Need help, we found a newt and need advice

[angel]

My dh found a newt/salamander hunting tonight, he brought it home not knowing what it was. He wants to keep it as a pet ... but we are unsure what to feed it. If we can't find something for it to eat we will return to its habitat tommorow.
I have had salamanders (from a pet store)as pets as a child but I feed them meal worm cubes. Would a wild one eat the same thing. We aren't close to any pet stores to get that food.
Any advice or help is welcome.
TIA

 

[joseph]

since you don't have any idea what kind it is, I would reccomend returning it. Chances are it will need live food...no mealworms.

If this has started your interest for caudates, take a look around this site-some species do make good pets.

 

[angel]

Do you think it would eat house flies? We have lots of them? lol

How would I find what type it is? If I took a digi pic do you think someone here could tell me? Even if we return it it would be neat to know what type it is.

 

[joseph]

The digi pic would have to be clear, and take several shots at different angles.\

Houseflies might work...though I doubt it. Worms are a possibility. Note that if it is stressed out from capture(or improper housing) it won't eat either.

 

[angel]

Thanks for the advice I will try and post some digi pics tommorow morning (if I figure out how... I am not familar with this message board format).
If we did keep it I would set up a proper habitat for it a.s.a.p. but I am leaning towards putting back.
I really appreciate the advice.
I will let you know tommorow what are descion is.

 

[joseph]

The question is what is the proper habitat?

Since you don't know the species, you wouldn't know what to do.

you did see the area it came from though i'm sure.

 

[angel]

Well the newt went back to the place where dh found it. It was in a swampy wetland type area. I didn't take any pics b/f it was returned. But I can discribe it as dark brown. We decieded that the best place for it is in the wild.
Thankyou for all the advice you passed along. This is a great board.

 

[kaysie]

dark brown with blue spots?

If you are really wanting a newt or a salamander, I recommend keeping your eyes peeled here on the for-sale ads. They come up on occasion.

Best of luck

 

[joseph]

Certainly not very descriptive...plenty of salamanders are dark brown. You could possibly google up a site and take a peek around yourself if you are curious enough

.

 

[kaysie]

caudate Culture is always a good start.

Angel, good for you for putting it back. After you look around and find out what it is and the best way to keep it, I think it would be okay to keep one or two. But keeping it without knowing anything about it is not right, and I'm glad you guys saw the light.

 

[angel]

I agree putting it back gave the salamander the best chance of survial. After some research I did on my own there are only a few types of salamanders/newts that live in my area (i think 4). Only one type was dark brown. It was most likely a dusky salamander who is on the endangered species list. If I would have known this for sure I would have reported it to the appropriate organization.
Thanks again for all the help.

 

[kaysie]

Well, you should definately call them up and tell them that one's been spotted in the area, anyway. Especially if it wasn't on your property, and it was public land. Just in case someone plans to build a housing development or something...

 

[joseph]

It would be better to get the ID certain, so as to not sound a false alarm.

Note that coloration is very variable in salamanders...and things like costal grooves and other morphology are more helpful in IDing species...esp. those without distinctive markings.

 

[laurenhughes]

My five year old daughter found a salamander in our yard and we brought it in because the temp dropped to freezing. I left a little slug in the habitat hoping it would eat it. The slug is gone. I don't know if I should look for more slugs and feed them to it, and if so how often? The salmander is black and about an inch and a half long from head to tail. When we first found it, it was barely moving. Now it's ususally up and around. Where do I go to ask for help in taking care of it? Could someone email me a reply?

 

[kaysie]

yes, find more slugs. If you could give us more information on where you live and what the salamander looks like, then we can provide you with all the information you need.