Larval Salamander Problem

navaros

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Jarid
Hello,
This is my first post.I'm new to salamanders/newts.I'm attempting to raise a group of larval fire salamanders.They were born earlier this week.They all seem healthy and eat a lot, but every once in a while when I check on them I'll find one on its back.If I touch them with something they will swim for a second, and die later that day.This is my first experience with raising amphibians and it's not what I was expecting.=( I don't understand what I'm doing wrong.I have bred tons of fish and I thought salamanders would be more hardy.I have the tank at room temp. (around 68) with about 1.5" of water and live Anacharis.Feeding them live blackworms.Any help/suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks,
Navaros
 
How many larvae do you have in a tank, and how big is the tank? The first thing that comes to mind with such shallow water is that the ammonia level might be too high. How often do you do water changes, and what do you have for filtration, and aeration? One of the first things that I would do is put more water in the tank so that toxins are less likely to accumulate, and the tank will be less crowded.
 
Hi,
I raised fire salamanders 2 years ago without any problems. The method i used was 2 or 3 babies
in margarine tubs with a small piece of moss for cover.I fed them daily with daphnia and bloodworm and did complete water change every other day.Tap water was used without any problem.
 
Thanks everyone.Well I haven't been changing the water as much as I would like to because I thought tap water would be a definate "no no".I thought the water was too shallow, someone told me to raise them exactly like this.I think I have read every fire salamander article now and none of them have much info on rearing larvals.I was told that I shouldnt use any airation, which I thought was weird but the person said the anacharis would take care of that and filtration and that they wouldn't like the water current from a filter or air stone.Was also told that if the water was any deeper they would all die when they started to metamorph.I think there are 7 left now from the original 15 (about 4 died before I got them), and the tank is only like 2.5 gallons.I know it's small but thats what they were given to me in, and my only spare 10 gallon has a huge crack in it.I have things I could seperate them in though like rubbermaids.How deep was the water in the margarine tubs and what type of moss?So what does everyone think I should do? =(

Thanks for all the help!
 
I use undergravel filters for all of my caudates, even the larvae. They don`t create much current at all... Do you know whether or not they use chloramine, or chlorine in your tap water? If chlorine is used, you can just let the water sit for 24 hrs in a container and it should be fine. With the chloramine, you will have to add a chlorimine neutralizer that you can often find in pet shops.
 
For the moment, I would say you can continue to keep the 7 in a 2.5 gallon tank that is full of water, with a bit of gentle aeration and/or filtration. When they get longer than about 2 cm (1 inch), move them to a bigger tank/tub or separate them into several containers. Do a substantial partial (or total) water change every day. Larvae can tolerate a 100% water change daily.

You do need to be careful when they start to approach metamorphosis. They will need a place to climb out, and it may be good to lower the water level at that time. And they will need to be prevented from climbing away. Their first out-of-water experience may be to head straight up the side of the container and escape, so be prepared.
 
ok, Got home from work and none are dead...=) What a relief.I'm about to do a water change and clean thr bottom of the tank.How will I know when it is time for the salamanders to go into metamorphosis?The appearance of pigmentation and the shrinking gills right?

Thanks again!
 
Everything seems good still.Cleaned the tank.They don't seem to be stressed or anything, they started eating right after.Water level is about 2" now.What is the average age of metamorphosis in fire salamanders?Also, I found out they are Salamandra salamandra terrestris.

Navaros
 
My fire sals took about two or three months to morph. It was obvious when they were going to do so, as they gained distinct colouration - a lot of yellowy brown mainly - and began to rebsorb their gills. At that point I lost one as I din't realise quite what excellent climbers they are when they do step out on land (make sure there are tight lids on containers!). To help the others, as I was told that once on land they can drown very easily if they go back into the water,I put in more elodea and some flatish stones topped with sphagnum moss. I dropped the water depth to about 2cm. When they morphed I just found them in the moss.

Good luck.
happy.gif
 
Thanks karin.
happy.gif
Another day has gone by with no deaths.yay!Can't wait till they get bigger.=)
 
Help!!!! I have just acquired 15 tiger and/or marble salamander "babies", all with gills, some larger, some small. I have lost 5 over the last 2 days and more seem to be going. Am changing the water daily, feeding fish food and crushed amphib. food and have an air stone in the tank. Any help would be wonderful. I also understand that they can take 5 years to mature. How will I know when they are morphing?
 
Please read the article linked above. How big is the tank? And how big are the larvae? They may be overcrowded. They probably aren't eating the food. They will do better with live food, I would recommend live blackworms. Many larger fish shops sell them.

You will know they are morphing when the gills start to shrink. As soon as you notice this, keep a secure lid on as they may be able to climb up glass.
 
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    sorry I am having a hard time trying to upload the pictures- I have them saved on my hard drive... any suggestions-the prompts here are not allowing for downloads that way as far as I can tell. Thanks
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    Katia Del Rio-Tsonis: sorry I am having a hard time trying to upload the pictures- I have them saved on my hard... +1
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