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 Red
Newts
(Amphibia aquaria, A. vivaria, and A.
terraria)
Salamanders, newts and caecilians (a
legless, salamander-type animal) all belong
in the order Amphibia along with
frogs and toads, ancestors of the first
aquatic vertebrates to begin to colonize
that other earthly environment--land.
Comprising a mere 350 species out of the
4000 or so known species of amphibians,
salamanders and newts are found only in the
Americas and in the temperate zones of
Northern Africa, Asia and Europe.
There is little distinction between the
amphibians known as "newt" and "salamander."
What is called a salamander in the Americas
may well be called a newt in Europe. Some
apply the name "salamander" to the fully
aquatic and fully terrestrial animals, while
applying the name "newt" to those animals
that live on land from late summer through
winter, entering water to breed in the
spring. For the sake of simplicity, we will
refer to all types as "salamanders."
Often mistaken for lizards, salamanders
(sometimes called "sallies" by people who
raise them) have soft, moist skin covering
their long bodies and even longer tails.
They have no scales, claws, or external ear
openings. The larva are sometimes confused
with the frog tadpoles, but their heads do
not get as large as the tadpoles. They have
feather gill structures present just behind
the head on the sides of the neck area, and
their front legs develop first; frogs lack
the external gill structures, and their hind
legs erupt before their forelegs.
The majority of the salamanders and their
larva are carnivorous, taking in insects,
small invertebrates; the large adults eat
fish, frogs and other salamanders.
Secretive, essentially voiceless animals,
they are chiefly nocturnal, hiding under
fallen logs and damp leaf litter during the
daylight hours. The larvae begin feeding
immediately after hatching, devouring tiny
aquatic animals.
There are three types of salamanders:
totally aquatic, semi-aquatic, and
completely terrestrial; some of the latter
are arboreal. The aquatic live out their
complete life cycles in the water. The
semi-aquatic live primarily on land,
hibernating during the winter, and enter the
water as breeding season begins. After
mating and egging is complete, they once
again return to land. The terrestrial
salamanders spend their entire lives on
land, rarely entering the water though they
are never far from it. Early born young will
reach the terrestrial stage by the end of
the year; late born young usually overwinter
as larvae, metamorphosing the following
spring.
Habitats
Aquatic (Aquaria)
Beginning with a sturdy waterproof aquarium,
washed aquarium gravel is used to line the
tank. Lay it two inches deep in the front of
the tank, gradually sloping it up to three
inches in back (or lay out the aquarium from
side to side). Aquatic plants can be
planted, but bear in mind that the larger
salamanders are rough on their environment,
and you may regularly need to replace the
plants. Check with your local aquatics store
for plants.
Semi-Aquatic (Vivaria) - pictured
above
A large sturdy aquarium will need to be
divided in half; a piece of glass or
Plexiglas can be glued (use aquarium
silicone cement) in the middle of the tank.
Fill the water half with an inch of aquarium
gravel or coarse sand; some water plants may
be placed in here as well. Create a sloping
rock gradient so the salamander can climb
out of the water and get onto the land. The
land side should ideally have a couple of
holes drilled in the bottom of the tank to
ensure good drainage. Put coarse sand or
washed aquarium gravel in the bottom, to a
depth of about two inches. Top with sterile
potting soil, peat moss, or garden loam
(available at nurseries). Top this with a
piece of turf or clumps of moss. Place
pieces of bark, rocks, "rock" caves, or clay
pot shards around for the salamander to hide
and sleep under. Some small potted
terrestrial plants may be planted on this
side.
You
will need a fitted lid for the tank.
Salamanders can climb, using body secretions
for suction. The lid is also a useful place
on which the required lighting can be
placed.
Terrestrial (Terraria)
Set up the tank as for the land area above,
but use the entire tank. Terrestrial sallies
do require high humidity, so plants and moss
will help achieve this, as will a dish of
water. The evaporation will help maintain
humidity levels. As with the vivaria,
the terraria also requires a lid.
Heating
Salamanders from temperate climates will not
need special heating, as long as they can be
kept at the same temperatures they would
encounter in their native habitat. Tropical
and semi-tropical species do require
supplemental heating; this is especially
crucial when keeping tropical and
subtropical species in climates that get
very cold at night.
Heating can easily be accomplished by use of
an aquarium water heater and lighting. Using
a submersible water heater will both warm
the water and increase the humidity through
evaporation. Terraria and the land
area in vivaria may be heated by use
of a light (but a white light must never be
lit at night). Terraria may also be
heated and humidified by placing a
submersible heater in a bottle or jar of
water.
Undertank heating pads may also be used, as
may heat lamps. Extreme care must be taken
with heat lamps to be sure that they do not
kill the plants, and that they do not make
the enclosure too hot. While lamps can be
moved closer and farther away from the tank,
which allows for some adjustment, you have
to be there to do it, and several hours at
too-high a temperature may easily kill the
plants--and the salamanders.
A temperature gradient must be provided in
order for the salamanders to thermo-regulate
themselves; they do this by moving back and
forth between warmer and cooler areas. This
is easily accomplished by designating one
side of the tank as the warm side. The
resulting natural gradient leans towards the
cool side.
In the wild, there is usually a noticeable
drop in temperature at night, so it is best
to drop the temperature in the enclosure by
as much as 12º F at night.
Lighting
While salamanders are nocturnal (except some
aquatic species during breeding season),
light is essential for them in the
regulation of their seasonal clocks--very
important if you plan to breed them. As
sunlight filtering in through the aquarium
glass may increase the temperature too much,
a broad-spectrum light should be used. These
lights will also benefit any plants you have
in the tank. Using an appliance timer, set
the light to go on and off automatically,
increasing and decreasing the number of
hours it is on based on the photoperiod
found in the animal's native environment.
