Question: Triturus dobrogicus (Danube Crested Newt) won't lay her eggs

[AnneR]

Hey all! It's my first mating season and I'm a bit worried about my girl. She has gotten so big I'm afraid something's wrong. There are two males and one female in a 20gal long. ( I lost 3 females last year ) Should I remove the males? They seem to be harrassing her. I don't know if it's needed mating behavior or too much and keeping her from laying. She has been like this for a couple weeks now.

There are several types of plants with differing leaf sizes/shapes. I've even tried the plastic bag strips. I'm open to suggestions, even if you think I'm overworrying. She just looks so cumbersome and uncomfortable, I want to help. Thank you all for the excellent support of this hobby!

 

[frank beard]

Maybe someone else has other experiences but in my experience I have always seen the females holding on to the egg laying surfaces vertically. She could not do that in the shallow water in your photos. If that is the reason you would need to add several more inches of water to allow for the egg laying behavior I have witnessed.