Common British newts?

[zaktaylor]

I am looking to rescue some common British newts which are currently living in a small concrete pool on the ground floor of a derelict factory. Being generally interested in newts I'd actually like to make a tank set up and keep them. I have the know how on setting up their tank and water parameters etc but I want to know if it would be okay to keep them as this factory will be being demolished in the not to distant future and I don't want them to die so does anyone have any experience keeping common British newts I'd be grateful for opinions and advice thanks.

 

[caleb]

'Common newts' usually means smooth newts (Lissotriton vulgaris), but they could also be palmate newts (L. helveticus).

It's not against the law to catch & keep either of these species (strictly speaking, you need the landowner's permission to take them).

Palmate newts can often be kept fully aquatic all year round, but smooth newts will almost always need to leave the water in the summer. So either you'd need to have a tank with a sizeable terrestrial area, or a separate terrestrial setup to move them to when they leave the water. Either way they'd appreciate some way of getting out of the water when they want to (like a floating platform).

When they're in the water they'll take any aquatic livefood, when they're on land they'll take any small terrestrial livefood. Earthworms are good in either case.

 

[zaktaylor]

hi thanks that is extremely helpful. have some images they are not the clearest so may not help with identification but shows what they live in and it really isn't great in my opinion. some one may be able to identify them they are in the location of the red circles sorry they could be clearer. zak

 

[Azhael]

In that first picture it looks like a L.helveticus male, but it's so hard to tell...
Are there any other breeding sites close by? I know it's legal for you to collect them but i would encourage you to move those wild animals to a suitable, new, close location rather than take them home. If you are interested in keeping the species it would be better in every sense if you acquired CB ones. If you were to collect from the wild, collecting eggs or young larvae would be far preferable than collecting adults. Wild populations need all the help they can get and reducing their adult numbers is not going to help them at all.
If you want to help, moving them to the closest suitable location would be the best course of action.

 

[zaktaylor]

I believe the building isn't going until early next year so il probably scout the location and find something that would be suitable and move them on awakening from hibernation as they have been moving out of the pool as winter approaches. but once again thanks for the help.