Planning for a Tylototriton keichowensis

[Newtchaos]

Hello everyone!

I’ve decided to further investigate this species as it appeals to my quite a bit. Firstly I want to cover tank size, I was looking at getting an Exo-terra Habisphere which has base dimensions of 18 inches long, 12 inches deep and 12 inches tall or a normal Exo-terra with similar dimensions. I know that these guys are mostly terrestrial however still slightly more aquatic than their relatives T.shanjing. I was planning on having either 3/4 land and 1/4 water or 4/5 land and 1/5 water but I think a very small water area would be a good idea (correct me if I’m wrong though!). For the terrestrial side I was thinking about getting a relatively small diameter cork bark tube and lining it with sphagnum moss. I was also planning on planting the tank, nothing crazy mind you but I think a few ferns and some mosses would look really nice and provide lots of cover and shade. The cork bark tube would be at 45-60 degree angle from the back corner of the tank and the sides lined with ferns whilst the top of the bark and the entrance to the tube would be surrounded with moss. Now I could leave the cork tube open at either side but would the newt feel more secure if the only opening was at the front of the tube? It would not take much effort for me to seal off one end of the tube with black aquarium grade silicone to give it a more cave like feel. for the aquatic portion I wasn’t planning anything to fancy and I could either create a separate area with a thin pond liner and or use something like Exo-terra Biodrain and mound it towards the dry area so the water can get to the plants roots as well as establish some biological filtration (only thing would be getting some flow to properly oxygenate it which I am toying with the idea of making something along the lines of trickle chamber where water would be pumped towards the end the land portion and a downward slope would encourage trickling down towards the the small reservoir and insure a extremely well oxygenated area for the bacteria to proliferate).

From a dietary perspective I was planning on using red wrigglers but upon reading other thread here I find they seem to distasteful so I could either order some european night crawlers or go digging armed with some tweezers for some local earthworms to star a culture bit I think captive bred worms would give me much more peace of mind. I was planning on supplementing the diet with blood worms and mysis shrimp and occasional crickets to get it moving around a little and hunting.


Do you guys have any suggestions on anything or something that I missed?

You’ll see me mention Exo-terra a few times, this is because I can easily find it locally and affordably and over the years have had very few let downs from the companies products (but I’m sure many of you feel differently about them )

 

[dutch guy]

Hi, our shanjin's are onely in the winter out of the water, the rest of the Year they are aquatic.

Verstuurd vanaf mijn LENNY2 met Tapatalk

 

[Newtchaos]

Hi, our shanjin's are onely in the winter out of the water, the rest of the Year they are aquatic.

Verstuurd vanaf mijn LENNY2 met Tapatalk

Hmm I was under the impression that the species where more terrestrial than anything else (not just the shanjins but the keichowensis as well) should I go for more of a 50/50 setup?

 

[dutch guy]

Hmm I was under the impression that the species where more terrestrial than anything else (not just the shanjins but the keichowensis as well) should I go for more of a 50/50 setup?

The shanjing tank is 2/3 land and 1/3 water at a level of 10 cm

Verstuurd vanaf mijn LENNY2 met Tapatalk

 

[dutch guy]

I' m talking about adult shanjing' s now.

Verstuurd vanaf mijn LENNY2 met Tapatalk

 

[Chinadog]

An 18"x12" tank is way too small for for any kind of split land/water to work, in fact I'd say its way too small for T. kweichowensis as well.

 

[Newtchaos]

An 18"x12" tank is way too small for for any kind of split land/water to work, in fact I'd say its way too small for T. kweichowensis as well.

Thanks for chiming in Chinadog, what size would you recommend? Im in residence so I think the largest I can go is 24 inches long, 18 inches deep and 12 inches tall. would this be adequate for a single specimen and 2/3 land 1/3 water set up?

 

[dutch guy]

Why don't you reed the carsheet first ?

Verstuurd vanaf mijn LENNY2 met Tapatalk

 

[Chinadog]

24"x12" is much better, Kweicows are quite big newts when fully grown.

Here's the care sheet for T. shanjing, their requirements are broadly similar, although some people find kweichows to be more aquatic. You can always alter the set up slightly to suit the requirements of your particular animals once you have them.

Caudata Culture Species Entry - Tylototriton shanjing

 

[Newtchaos]

Thanks guys!

I actually have read that sheet before and the recent article in Reptiles Magazine about the the very similar T.shanjing.

So sticking with the original plan above I think the ferns on either side of the bark tube are going to be Athyrium niponicum and the moss for on the log and around it will most likely be carpet moss and for the water area I was thinking Pothos sp and the floating plant Limnobium laevigatum.

Any thoughts on the trickle chamber ideology?

Would sealing the rear end of the cork bark tube with aquarium grade silicone (black) make them feel more secure?

 

[Newtchaos]

I forgot to mention, The school the newt will be staying at requires us to clean the room nightly with vinegar... But vinegar can bother my asthma () so they will let me use another cleaner. I was thinking diluted lemon juice would suffice and have a nice aroma but I was wondering if there are any relatively safe disinfectants to use around the newts, not in the tank itself but the floors, bathroom etc.