Typhlotriton spelaeus

[nate]

Here are some photos of my Typhlotriton spelaeus. This one is a male that I've had the longest and affectionately refer to as "Mr. Pink" (Reservoir Dogs). But don't let the name fool you, Mr. Pink is one brutal salamander who has been known to attack and almost kill tankmates. One morning I found him with over half the tail of a tankmate swallowed...he was slowly consuming the other male alive! Upon seperating them, the victim's tail was badly digested.

Here he is eating a worm...hard to tell where the worm ends and he begins eh?
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Patrolling his container
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A closeup of the head: the muscular bulges behind the eye are enlarged jaw muscles which identify him as a male.
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A recently metamorphosed individual, still brown in color and eyes not yet grown over by skin.
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[russ]

Nice pics. I use to find larva by the hundreds, but it took me a while to find an adult. I was wasting my time looking on cave walls when they were under the rubble on the ground all the time.

RUSS

 

[nate]

Haha, I did the same thing. That "climbing on cave walls" description of Typhlotriton and Eurycea lucifuga is pretty overblown. They're almost always amid the rubble on the ground.

This is one of my favortie species, for sure. I'm going to make a serious run at breeding a few different varieties of them. They can vary quite a bit in head shape, color, and degree of blindness/eye degeneration.

 

[ralf]

Very nice pics, Nate. Did you finally get a digital camera?

Ralf

 

[nate]

Hi Ralf, no...just borrowed one for the night. I don't see myself getting one anytime soon because a quality camera is at least 300$, and that money is better spent on field trips eh?

 

[ralf]

True. I was just hoping to see more pics of your "inmates".

Ralf