Japanese Fire belly Newts - feeding

[Katiebertrand3]

Hello!

I am raising 7 Japanese fire belly efts. I am new to this. My 25+ year old newts decided to have babies and now I am raising them as a complete newbie. I was able to get them to the terrestrial eft stage. After weeks of not eating I finally got them to eat springtails and flightless fruitflies. I want to feed them live earthworms but they will not eat with me hand feeding them. Is there any way to cut up the worms and just leave them in their aquarium. Or how do I get them to eat? It seems like they just eat things that are left in the aquarium and alive. Any help with this stage would be wonderful.

Thanks,
Katie

 

[Herpin Man]

Yes, you should be able to leave chopped earthworms for them. Although I don't work with fire bellies, I have had success feeding terrestrial marbled newts that way. Chop the worms small, drop them in the enclosure, and mist to encourage them to hunt. You could try putting the worms on a small plate, but I don't find it necessary.
Other small foods to try include tiny dubia, crickets, isopods, and bean beetles.