Cynops ensicauda popei/C. orientalis morphs.

[joseph]

More than half the C.e.popei larvae decided to morph out in a space of a few days. They are settling in but it is hard to tell how much they are eating...I've offered aphids, chopped bits of worm, and springtails. They've shown interest in food but have yet to eat in my presence.

Trying to fly.

And Cynops orientalis morphs. The larger of these two is maybe 8 months old and significantly larger than the C. ensicauda morphs.

 

[ralf]

Nice animals and nice photos, Joseph!

 

[jennifer]

I hope you don't mind, Joseph, I'm going to tack my photos onto the same post. Here are some more C. ensicauda popei morphs. Mine seem to want to fly also, mostly by perching themselves on the highest bit of plant they can find, then jumping off when I open the tub.

 

[joseph]

Thanks Ralf and nice photos Jenn! I assume the spotting on these guys develops as they grow? That will be interesting to watch. How well do they take to that method of feeding?

 

[jennifer]

Yes, the spotting develops as they grow. Most of them prefer to stay on land, but there are usually a couple that learn to eat blackworms out of the dish. Naturally, the worm-eaters grow faster. The rest of them are getting fruit flies and woodlice.

 

[joseph]

Are these woodlice the babies of run of the mill pillbugs or are they those new dwarf white woodlice?

 

[jennifer]

They are the small white tropical woodlice. There are 2 problems with the tropical woodlice. At room temp they reproduce too slowly - I've had them for a a year and I finally have enough to actually use them as feeders. And they tend to burrow and hide well, so the newts don't have the easiest time finding them. I have no idea what fraction of them actually get eaten.

 

[TJ]

Nice going, Jen and Joseph!

How do the (flightless?) fruit flies compare with say cricket hatchlings? Do the morphs go for them in a big way? I'm currently feeding crickets to my morphed Cynops cyanurus (dozens now!), but it's getting hard to acquire fresh hatchlings these days for some reason and the cost of the ones that are available is excessive. Are you raising your own fruitflies?

I have one tank from last year in which the small white tropical woodlice have finally started to appear in nice numbers, but I haven't been doing anything in particular to spur them on. Are you providing any particular food for the woodlice to proliferate, like yeast or something? How moist do you allow the soil to get with them?

 

[joseph]

Tim: You could try breeding a few adults yourself...

Do either of you guys bother with vitamin/mineral supplements for the morphs? I know frog keepers seem to make a big deal out of it but I'm guessing it is not so crucial to newts as they take worms readily and perhaps are more efficient at absorbing calcium? I'd think on a diet of fruitflies they might benefit from supplementing though.

 

[danny]

Sorry Joseph, dont mean to be a thread jacker, but I got my first C.o morph on friday, and I have two more that are not to far behind. I also keep finding eggs in the C.o tank. But finally! a morph!

 

[jennifer]

I'm glad I'm not the only threadjacker, Danny

Congratulations on the morph! I notice that the morph appears to have few (or reduced) toes. Is that just the photo? I have had some popei morphs with this problem.

Tim, I find breeding fruitflies to be pretty easy. Since pinheads don't exist in New Mexico, I have to depend on fruit flies. I assume they are being eaten, since the flies disappear and the newtlings grow. I always supplement fruit flies with vitamin/mineral powder.

There are several different kinds of flies you can grow. The smaller species (D. melanogaster) are much easier and faster to reproduce, so I would recommend them. Then there are both flightless and wingless varieties - they are not the same! One kind can jump and glide pretty far, the other just walks. But I'm not sure which is which. I prefer the ones that don't jump around.

 

[ian]

I have experience with flightless FF that jumnp. And I think it make sense to say that the flightless FF is the gliding variety. But since there are so many different types. Maybe there are so flightless that do not jump.

 

[jennifer]

I think the fruit flies that I like (non-jumping) are the ones called "wingless. I have bought them from LFS cultures in the past:
http://www.lfscultures.com/p20.html

This year I got stuck with some from a pet shop, and they are evidently the kind that jump. Drive me crazy.

(Message edited by jennewt on May 08, 2006)

 

[danny]

Jen - Its not the photo playing tricks, this morph is missing some toes on both the front feet, and the one back foot is missing toes. I remember seeing this one with all of its toes at one point, but then after a feeding, it seemed to lose its toes. I didnt actually see all the toes get nibbled on, but its the same with my other two C.o larvae. Is it a genetic thing or just hungry siblings?

 

[jennifer]

I think the missing toes is actually an infection. I have no explanation for why it strikes some of them. A few of my popei morphs died from this, some recovered their toes. It only seems to happen in the first week or so after they morph. It seemed to be more common for the ones that I was trying to keep semiaquatic.

 

[richard]

how frequently do cynops enter their breeding stage? I currently have 1 gravid female cynops orientalis, and i want to acquire a male to breed with her. if I pass up this opportunity, when will the next one come around? does this differ between individuals or can i get a ballpark estimate?

 

[jennifer]

It really varies, Richard. The normal time for egg laying for firebellies is January-May, but sometimes they lay eggs for a longer period, or a shorter period, or at other times of year. If you get a male, it may take some time to get him fattened up and ready to breed. And if you get a pet shop newt, don't forget about the quarantine period.

Sometimes people buy WC newts that breed or lay eggs right away, but more often, breeding newts is like growing bonsai trees, it takes months or years to see results.

 

[joseph]

With my orientalis they lay one batch of eggs around Sept-Oct...seem to take a break...and then start up again March-April. They look to be done with the spring batch of eggs. I've only been through this cycle twice but it seems to be a pretty rigid.

 

[joseph]

The enclosure, any suggestions or comments? Total morph count it 13 so today I split them between two containers...this one and a salad box. I believe the Glad container is better due to its lower ceiling...maybe the morphs feel more comfy. Then again, the salad box was just set up today so we'll see if the ones in their settle in and adjust well. The milk bottle cap is for blackworms but I haven't seen anyone taking any directly from it. They instead grab the ones that try to get out or have gotten out. The morphs also eagerly take blackworms if I put them on the moss.

 

[justin]

I only have two suggestions. The first would be to switch them to a semi aquatic tank if you would like to try to switch them over faster. I did that with several Cynops species and they took to it very well over all. The growth is much faster as soon as they take to water more. Also, if you use bottle caps (like you have in the one tub) I always like to cut the inner rim with a knife and shave it down so the black worms don't get caught there and die.
j