Check your lightwells!

[ralf]

Time to check the lightwells and similar structures in and around the house in the northern temperate zones.

I live in an urban area with lots of gardens and "green" in the neighbourhood. No pond nearby. Therefore I was quite surprised to spot a newt in one of our lightwells whilst checking some of my tanks on a window sill in the basement (red circle in first picture). We moved to this house two years ago and I have never found any newts until now.

A quick inspection revealed the presence of yet another newt on the bottom of the well.
So I ended up with two skinny males of two different species (Triturus (Mesotriton) alpestris and Triturus (Lissotriton) vulgaris).

The newts were released and the inspection of all other wells didn't turn up any more animals. I will check more often now and hmmmm, isn't this yet another good reason to start digging up a pond in the garden

?

 

[dane]

thats cool, what have the temps been around by you lately?

 

[jennifer]

Wow, amazing. Those poor skinny newts were clearly just trying to get into your basement. Your basement probably has a local reputation as newt paradise! I see the one on the window looking enviously at those fat captives.

Get digging, Ralf

 

[juraj]

Lol. They have come to suggest it to you.

 

[ralf]

Dane, air temperature has been ranging from 4 to 7° C (39 to 45° F) at night. Lots of rain. This last season doesn't really deserve the name "winter".

Jen and Juraj, two well-founded theories

.

But it may also be a proof for the basic principle of "newtivity". Aggregations of caudates show a strong tendency to grow and attract even more animals. At least that's how its been in my basement for years now.

I have to admit, however, that most animals reached the newtery in small plastic containers or through being layed as eggs and hatching.

 

[annmarie]

sounds better than finding newts in a subpump area, which i found once.

Its alway intersting to see where these guys wind up, sometimes very strange places.