Triturus Dobrogicus

[Stupot1610]

I had some new newts (and toads) arrive yesterday so I thought I would share some pictures of them. These are T.dobrogicus, I'm really impressed with them and the male already has a small crest, I have high hopes for them!




I also got some larvae/neotenes of I.a.inexpectatus which I'll add photos of later

Stuart

 

[Stupot1610]

I just checked on them a few hours ago and I swear the males crest grows daily!

Stuart

 

[otolith]

You are absolutely right, it always amazes me how fast the crest can come and go. I've found that the males need to eat often during breeding season or the crest will only last a few weeks at full height. I skipped a few feedings this season and the males crest shrunk back down in just a few days.

 

[Azhael]

It can vary quite a lot from one day to another...and that kind of sucks because it means a gorgeous crest can all but disappear in a couple of days xD
This is a fantastic species, very easy to keep and very rewarding, plus the larvae are so much fun!
Bare in mind that in order to have a successful and prolonged breeding season (as well as huge male crests), temperature is very important. Try to keep them below 10ºC and make sure they have a good diet.

 

[Stupot1610]

Thanks for the comments, much appreciated. In the last two days the pair have eaten at least ten worms, I was amazed to say the least.
When I recieved them I was intrigued by the shape of the animals, they are quite long and thin in appearance, compared to others from the Cristatus complex, though they are also quite short, I would say the male is no more than 120mm and the female 140mm.
I keep all my temperate species (which is basically all I keep, anyhow) in a secure outhouse (garage that we never use for cars... Lol) which rarely exceeds 15'c in summer and so at the moment is pretty much constantly at 0-5'c and will stay like this until at least June and then like I say will not exceed 15'c during summer. So, hopefully this should do
Do you know how long roughly the breeding season lasts, and how many eggs are laid? The pair are two years old. I will also put some good pictures up of them at some point at the weekend, and some more plus setup pics during the week when they go into their permanent tank. Will also put on some photos of my new T.carnifex and I.a.inexpectatus.

Stuart

 

[otolith]

Mine usually start cresting up in November or December and I get eggs from January until March. I have also occasionally had a second breeding season in October or November where the females lay a small number of fertile eggs (20-40). The number of eggs and length of breeding behavior seems to be related to how cold they get during their winter period. Longer and colder winter = more eggs. My group average around 150 eggs per female per season. Their second year I had almost 900 eggs from three females, and incidentally that was also the coldest their tank ever got during winter (48F for three weeks).

This general pattern is the same for the other Triturus species I keep. Feb-June is a very busy time gathering daphnia and siphoning tubs.

 

[Stupot1610]

Quick photo taken on Mobile tonight, of the male. The photograph doesn't do him justice, the crest and the blue on his tail are much more impressive in person.

Stuart

 

[Ian T]

Thanks for the pictures, lovely newts and good luck with breeding them.

I read with interest the quantity of worms which they're eating. My Dobros are being kept in similar conditions (i.e. an unheated garage) and water temperature is around the 6C mark currently. I've been keeping them on meagre rations for a while now and basically just feeding a few bloodworms/whiteworms and brine shrimp every week. I was under the impression that too much food could cause issues at low temperatures if it remains undigested in the gut. Would be really interested to know the views of other keepers...?

I also wonder if egg-laying is initiated by the water reaching a specific temperature..? Is it the case that if eggs need a temperature of let's say 15C to mature then the animals will wait until the water warms to that level before laying...?

 

[Stupot1610]

Thanks for the pictures, lovely newts and good luck with breeding them.

I read with interest the quantity of worms which they're eating. My Dobros are being kept in similar conditions (i.e. an unheated garage) and water temperature is around the 6C mark currently. I've been keeping them on meagre rations for a while now and basically just feeding a few bloodworms/whiteworms and brine shrimp every week. I was under the impression that too much food could cause issues at low temperatures if it remains undigested in the gut. Would be really interested to know the views of other keepers...?

I also wonder if egg-laying is initiated by the water reaching a specific temperature..? Is it the case that if eggs need a temperature of let's say 15C to mature then the animals will wait until the water warms to that level before laying...?

I reduced the feeding down to once a week, which suits them.
I think egg laying probably does begin around a certain temperature, I'll try and make a note of that.

 

[Ian T]

I checked elsewhere and was told that around 10c is where it starts.....


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[Firebelly9]

Where do you get your newts from if you don't mind let us know ..?


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[Asevernnnn]

Where do you get your newts from if you don't mind let us know ..?


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Stuart is from the UK, but you can post a wanted ad if you're looking for a specific specie, but the for sale section has stuff for sale often, so checking that frequently could work, I also post in the Salamander/Newts for sale FB group, as well as check Kingsnake, and FaunaClassifieds.