Triturus mamoratus habitat set-up

[greenwood09]

I have a 2 year old marbled newt in a 5 gallon tank. The substrate consists of eco earth covered with moss , oak leaves and pieces of cork bark to hide under. I also have two water dishes that the newt likes to soak in. I was trying to figure out if these newts require more of a semi aquatic setup ( 1/2 land 1/2 water) as they get bigger. He is doing great right now eating worms and he seems to be getting bigger everyday. Should I leave well enough alone and stick with the 2 shallow water dishes or try a semi-aquatic setup. Any advice would be appreciated thank you

 

[Mark]

I keep my marms in a similar setup to yours from late summer through to early spring. After a winter cooling you can place them in an aquatic setup. Some keepers keep them aquatic all year round but I find that given the choice they will leave the water so I choose to offer them two distinct phases. A 50/50 aquaterrarium isn't necessary, it's just a lot of work for no real benefit. Whenever I find terrestrial marmoratus in the wild they are usually buried deep under rotting logs with dry skin typical of newts that haven't been in the water for a long time. I doubt they take trips to the pool for a dip.

It's sounds like you just have the one so the first step should be to get some more so that you can really appreciate the marvellous breeding dress of the males and amazing courtship behaviour.

 

[greenwood09]

Thank you for the information I really appreciate it!