Where do all the eggs go to?

[jesper]

Continuation of earlier discussion at fire-bellied newts/yellowed-tailed c.e pompei:

I do not expect breeders to act like petshops, not at all. I was merely curious as to what happens with all the eggs from breeding couples. The female lay what 200-400 eggs?
That is a lot of newts even though some die and I expect that no hobbyist keeper can raise and keep all those newts from one single season?
So what happens with them all?
I mean if they were "shared" there would not be such a demand on some newts.

Now for example:
I live in sweden where there are two species, vulgaris and cristatus. Both are protected species, but they are easy to come by if you know how and where to find them.
Now theres obviously lots of people who wants cristatus and vulgaris and are willing to trade.
But there's none willing to sell at least not very easily.
Now that is disturbing to me.

 

[ralf]

Hi Jesper,
these numbers of newt offspring you are trying to estimate do not exist in my opinion.
A lot of species respectively individuals will not even reach these numbers of eggs. No sure-fire solutions for a successful breeding of any species respectively group.
In my opinion it is also the breeder's decision what she/he wants to do with their offspring (keep, trade, sell or simply give away).

Ralf

 

[jesper]

I couldnt agree more it is the breeders decision what to do with the offspring(!), however that is not the point.

My point was not to offend breeders

, but to understand if there is a lack of cb newts due to a lack of breeders, simply because some species are really difficult to breed in captivity or just miscommunication.

I have seen several posts stating that its a pain raising all of the eggs(well why not sell/give it away?), and another stating that there are a lack of serious people that are willing to buy eggs or juveniles and that only will buy adults(really?).

Now to me that would seem like some kind of miscommunication breeder-keeper. To me it seems to be a lot of serious keepers not finding what they want, and breeders thinking there are no serious keepers who wants to raise newts/pay for the costs of raising newts for them. When I am talking about paying I mean to pay for the actual costs, no profits.

Maybe I'm underestimating the amount of people who want newts or I am overestimating the number of successful breeders or the amount of surviving metamorphs. Please fill me in!

 

[jennifer]

To some extent, you overestimate the number of eggs. More so, you probably overestimate the number of breeders. There are lots of newt-keepers, but only a few people lucky enough to have the proper conditions, space, time, and luck to breed them. Have you found ANY breeders in Scandanavia?

 

[jennifer]

Another point: you find it disturbing that breeders are willing to trade, but not sell their eggs or offspring. There is a lot of hassle involved in the packing/shipping itself. Most people will not go to that much trouble unless they see a high probability of benefit to themself. The money is never going to pay for the time it takes, it's only worthwhile (for most) if they can get something in trade.

For the record, I have done exactly what you suggest: I had excess eggs, posted an ad, and sent eggs to over a dozen people that responded. However, I did this knowing that (a) most of the eggs will die (b) most people will never return the favor, and (c) nobody would pay enough to justify the time it takes to pack and ship them. (For the record, some did return the favor!)

You see the problems? I'm sure for most breeders it is much easier to trade with people they know, or just let excess eggs go to waste.

 

[john]

Actually, while living in the UK from September 2000 to September 2003 I made a lot of contacts (most are good friends - you know who you are , strangely most of have names beginning with M) and I must say now that going by the UK there are a lot of captive bred animals of many species. The breeders are often very willing to distribute/sell their eggs and offspring and I will admit that while living in the UK I could have lain my hands on almost any species I desired. I also had no problems cutting down my own collection when that was necessary. I know in Germany the situation is quite similar. Why wouldn't this be the case elsewhere in Europe?

As for making money from newts, when you add up the food and housing costs any hobbyist breeding newts will never make a profit, with the possible exception of two certain German breeders of a particular species and a notorious British man .

I think the main problem is finding the people who live in your country. The Internet is a helpful tool but I have found that many newt and salamander enthusiasts aren't online. Keep looking though. I can understand your reasoning because I felt similarly in the late 90s.

Good luck.

 

[jesper]

Well I can find no breeders close to me(Sweden) on the net, I am right now trying to find them through the local herpetology association. They seem to be mostly about reptiles though. There must be someone...

As Jen says its a lot easier to trade. However if you dont have anything to trade you are in a catch-22 situation

Now I guess I'll just have to go charm some of the european breeders I know of. Hi John! Hi Ralf! Hi Paul!

If anyone feel left out, plz do send me a mail.