Is this a good set-up for morphing?

[Molch]

some of my apuanus larvae are getting ready to morph. They still have their full gill sizes, but a few crests and tails are receding. I put them in a 20-ga with shallow water, a sponge filter, lots of plants and some islands (rock, cork and glass bowl) with some moss on top.

The 10-ga with deeper water will house younger larvae not yet ready to morph.

Do you think the daft little monsters will figure this out? Also, I have to go out of town Mon am to Thu pm, and I worry a bit that any who morph while I'm gone will get into trouble. I'll have lots of Daphnia in there to eat while I'm gone, but nothing on the land...

 

[Azhael]

I would perhaps lower the water level a bit more and add some more plants, but that´s personal preference, it should be perfectly fine, i think.
Best of lucks with those beautiful little buggers.

 

[eljorgo]

I might be honest, I don't like it. You definitely should get a big plastic box then one of the corners lifted so that the floor make aprox. 45º with the floor. Now fill till haft of the total distance of the floor is covered. in land par moist paper towels and very but very layers of moss. In water java moss. They will climb really easily and you shall not get even 1 to be drown... in moss they can dig deep choose level of moisture and feel really secure. all of this in fact, your set-up fails at. Off course its just a suggestion

cheers,

 

[Molch]

I like the suggestion of a sloping floor - how do you keep stuff on the land from sliding back into water? Some rocks maybe?

I actually thought about that kind of set-up, but so far only 2 or 3 out of 20 larvae are getting ready...maybe I'll set this thing up and then transform the morphers into it....

anybody have a picture of such a setup?

 

[mr cyclone]

dude ive raised hundreds of alpine newts from eggs and your set up looks fine its more or less how i wouldve done it so dont worry ,leaving them for 4 days is a bit tricky but they should be ok

 

[eljorgo]

Nothing slides down. Moist paper towels cause grip on the floor. Thus 45º is way too much I guess something very light like 25º or 30º will be the perfect and everything shall be in the right spot. Sadly I haven't took any pics of mine

 

[Azhael]

You can see a picture of such a method here, Molch:
Caudata Culture Articles - Raising Newts and Salamanders from Eggs

I personally dislike it because knowing my luck i just know i´d end up knocking the tank xD
Out of the various methods people use, i think the one you are currently using is perhaps the most extended, so don´t worry, it does work. It´s all a matter of personal preference. Some people construct an hybrid of both of these methods, with an sloped divider and a fully terrestrial area.

 

[Mark]

Just to add another opinion - all the apuanus I've ever raised (quite a few) have been kept 100% aquatic through morphing. In my experience they crawl the walls a little when they first morph but they will happily stay in the water, especially if that's where the food is. In fact they grow a lot faster if you keep them aquatic. Not all alpine sub-species can be raised 100% aquatically but apuanus certainly can.

 

[mr cyclone]

Just to add another opinion - all the apuanus I've ever raised (quite a few) have been kept 100% aquatic through morphing. In my experience they crawl the walls a little when they first morph but they will happily stay in the water, especially if that's where the food is. In fact they grow a lot faster if you keep them aquatic. Not all alpine sub-species can be raised 100% aquatically but apuanus certainly can.

i also followed this rule i had three breeding groups of alpine newts and was supplying them to herp shops i kept most of them fully aquatic ,also never had any high mortality rates infact didnt notice any although they wouldve gotten scoffed i never experienced any neotony ,which can sometimes happen ,guess temp in the setups were adaquate i did however notice the old alpine beasts were highly amorous ,
alpine .... i like your style!!

 

[RobM]

Sorry, going slightly off topic here, but Molch, do you make those lids yourself?

 

[Molch]

nah, those I bought at Petco
I made some myself in the past, but these days you can buy perfectly decent ones, so I don't bother making them....