If
the lights are mounted inside the aquarium
lid, the opening must be covered with a mesh
to prevent the salamanders from coming into
direct contact, or even too close to, the
light bulb.
Ventilation
Ventilation must be provided without causing
drafts. This will prevent the atmosphere
inside the tank from becoming foul, and will
help reduce the organisms growing in the
water or soil. Ideally, both the top and the
upper part of at least two sides of the tank
should be mesh, of a gauge just small enough
to prevent the sallie from squeezing
through. Acrylic and Plexiglas tanks can be
drilled with rows of quarter-inch holes.
Aquatic and semi-aquatic tanks can be
ventilated with an aquarium aerator. This
consists of a pump to which an air line is
attached, and an airstone (or bubbler) is
attached to the line and placed inside the
water. By sending molecules of water up into
the air, it causes air circulation, and
helps humidify the tank. It also oxygenates
the water, and is an essential part of
raising larvae. Note that even with the
humidity created by the airstone and body of
water inside the tank, most species will
require supplemental misting several times a
day. Without the proper humidity (about 50%)
salamanders will soon desiccate and die.
Water Filtration
The water will get dirty fast, and so must
be filtered or changed on an almost daily
basis. The type of filter you need will
depend upon the volume of water in the tank.
The smaller the filter-to-water volume
ratio, the more often the filter medium will
need to be changed. Creatively set up, the
return water can be rerouted to simulate a
waterfall or tiny stream.
Food
Aquatic salamanders respond to odor,
movement or touch; terrestrial ones respond
to movement. While captive species will
often happily eat easily-available mealworms
and crickets, the worms do not have the
complete nutrition the sallies require, and
must only be fed as a part of a well-rounded
diet.
You
can become yourself a hunter, searching for
food under rotten logs and other debris.
Pillbugs, beetles, earthworms, small
millipedes, insects, aphids for newly
metamorphosed larvae, small moths and other
night-flying insects are suitable for native
terrestrial and semi-aquatic sallies.
Aquatic sallies require small aquatic
invertebrates which can be netted from ponds
and streams. Small crustaceans such as
Daphnia and water fleas can be found in
waters with high algal content; check ponds
during summer months for these, or buy them
at your local aquarium shop, along with
brine shrimp. DO NOT introduce carnivorous
insect larvae such as dragonflies or water
beetles, which may eat tiny salamander
larvae.
Feed daily only as much as the animals will
consume at one time. In terrestrial tanks, a
few living leftovers can left in the tank,
but no new food should be offered until the
leftovers are consumed. Feeding a wide
variety of prey will help insure that the
sallies get a balanced diet. Non-hibernating
species should have their food dipped in
vitamins two to three times a week during
the winter months.
Since salamanders are attracted to prey by
its movement, they do not take readily to
killed prey. Some may be induced to eat
small strips of raw beef or dead prey, but
this should not be relied upon. Some prey
may be grown at home: fruit flies, mealworms
and beetles, earthworms, whiteworms, and
crickets. The benefit to raising your own
prey is that you do not have to worry about
not having to go out and collect prey, and
you can ensure your prey eat healthy foods,
thus making them healthier for your sallies.
Handling
In a word: don't! Sallies are
not suitable for holding or petting. The
oils in our skin is toxic to them--they
cannot tolerate the salts or the heat of our
hands. In addition, many salamanders secrete
toxic fluid from their skin which can cause
intense irritation to human mucous
membranes.
When
they must be handled (such as when selecting
one at a pet store, transferring it from
it's travel container to permanent
enclosure, or when injured), your hands must
first be washed in hot soapy water, being
careful to remove all traces of the soap.
Ideally, a fish net should be used to remove
them from the water, and the net manipulated
to enable you to check over the animal. If
you must hold them, gently scoop them up,
and take care to fully support them with
your hand, using your second hand to assure
they do not fall. Wash your hands thoroughly
again when you are done handling them.
A note on keeping different species together
in one tank: many species cannot tolerate
the toxins produced by other species.
Putting them together may result in the
deaths of one or more species.
Transport salamanders in a sturdy box (such
as a plastic shoe box with holes drilled in
the lid) outfitted with damp moss, and keep
it from getting too cold or too hot.
Hibernation
Salamanders from cooler climates bury
themselves in soil or in the mud at the
bottom of ponds, going deep enough to avoid
frost and to maintain an even temperature.
During this time, their metabolism is
greatly reduced, thus reducing the amount of
energy (calories) burned in the effort just
staying alive.
Failure to hibernate will not only affect
their ability to breed, but it may shorten
the animals' life, as well. Hibernation is
an important part of their life cycle, one
we may not yet fully understand. Although it
may not be much fun having an "empty" tank
sitting around for several months each year,
the anticipation of the spring emergence
should be enough to ensure your patience!
Books
of Interest
-
Salamanders and Newts: A Complete
Introduction, by Byron Bjorn (1988). NJ:
TFH Publications
- The
Completely Illustrated Atlas of Reptiles
and Amphibians, Fritz Jurgen Obst, et.
al. (1988). NJ: TFH Publications
- Keeping
and Breeding Amphibians, by Chris
Mattison (1992). NY: Sterling Publishing
Inc.
-
Breeding Terrarium Animals, by Elke
Zimmermann. NJ: TFH Publications
-
Encyclopedia of Reptiles and Amphibians,
by John Breen. NJ: TFH Publications
-
Axolotls, by Peter Scott. NJ: TFH
Publications
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