Introducing my Salamandra s terrestris

[Bellabelloo]

I received these four a little while ago from Morg.
They are approx 4 cm long and kept in a simple tank, with damp paper towels some broken plant pot and some plant. I have a larger one ready for them, but they seemed too small. I also wanted to make sure that they where all feeding well on chopped earthworm, they where also getting greenfly until the hover flies noticed them.

 

[Mac Myers]

Awesome little guys! I don't know what Green Flys and hover flies are.

 

[Bellabelloo]

Green fly ( aphid)
Aphid - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Hoverfly
Hoverfly - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Greenfly have/ had smothered my rose buds, but now I have a huge army of hoverfly merrily munching their way through them.

 

[evut]

Congratulations! They are beautiful little guys.
How are you planning to keep them cool?

 

[Bellabelloo]

At the moment they are living out doors. Their tank is sitting in a shallow tray of water , in a shaded part of the patio. In the long term they will be living in an out doors set up..I have a fir tree that is just crying out for something like this to live under it.

 

[evut]

I'm looking forward to seeing more photos! Good luck with the guys :happy:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2010/jul/31/alys-fowler-oriental-greens-hoverflies

 

[Azhael]

I´m green with envy xD
I love this species...it just represents caudatiness to me. I can´t wait for the day when i´ll finally give in and get a group (nearly did some time ago but had no luck finding what i wanted).
Best of lucks with them, you´re going to love these guys, i assure you.

 

[Bellabelloo]

This evening I managed to catch a few photo's before the sprinted off.

 

[Bellabelloo]

A little update for you They seem huge now...I had been feeding them every evening earthworms, looking at the size of them now, maybe I should do alternate nights.

 

[Opacum]

Ugh! Your living my dream here... first Marbleds, now these... LOL! Where's that 'jealous smiley?! They look fabulous! You definitely have the 'touch', Julia.

 

[Bellabelloo]

I can not help but notice that one of these seems to have a shorter body than the others. Is this 'normal' ?

 

[Bellabelloo]

New home for S. s. terrestris

I have spent a fair amount of time trying to sort out an outdoor home for my four fire salamanders. TI got these originally from Morg as tiny newly morphed salamanders last year. They have been residing in a large plastic box in my oldest sons room.

Their new home is a large converted cold frame. This has plastic sides and roof made of twin poly-carbonate glazing...well the roof lasted two days until my cat sat on it and fell through. With hind site I am glad it happened before the salamanders moved in. The lid will now be mesh with a support in the middle. The original plastic sheet will be used over winter for protection. This is sited under a large conifer tree that keeps the spot mostly shaded, there is a hedge also to the side. The spot rarely gets any rain and the ground is extremely dry.
I have made a mesh cage that is stapled to the base. The intention for this is in case the salamanders manage to dig too far down, this will stop them potentially escaping. I had also read that rats/ mice could potentially dig in too...I didn't want to risk this happening. I have then stapled a pond liner over this so I can retain moisture. There is a spot for a small pond to one corner.

Before I add soil I wanted to check on what I should do with the hiberculum. This is actually designed for frogs and toads to hibernate in.(The picture has my very helpful 30 month old son standing on it) I will have this submerged in the soil, do I need to add any sort of bedding ?

 

[Mark]

Re: New home for S. s. terrestris

Hi Julia, looks like a great project. I too have wondered about using cold frames in the past. As for the hiberculum the key thing to be concerned about is frost (unless you plan to place them somewhere frost free for winter). The question to ask is how far the frost penetrates into the ground because the sals need to be below this. Based on the harshness of previous winters and to err on the side of caution I would think somewhere between 1-2ft below the surface would be sensible. The deeper the better. If it were me I would try to replicate their wild habitat by digging out the whole frame area and filling it with rotting logs, topsoil and a thick layer of leaf litter on top.

I would ditch the pond liner myself, replacing it with a porous weed control blanket lining the whole dug out area. A shallow water dish will do the trick. I'd be worried a pond liner would lead to a waterlogged enclosure. Essentially you're trying to re-create a forest floor environment with a deep organic substrate. If it's bone dry under the tree you might have to get the watering can out occasionally.

 

[Bellabelloo]

Re: New home for S. s. terrestris

Thanks for your input Mark.
I have dug down a good foot below the frame and it was bone dry. Digging this below the tree was not too clever, for some reason I had forgotten about the tree and hedge roots. I have used the liner to retain some moisture, I have put holes through the bottom to allow some drainage. Last night we had a fair amount of rain, but none reached where the cold frame is.

I put in the soil yesterday and submerged the hiberculum, I'll add leaf litter and some rotting wood over the next few days and then let it settle for a bit. I will add a few plants that will attract some insects too.

 

[Azhael]

Re: New home for S. s. terrestris

Be generous with the leaf-litter, it´s invaluable as a moisture retaining meassure and will offer great opportunities for the sallies (don´t be afraid of using a thick layer). The rotten logs and a few clumps of moss will also be a great choice. As mark says, what you want is a small piece of temperate forest...you want it moist, dark and cool.
A thick layer of leaf-litter will also act as insulation protecting the ground to some degree, although in a smallish enclosure the only way to make that work is to surround the container by an equally thick layer that stretches out from it. Think compost pile with a tank in the middle xD
Anyway that´s not very practical but i though i´d mention it as some people have used that to prevent severe frosts reaching too deep.

PS: Forgot to mention that i´m green with envy...i want a garden to fill with outdoor enclosures..:S

 

[Bellabelloo]

Re: New home for S. s. terrestris

I finished their enclosure and added the four salamanders a few days ago. The first night they explored, one even hopped in to the water, and then out again...and then disappeared. I was getting quite anxious, but last night I saw two poking their heads out from under some sticks.One did look rather dusty, so I think I may have to water the enclosure a little more. I am hoping that when the weather warms up again I will see more of them in the evenings.

To the left, under the moss is their hiberculum, this has two entrances and the bottom is a good foot below ground level. The pile of sticks at the back is where they seem to like hiding . The slate tile also has space under it. Bottom left is their original cork bark shelter from when they lived indoors.

When autumn comes I'll add more leaf litter into their enclosure.

 

[Bellabelloo]

This evening I managed to catch three of the five, wandering about. Needless to say by the time I got back only one was lurking .
Late autumn I did dig them all out as I haven't looked a them closely since they began living outdoors. They all looked very well. This will be their second winter outside. This spring they should be mature enough to produce some larvae.

 

[Azhael]

That´s a very healthy looking animal, Julia, i´m sure you are proud Even if there aren´t any larvae by spring, you may very well get them by next fall.
All hail the caudate kings!

 

[Bellabelloo]

I went out this evening with the torch to stalk worms, but made the mistake of looking in on these. They I thought they looked well having spent another winter outdoors

 

[Bellabelloo]

Spotted a couple taking a wander in the rain