T. vulgaris: questions regarding raising larvae

[jonathan]

Hi
Can anybody help me. Could u tell me what happens in the days after the eggs have hatched & what happens before they start eating or swimming freely

Thanx
Jonathan

 

[Jennewt]

Jonathon- After hatching, they just sit around on the bottom, but they will swim if disturbed. Do you need information about raising larvae?

 

[jonathan]

Jennewt- Yeah It would be a great help because this is my first spawn,& I'm not really to sure what to expect!!I just need to know how to feed them?and when should they start swimming about by themselves? I'm a real beginner so any help would ease my worries.(Photos of Smooth newt larvae at any stage would help too)
Thanx jonathan

 

[john]

Triturus vulgaris larvae are quite small at the time of hatching. Probably the easiest food to use are Daphnia, a freshwater crustacean, though very small larvae will only eat small young Daphnia. Although juvenile and adult newts don't seem to have trouble with some non-living foods, young larvae really do need to eat living food because movement is the main stimulus for them to eat.

If you're stuck, you might like to try newly-hatched brine shrimp. You get these in the form of cysts (a sort of resting egg) and these are hatched out in home-made sea water. There are plenty of web sites detailing the procedure.

I don't have any photos of smooth newt larvae to show you, but they're just generic newt larvae, albeit a bit smaller than most species.

All the best and good luck.

 

[jonathan]

thanx john

 

[jonathan]

John
Sorry to be a pain!!! But my newt larvae are now more than a week old & still not feeding.The Larvae have developed large eyes and the front legs are beginning to show but they just won't eat!!!They are surrounded by Daphnia in the tank which move right in front of them,but they show no interest!!!What could be wrong???One of the larvae also went very pale and died!! could this be to starvation???

Thanks

Jonathan

 

[john]

As I said before, adult Daphnia are too big for hatchling newts. If they're not producing young, you'll have to supplement the diet somehow. If you have access to brine shrimp (Artermia) cysts, you could hatch some out and use those. Alternatively, you could try infusoria. Take a leaf of lettuce and immerse it in boiling water for about 30 seconds. Then put it in a container full of tank water (from the larva tank or pond water - this is essential). With a little luck, within about 48 hours the water should become cloudy. This is infusoria - various microscopic organisms. Try adding some of this water to the larva tank.

Microworms are very small and a good first food for even the smallest larvae because of their size. If you can get some, they'll see the larvae to a size where they can eat adult Daphnia. If you're in the UK you can get them from:

http://www.cawston77.freeserve.co.uk/menu.htm

Good luck.

 

[jonathan]

Hi
Just an update for people who may have read the earlier of my messages.My larvae are now alot bigger & very healthy & feeding happily twice a day.The front legs have fully developed & the back pair are just beginning to show.The tail is now significantly longer & the larvae use their front legs to stalk their food"A very funny sight".Although many have died,as i expected the remaining few should survive into healthy adults.
Thanks for all your help in getting me this far.

Jonathan

 

[al]

Congrats!
Raising larva can be challenging, but very fun.
It also is very addicting I find myself rearing larva of common sp. just for the enjoyment and then giving them away.
If the larva stage is very enjoyable to some keepers, I suggest them looking into Axolotls. I have 4 juveniles, and they are very beautiful and amusing to watch. I wish they would become more popular than the dreaded Tiger Salamander larva "waterdog". Most new owners/keepers not only don't know how to care for them, but do not realize that they will be a large land dwelling salamander in a few months.

 

[john]

Jonathan: I'm glad to hear that your larvae are doing ok now. Once they get to the stage you describe they tend to all survive to metamorphosis if given enough space. I've a bunch of Triturus vittatus ophryticus and Tylototriton verrucosus larvae at the same stage at the moment and they're mopping up the Daphnia

. I feel a little bit like Al in the case of the ophryticus larvae - I have no plans to keep the ophryticus after metamorphosis so expect an ad. in about 12 weeks time (I live in the UK).

Al: I am a great fan of the Axolotl, as you no doubt are aware. The only down side I have found with them is the space requirement - the animals are just too big to keep more than a few in confined spaces.

 

[al]

Speaking of space...how large a setup can four adults be kept comfortably? I never understood the square centimeter rule...
How deep can the water be? I'm considering converting a 30 gallon high tank to axolotls.
thanks
Al

 

[john]

I wouldn't keep four large adults in anything less than a tank that is 90 cm (36 inches) long by 30 cm (12 inches) wide. I usually keep the water at about 15 cm deep (6 inches). Some people would settle for a tank two thirds that length for 4 adults, but I think that's unfair on such large animals.

 

[jonathan]

Hi John
Happy New Year, Jonathan again,well another year has passed and last years newt larvae are fully fledged juveniles and its time to start raising again this year, Apart from one major problem NO EGGS!!!!I gave my pond a total clean out in the winter,and as you can see from last years posts this time last year i had larvae,loads of them, this time i havent even got any eggs and there are no signs of newts anywhere, Whats wrong!! I'm worried i'm not going to get any newt larvae this year!!! Your help would be much appreciated

Thank You Jonathan

 

[neil]

I've experienced the same thing this year with palmates, numbers reduced by at least 50%. Very few females have returned in comparison with the number of males. We had a very cold spell over the New Year which may have contributed, or it may also be a 'year class' dying out and larval survival in the last few seasons being poor.

 

[jonathan]

Hi people, Good News, my pond is alive, after a worrying period in early april, my newts have arrived back in big numbers, loads and loads of females, i have many eggs and everything is going fine, thank you for all your help friends,
Jonathan

 

[john]

That's good news Jonathan, good luck with them. Whereabouts in the UK are you located, if you don't mind me asking? I'm in Bristol.