OK setup for 2 Chinese FBN?

J

jessie

Guest
Hello,
Last week at my college a vendor was selling fire bellies. He was selling them two at a time in a critter keep that is 2x4 inches, and feeding them reptile pellets. I went to the store and bought a 10 gal tank, live plants, and an assortment of frozen foods and live crickets. All I can get them to eat are the crickets, they don’t seem to recognize that the frozen worms are food. I can't tell you how many times i've read and re-read all the posts and info on the site. I've had salamanders in the past, but not for awhile. There are so many great ideas for setting up tanks, and I don't really know where to start. I was just wondering how my tank is now and what I could change/ add/ do better. Any advice/ tips would be hugely appreciated. Also, how many fire belly newts do you think I could fit into a tank this size?

Also, I have a light on a 12hr cycle for the plants (adds no heat to the tank), and the red thing is a homemade floating island. Do you think that the waterfall from the filter adds too strong of a current?

Thanks!



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(Message edited by jennewt on March 19, 2007)
 
I think your setup looks very good. Is the filter free-standing, or is it stuck to the glass? If it can stand by itself, you could turn it so that the outflow goes directly into the glass side of the tank, this might decrease the current a bit.

The only serious concern I have is regarding how the cord from the filter goes under the screen lid. This leave enough of a gap for a firebelly (alias Houdini-newt) to escape. See:
http://www.caudata.org/cc/articles/escape.shtml

In terms of food, you may need to "animate" the bloodworms at first. Wiggle them with a tweezers or a toothpick in front of the newt. There's a photo of this in the FAQ at the link I gave. It should be possible to get them to enjoy thawed bloodworms, but they might never accept pellets.
 
my advice is to use some sort of substrate. lots of newts feel stressed when they can't get a grip on the bottom surface, also keeps the plants from floating around.
 
Regarding what Alexander said about the substrate, you should use sand if you do use a substrate. As you may know from reading this forum people have had there animals ingest the gravel, although this is not a huge problem for newts because they don't "gulp" there food like some aquatic salamanders (axolotls, Necturus sp., sirens etc.) and their mouth is smaller. Lastly if your filter is free standing make sure it is very secure where it is so it doesn't happen to fall on some unlucky newt.
 
I have always used substrate in my naturalistic setups however many people do not (and breed animals successfully). Sand is a good choice as Ryan stated but I have always used larger sized gravel simply because it is more readily available to me (but I did once lose a T. taliangenses to gravel impaction so be careful).
Ryan,
I'm not sure what you mean by newts not gulping food. In my experience I have seen quite a bit of "gulping" when feeding in the water. This is especially true when feeding Pachytriton. The ones that I have act like miniature hoovers.
Chip
 
Foster I meant that they don't (or do they) expand their gullet area to allow water in creating a suction pulling anything near, inside(gravel). I also meant that the aquatic salamanders usually have larger mouths.
 
Some newt species do "gulp" their food, the mechanism of which is known as a buccal pump. I don't believe Cynops uses this mechanism, or if it does it may just be less noticeable because of the animal's size. Some newts are of an appropriate size that impaction is a serious risk like Chip's T. taliangenses or my Pachytriton labiatus.

I think with any newt species one should use a substrate that is either too large to be consumed, small enough to easily pass through the animal or no substrate at all. One should also consider the effort it takes to clean the substrate and if they are willing to make it. Food choice is also important as things like bloodworms and blackworms can get lost in large pieces of gravel and foul up the tank.
 
Hi everyone,
Thanks for the advice. As far as cycling, I've read a lot about this, but I don't exactly know what I am supposed to do. Also, I would think that newts have a greater chance of swallowing the sand, but I assume that it won't be an issue if ingested due to its size? Just checking.
Also, my guys never, ever go into the water. Are they just de-stressing? Is there something I can do to encourage them to be more aquatic? Thanks!
 
Yes, they do ingest a bit of fine sand, but it's harmless. Don't use "calci-sand".

Regarding cycling, there probably isn't much that you need to do. I would recommend testing for ammonia every few days (either buy a test kit or take water samples to a good fish store). If the ammonia is detectable, you know you need to do more water changes and clean-ups until things stabilize.

The FAQ on the Caudata Culture site covers the questions of why my newt won't go in the water and ways to change that. If they are always on land, this makes them harder to feed.
http://www.caudata.org/cc/faq/faq.shtml
 
I like it, but i fear that you need way more water! about half of the filter is the least....
 
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