Question: Arboreal Not Eating

[wangtrevor]

I took it from a drying pond and it is pretty small. So far i have tried de-legged pinhead crickets, de-legged small crickets, tubliflex worms, and meal worms.
Should i try fruit flies since there were a ton on the pond weed? Also, i was told to try black worms since they were bigger. What else would be good that i could find at a pet store or in a garden/field in Santa Clara,CA

 

[arianja]

if you know what species it is that might help people give you correct advise

 

[wangtrevor]

if you know what species it is that might help people give you correct advise

What species do you think it is?
LPS identified it as a Arboreal but idk if i should trust them.

 

[Azhael]

Given that it´s a metamorph, why not leave it where it was and let it fend for itself rather that take it home and face the possibility of it not adapting well? If it had been a larvae, then alright, but this little guy should not be faced by its pond drying up.

 

[Revan]

Are you planning on adopting him for the long haul? If not please put him back asap.

 

[wangtrevor]

Are you planning on adopting him for the long haul? If not please put him back asap.

i may keep him. the pond i found him in is completely dry and nearby lakes are fille dwith bass, panfish or tiger salamders which are huge. if he does not start eating(stress?) i may just put him at the pond or a nearby lake

 

[Revan]

i may keep him. the pond i found him in is completely dry and nearby lakes are fille dwith bass, panfish or tiger salamders which are huge. if he does not start eating(stress?) i may just put him at the pond or a nearby lake

Sorry about the late reply, I should have checked back here sooner.

You really need to decide what your are doing with the little guy right now. The longer you keep the poor animal captive, the more chance it won't survive in the wild.

If he doesn't eat for another few weeks and you put him back, he's going to be underfed and stressed out. I've seen salamanders refuse food for well over a month.

Try anything small enough for the food source; bloodworms, black worms, even if you can only get frozen foods, they will be sufficient. Try and not handle him, or move around his setup as this will stress the morph out.

Let us know how you get on please.

 

[wangtrevor]

Sorry about the late reply, I should have checked back here sooner.

You really need to decide what your are doing with the little guy right now. The longer you keep the poor animal captive, the more chance it won't survive in the wild.

If he doesn't eat for another few weeks and you put him back, he's going to be underfed and stressed out. I've seen salamanders refuse food for well over a month.

Try anything small enough for the food source; bloodworms, black worms, even if you can only get frozen foods, they will be sufficient. Try and not handle him, or move around his setup as this will stress the morph out.

Let us know how you get on please.

The fruit flies have been dissapearing. I cant find any in my house running around. Im not sure if they are escaping so I taped some of the air holes that are big. I would watch but he doesnt eat when i watch.

 

[nwmnnaturalist]

You may try Springtails, which you can buy online or find under moist rotting logs. Otherwise, I would find a proper habitat to release it in.

 

[peter5930]

I can't speak for this species, but my Aneides lugubris have always been a bit meh when it comes to worms, and they love small insects that twitch around like fruit flies and springtails. They're very good at catching small insects with their tongues, and you might find that they've evolved to respond more strongly to insect prey than to worms since they're not a particularly fossorial species and worms rarely climb trees.

 

[grius]

I have noticed the same as Peter with A.lugubris. I have however only tried small cut pieces lob so far and have dendro as next test. But crickets and flies they gladly hunt down, and woodlice as I put in a little 5cm high cup on the floor which they eat from.