatened with my looking for her every few days...

HJ

 

[Sarramy]

I'm going to have to order moss online. I live in Colorado but in the southern desert area. Not a whole lot of moss around here.

I'll try pouring water on the substrate. Misting doesn't seem to be enough.