Food for small species of Sally's

[JWERNER]

OK so what is the best food and the best way to keep it when dealing with small terrestrial species?

I went out and did the whole butterfly net deal but really didn't come up with anything then I decided it would be best to just leave that be no thanks to pesticides.

Right now Im useing fruit flys and the maggots that they produce and it seems to be working well. I put some out at night when the guys come out and I see them scarf em down but I like to see my pets get a variety of foods.

 

[Mark]

What size are the salamanders?

Other small items that can easily be cultured are tropical woodlice, bean weevils and lesser waxmoths. Crickets can normally be purchased in small sizes. Another option is to chop small earthworms into bite sized chunks.

If you're using fruit flies as a staple you need to dust them with good quality supplement as they are not a complete food. The maggots are more nutritious.

 

[coendeurloo]

Mark, for some reason I've never tried to chop up earthworms, because I'm afraid they'll die off and foul the tank. What are your techniques to prevent this? how small can you cut them up, and will they still be noticed if they stop moving (which should be pretty quick in those small sizes right)?

 

[MRIGUY]

They can be chopped as small as needed so that should not be a problem. The lack of movement could be an issue depending on your newts. Both my T. granulosas and C. orientalis search out and find every morsel in their tank even in the absence of movement. It might take a little time but they will get it.

For cutting, I prefer 2 single edged razor blades. They are sharp and cut quick and clean.

 

[JWERNER]

The pin head idea wasn't even considered this time. I have had darts for years and got sick and tired of pin heads a long time ago pluss they are to big I think. Its a bit hard in my area to get them with out someone over pricing them for a special order so I went with the fruit flys and the maggots for a while. My oldest frogs died a few months ago and I still have some culture left with some good results that I feed my fish and newts as snacks. I'm going to try out the other suggestions and I'm gunna order some extra small Phoenix worms, I used them in the past with my frogs and I did notice some good results after a bit of time. The appetites grew and so did they, after the first 2 moths it was noticeable with the guys health that these things are as good as they say but again I wanna go ahead with something I can start to rear myself.

 

[Jennewt]

I'd say keep the fruit flies going. Be sure to dust them, just like with crickets.

One other option not yet mentioned are whiteworms. They are easy to culture. Some of my terrestrial setups simply have whiteworms established in the substrate. I occasionally put a tiny bit of bread on the soil, and within a few hours it's swarming with whiteworms, which I assume the newts can eat if they have half a brain.

Another culture I keep (but rarely use) are flour beetles. They are one of those cultures that's still alive even after months of neglect. I occasionally harvest the grubs and put them in with my smallest morphs.