Question: Is forest moss safe for newts/fire salamanders?

[greenwood09]

I have two fire salamanders, two Kweichow croc newts, one marbled newt and one Himalayan croc newt in separate terrariums. Each terrarium contains a substrate of eco earth covered by moss I find in the woods behind by house. I live in Sussex county New Jersey which unlike most of new Jersey is very rural. My question is whether the moss I collect could be harmful to my pets? I have been using this set up for several years and they seem to be doing fine. If anybody has any advice on a different way to set up my terrariums it would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

 

[Otterwoman]

That is fine. A lot of people use moss from clean areas.

 

[Blackbun]

Love moss and, as otterwoman says, collect from clean areas in terms of: not near roads with motor exhausts etc Not near dirty ponds etc and beware of importing mini nasties such as leeches which can be aquatic and terrestrial and hitch a ride when tiny. I tend to rinse it in stale tap water AND let the sun dry it out (but not kill it) for a few days before rehydrating it.

 

[Jort]

That sounds like a good method! Thanks. I had ants with the moss I had gathered. Not a big problem, but there were quite a few.