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Where are all the plethodontid keepers?

John

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This thread seems well worth reviving. Tim, as one of those small dart frog breeders :), I must apologise. However, I don't do it for the money, thankfully.

Back on topic though, I'm very curious about your list of 21 in so far as how you would rank them in terms of (a) outgoing/tameness and (b) interest level. I recognise that those two traits are not often associated, so two lists are probably in order please :).
 

sirus14

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I keep

Plethodon kentucki
Eurycea lucifuga
Eurycea longicuda
Pseudotriton ruber
Aneides aeneaus

I love the lungless salamanders
 

taherman

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Back on topic though, I'm very curious about your list of 21 in so far as how you would rank them in terms of (a) outgoing/tameness and (b) interest level. I recognise that those two traits are not often associated, so two lists are probably in order please :).

What do you mean by interest level? How interested I am in them? Or how interesting in general that I might rank their behavior?
 

John

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I am now a Plethodontid keeper.
 

peter5930

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I keep Aneides lugubris and Pseudotriton r. ruber.

Scotland is rather impoverished species-wise, being at the northern end of an island that was only briefly connected to mainland Europe after the ice sheet receded at the end of the last glaciation, so American and continental European species are equally exotic and appealing to me.
 

Devalight

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I have a dusky salamander (desmognathus fuscus) but rather regret getting it because I just learned I need completely different conditions to keep it in (see Newt and Salamander help forum). It is not doing well though, so will have to purchase a new tank, a pump, rocks (not any suitable here to just pick up). Wish there was more information out there on these species so I could have really known what their requirements were.
 

eljorgo

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I am also a big lover of the huge family. Mostly of the north American species. Sadly they are rarely represented in this side of the big Atlantic pond.. And all we got it Wild caught I'm with Plethodon cinereus, Plethodon cylindraceus, Plethodon cf. richmondi and Desmognathus fuscus.
Have kept before the Batrachoseps atenuattus. These are the most common and cheaper.
They go for about 14-20euro each (19 to 28 USD) there is more offer of these, eventually also appear Eurycea longicauda, lucifuga and Pseudotriton r. ruber but those go for 75 to 120euro each (105 to 170USD) not to mention its ALL WC... so keeping a good collection of Plethodontidae animals in this far side is for the Rich citizen and im not one of them lol. So yeah I'm considering going to live to USA hahaha:proud:
Cheers,
 

peter5930

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My Aneides lugubris were CB in the UK, and although I don't know the precise back-story to the Pseudotriton r. ruber, they came from a UK keeper rather than being straight from the wild, and I know of a UK business that's started breeding them.

Hopefully I'll be able to breed my plethodontids eventually and add to the supply of CB animals.
 

heavysleaze

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I keep the following:
Desmognathus monticola
Desmognathus carolinensis
Plethodon jordani or metcalfi
Plethodon cylindraceus
Pseudotriton ruber schenki


I'm a big fan of these guys.
 
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I thought it was time to revive my thread.

As of right now, I have the following Plethodontids:

Cave Salamander (Eurycea lucifuga)
Long-tailed Salamander (Eurycea longicauda longicauda)
Three-lined Salamander (Eurycea guttolineata)
Northern Red Salamander (Pseudotriton ruber ruber)

I've now had experience keeping Salamandrids, Ambystomids, and Plethodontids. I've got to say, Plethodontids are my favorites by far!
 

Devalight

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I have a dusky salamander (desmognathus fuscus) but rather regret getting it because I just learned I need completely different conditions to keep it in (see Newt and Salamander help forum). It is not doing well though, so will have to purchase a new tank, a pump, rocks (not any suitable here to just pick up). Wish there was more information out there on these species so I could have really known what their requirements were.


Updated: My dusky is doing so much better it its half water/half land setup. It hides most of the time but it came out yesterday to hunt crickets. Looking much better, very alert, cool looking salamander!

I wonder if more than one can be kept in a 20 gallon tank?
 

fishkeeper

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One of my main reasons for not attempting them is they are supposedly very sensitive to higher temperatures. The salamandrids I keep were all selected due to hardiness, and I can rest assured they won't keel over even when temps get above the mid 70's. Plethodontids look delicate.

I'd be interested in hearing what species are particularly outgoing and interesting, as well.

I briefly kept a WC Batrachoseps attenuatus. Very neat in the way they capture prey. They simply do not miss!
 
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One of my main reasons for not attempting them is they are supposedly very sensitive to higher temperatures. The salamandrids I keep were all selected due to hardiness, and I can rest assured they won't keel over even when temps get above the mid 70's. Plethodontids look delicate.

I'd be interested in hearing what species are particularly outgoing and interesting, as well.

I briefly kept a WC Batrachoseps attenuatus. Very neat in the way they capture prey. They simply do not miss!

It depends on the species. Some species don't really become active until it stays above the mid 70's. From personal experience, I've found that Pseudotriton ruber is much more heat-tolerant that most people believe. Plethodontids are a huge and varied group.

As far as outgoing, Eurycea lucifuga is very outgoing and Pseudotriton ruber is when kept in an aquatic setup, although it is not necessary to keep them in an aquatic setup.

I've been wanting to acquire some Batrachoseps. I'd just like to try any western Plethodontid, especially the Ensatina eschscholtzii ssp.
 

Greatwtehunter

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Like Thomas said, heat tolerance depends on the species. For example; E. guttolineata, E. longicauda, P. glutinosus (slimies) complex, some members of the P. jordani complex, and even E. lucifuga to an extent can tolerate mid 70's just fine. During the summer herping season, the species that I mentioned make up the majority of what I find when searching for woodland salamanders. Heck, I don't really start finding them till temps stay above 72-74'f.
 
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