C.e ensicauda eggs

[TJ]

And don't anybody bother to ask how I "got them to breed" because it would have been a surprise if they hadn't!

I acquired several females last week as they were already..."gravid"....was that the word? And the males were courting like mad.

The eggs were laid on plastic roping rather than on the available live plants, just as in the case of my C.e.popei. This was a tip I got months ago from an experienced C.e.e/p keeper. Thanks Nate!

 

[TJ]

Oops, yet another accidently oversized pic. But if you look carefully, you can see the egg just above the newt's head.

 

[TJ]

I turn my back for just one minute and...!!!

But seriously folks, these C.e.e females just won't quit laying! As I reached in today to move these six to a more permanent setup with another group of five, I was surprised to found yet another major deposit of eggs. I'd only just removed another batch from the same container a few days before.

My major problem now is that I haven't been keeping track of which tubs have C.e.e eggs and which have C.e.p eggs...and for a few of tubs I'll have to wait until the larvae morph to know for sure. Oh well, not that I expect any sympathy from any of you!

Well, if it'd make you feel any better, one thing I can't brag about is my C.p, of which I have 6 groups of 4-6 individuals...and not a single egg for the whole time I've had them (around half a year)

It'd be interesting to know what sort of plastic sheeting/rope works best, preferably through pics. I've only every really used this plastic rope used for tying up packages. I split each strand into three.

And thanks John for kindly downsizing those oversized pics for me!

 

[TJ]

Just took a peek inside my C.e.e tank to find out what was going on...and they were down to some serious business! Two couples courting at once while a female was busy laying eggs.

 

[aaron]

Are those Triturus karelinii in the bottom left of the last picture?

~Aaron

 

[TJ]

Meanwhile, a couple of newts were furiously wrestling eggs off the plastic strips to eat. I failed to get a good pic of this. But here's a blurry one of a newt with a mouthful of plastic:

Today's takings? Around 25 eggs!

Which lifts my spirits a bit because this morning my dog removed a bunch of plastic strips containing 17 eggs out of a tub and left them on the carpet to dry. I don't suppose newt eggs can dry completely and still be viable like brine shrimp eggs? Wishful thinking on my part, maybe, but I've put them back in water just in case!

 

[TJ]

Aaron, didn't notice your post until now. That you see there is Griffith's book ''The Newts and Salamnders of Europe," badly chewed up by one of my dogs. I don't think I have a single hardback that's managed to escape her teeth! Perhaps if Griffiths sees this post he'll send me a complementary new copy for promoting his book here...

But seriously though, I don't know if I'm losing more newt eggs to the dogs (which sometimes use the floor-level egg tubs as a water bowl) or to the predatory egg-eating newts.

On the subject of Triturus, Aaron, I should tell you that among my 4 as-yet-unidentified yellow-throated ones, the two males are again in breeding dress (is that what it's called?).

 

[TJ]

Here's how the larvae look now:

The egg-laying has tapered off, especially after having sadly lost my most productive female to bloat.

 

[aaron]

Wow, they look soo much like mine

. Nice pics, once again, Tim.

~Aaron

 

[aaron]

Doh! I meant they look like my popei. Stupid me for not reading.

~Aaron

 

[chris]

Mine look like yours on the topside, but their underbelly is brown with regular orange blotches.. They are cee aren't they
I don't have a digital camera so no pics
Chris