Question: Raising firebelly larvae

[caudatadude28]

I am thinking about getting some Cynops C. larvae. I only use bbs, whiteworms, and frozen bloodworms for food though. So my concern is they wont get the carotenoids they need to produce an orange belly. Are there any carotenoid powders I could use to supplement the food? I cant use blackworms and daphnia cultures havent really worked for me. Any ideas?

 

[Azhael]

Well...first off, artemia and bloodworms DO have carotenoids, and it should be enough to create a decently red belly coloration.
There are products like Nekton Rep-color which i´m currently trying but it won´t be of much use for larvae(you definitely cannot dust artemia or whiteworms...)...you will have to use it after morphing, but since Cynops cyanurus stays aquatic, it´s complicated.

 

[caudatadude28]

Yes, I know that bbs and bloodworms do have carotenoids. But inbetween the bbs and chopped bloodworms I will be using whiteworms and I raised up my Triturus Dobrogicus larvae that way and they resulted in cream bellies. Maybe Cynops c. will result differently. Has anyone ever cultured Tubifex worms? This site sells a starter culture and food for them.
http://lfscultures.com/kits.html
They do not say what the "food" is so that is what worries me since they are often commercially grown on poop for food.