Transitioning Neurergus crocatus from terrestrial to aquatic setup.

[Fletcher Hall]

I have a group of 4 adult Lake Urmia Newts (N. crocatus) that I have kept terrestrially for the last ~3 years since I got them. They were being kept terrestrially when I first purchased them so I decided to continue keeping them that way, in a well planted vivarium with deep moisture-retaining substrate with many hides. I have introduced a decently large but shallow water bowl into their enclosure, with several stones near the edges to allow them an easier way to climb out. They are quite reclusive during the day, but when I check in on them at night they're always out and about, and occasionally I find them in the water bowl at night too, though not super often. From what I've seen, most people keep adults of this species in mostly aquatic setups, and I would like to transition them into that type of setup too, especially if I want to eventually get some breeding out of them (which would be awesome!).
They are definitely adult size, and from when I occasionally spot them in the water bowl, they are powerful swimmers, and don't just wade or scramble around in the water bowl, they are definitely more than capable of really swimming.

From people who have experience transitioning newts from terrestrial to aquatic setups, do you think it would be safe for me to move my group into an aquatic setup, should I create some kind of transitional enclosure, or how else should I go about transitioning them so that there isn't any risk of drowning and ideally stressing them out as little as possible.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated

 

[ChimericalElisa]

I start with a 20L bare bottom, 2 sponge filters hooked up. Java moss and cork bark. just enough water for them to stand in. Then slowly raise the water level once a week. I also start to feed aquatic foods such as live blackworms and frozen bloodworm. At the early stages I sometimes have to pause at a 1/4-1/2” inch of so for several weeks while they begin to transition.