Raising my larvae

[oregon newt]

Hey Everyone. As some of you know, my T. granulosa has recently laid eggs and I'm gonna need help raising these little guys. My main problem is that we're going to Flordia for spring break, which is in 3 weeks and I need to know what to with the larave. Someone in the chat suggested that I leave them in a fully established tank with lots of plants. So here is my plan: I'm gonna set-up an eastablished 10 gallon tank with a bunch of plants, as suggested. I plan to have an airstone in there and a bare bottom, so the plants will probably be java moss, pothos, and stuff similar to that which can grow without soil. For feeding, I plan on putting some pond water in there before I leave. How does that sound? :happy:

 

[Otterwoman]

You can put the pond water in earlier, and with all the plants, they may become more numerous...also then you can check to make sure you don't have anything carnivorous in the pond water.

 

[oregon newt]

Should I put in the plants after I have cycled the tank?

 

[oregon newt]

Also, how does one go about cycling a tank without a filter?

 

[Otterwoman]

Just put the plants in with the pond water, the air bubbler, and let it go until you need it. I've raised many larvae this way, with just an air bubbler. It should be fine. If you have pond water and plants, you don't need to cycle it, it's already full of life.

 

[Azhael]

I find this method to be the easiest. You want to put plants from stablished tanks in the new 10 gallon tank. Also adding some decoration from old tanks will help. This will garantee that you have a colony of the beneficial bacteria, and that other creatures like copepods, ostracods, etc, will colonize the new tank. They´ll be a great additions to the larvae´s diet.

I´d also recomend the use of Elodea. This plant grows fast, thus helping to keep the water healthy, plus they are great oxygenators, complementing the air pump.

Good luck with these, it´s nice to see more captive breeding of this species.

 

[oregon newt]

Thanks alot.