Fire Belly Breeding??

[Jumpshot724]

So, I'm new here as i just got my 4 fire-belly toads today, but as I was getting ready for bed I gave them a quick glance and the 2 of them that were in the water seemed to be umm....getting it on?? One was on-top of and behind the other with his arms wrapped all the way around her waist and they stayed this way for a while.

Again, I ASSUME this is a mating grasp, and if it is my question(s) are A) what is the gestation period before egg laying? B) What should I look for if she does lay eggs C) How likely is it that their actions will lead to an actual egg-laying? D) My set-up is mostly terrestrial with a large bowl of water (see picture) should I do something to facilitate egg-laying such as put something in the bowl?

More questions to come if she does lay.

 

[HanP]

Hi

Bombina are very aquatic and are better be kept in a 80% water/20% "land" -set up, spacious, water-level up to 5 inches, with lots of hiding-spots, plenty of light, well ventilated, actually quite the opposite of your set-up, imho.

Han.

 

[keechoo]

A. There is no real gestation period. The female will lay eggs when she is ready which means the conditions need to be right for her.
B. You'll find eggs scattered throughout the water but I doubt she would lay in the water bowl because it is not enough water.
C. Not very likely since their conditions are not being met. However, they could prove me wrong and lay for you but I've never heard of any laying in their water bowl.
D. Change the set-up to mostly water, keep temperature at 80 or above, keep humidity high, feed varied diet, add lots of plants in the water, let temperature and humidity go down naturally at night, no excess light except for fluorescent if you have live plants.

 

[HanP]

Hi

Apart from the fact that Bombina should be in the fridge right now, having a
good winter's rest, hibernating at 40F, preparing for another breedingseason,
keeping daytime-temps "at 80 or above" is far from ok with amphibians that
like it cool, 74 max.

Han

 

[Jumpshot724]

Do you HAVE to give them a "hibernation" period?

I'm not trying to MAKE them breed, but after watching their amplexus I was just curious as to if i could do anything to facilitate it better.

I keep the daytime temp between 73F and 80F, nighttime between 65F and 70F, and the humdity between 50 and 80.

 

[gershco]

I have only been caring for Bombina Orientalis for one year now and I am NOT an expert. However I have not heard that they do need to hibernate. If however you want to breed them, then it is most likely you will have success if you provide the correct conditions for a 'cooler winter', followed by a 'warmer spring' within their housing and ensure they have adequate water for mating. I've not altered the temperature in my tank, though my five adults have been a little less active in these darker winter months of the grey British winter.

As far as temerpature is concerned, I agree with Han that 80F is too hot. 75F max during the day and lowest of 60F at night is what I've always read.

We bought four toads around this time last year and I housed them in a mainly terrestrial setup like yours Jumpshot. As I read more about them, I took pity and decided they would look (and perhaps feel) more at home if I gave them more water to play around in. Within a few weeks of the change they had spawned and we now have 20 growing toadlets. I wasn't planning to breed and won't do anything else to encourage more, but it has been great fun for the whole family.

This is what I did for them ...

 

[Jumpshot724]

I have only been caring for Bombina Orientalis for one year now and I am NOT an expert. However I have not heard that they do need to hibernate. If however you want to breed them, then it is most likely you will have success if you provide the correct conditions for a 'cooler winter', followed by a 'warmer spring' within their housing and ensure they have adequate water for mating. I've not altered the temperature in my tank, though my five adults have been a little less active in these darker winter months of the grey British winter.

As far as temerpature is concerned, I agree with Han that 80F is too hot. 75F max during the day and lowest of 60F at night is what I've always read.

We bought four toads around this time last year and I housed them in a mainly terrestrial setup like yours Jumpshot. As I read more about them, I took pity and decided they would look (and perhaps feel) more at home if I gave them more water to play around in. Within a few weeks of the change they had spawned and we now have 20 growing toadlets. I wasn't planning to breed and won't do anything else to encourage more, but it has been great fun for the whole family.

This is what I did for them ...

Thanks for the reply. I do plan on changing the set-up to one similar to yours sometime this summer, Mayish or so. (How well do the T-Rex foam systems work? i was thinking of using the "turtle beach landing" one for when I change the set-up). I'm at college in Syracuse, NY which is just as cold and gray (I haven't seen the sun since November haha) and my 4 toads seem happy and active, then again my house is a nice 70F and they're tank is 73F-80F haha.

I prefer more realistic looking set-ups, which is why I ask about the T-Rex foam systems because I don't want to be siliconing in plexi or anything that will make it look more like a tank then an enironment.

 

[gershco]

I used a piece of glass siliconed to the sides of the tank to divide between dry and wet. It didn't work and I ended up pulling it out and resiliconing. It still leaks but if I don't make the water level too high I can manage to prevent the land side from becoming waterlogged. I hadn't heard of the T-Rex foam but I've just checked it out and it looks pretty nifty.

 

[keechoo]

Sorry, 80 is what my tank is at in the summer. 70 to 75 is ideal for them according to all of my research. I live in a c.1700s house with no air conditioning so their tank does go higher. They seem to enjoy it at that temp as much as the lower temps. Now that winter is here and the house has drafts, their temp is at 60 or lower.