When will the eggs stop?

[vistajpdf]

I separated my adult pair a few weeks ago and the eggs are still being laid. I know she can store them, but for how long? I'm really getting overwhelmed now - have been caring for larvae since mid-March. The oldest four are about 3-3.5 cm and still have visible gills. I was trying to plan a quick weekend trip with the boys for mid-July and now I'm worried I'll be knee deep in morphs!

Dana

 

[SludgeMunkey]

Cynops sp. Dana? or something else?

You could always just quit saving the eggs, the adults will eat them and save you lots of trouble.

Now, imagine a pair of axolotls that breed continuously( fertile eggs every couple of weeks) for 18 months straight...that was my introduction to serious caudate keeping. All those years ago, I suspect I was responsible for every axolotl in every pet shop in San Diego county...
:rofl:

 

[Jennewt]

You could always just quit saving the eggs, the adults will eat them and save you lots of trouble.

This is also what I would recommend. If larvae appear in the tank, you can feed both them and the adults with live blackworms.

 

[vistajpdf]

Yes, they are Cynops...but, I don't know, friends. I'm not comfortable letting the adults eat their young...

I had taken most of the floating plants out and she actually laid three on the side of the filter. The boys said, "Mom, don't forget to get those out!" Well, I waited a day and she must have eaten them, though I don't really know how I'd have removed them, anyway, short of moving the whole filter.

Do you have any idea how long this can take with the male now being removed a few weeks ago?
I'm completely uncomfortable with the local pet stores taking them over as they couldn't even keep their own supply alive and thankfully stopped getting them. I'm so glad I did take my pair as the others soon died - only one other pair survived. I know they won't all survive the upcoming months, so I guess I'll see what happens.

I have been feeding the adults live blackworms and white worms since I have them. Can the very young larvae eat them or must they start with Daphnia? I'm out and I noticed about 4 newly hatched ones this morning in tank #5! I still have my frozen combo I gave them but have lots of worms.

Dana

 

[SludgeMunkey]

My recent experiences with Cynops hatchlings, showed they prefer live moving foods the first few weeks. Brine Shrimp to start, then on to daphnia, microworms and vinegar eels.
The Caudata Culture site has lots of information on this.

 

[Jennewt]

Yes, they are Cynops...but, I don't know, friends. I'm not comfortable letting the adults eat their young...

I understand the emotion behind this, I really do. But if you garden, you can't let every weed grow. We are dealing here with carnivorous animals; one animal has to be eaten to sustain another. Whatever it is that you feed your newts, some other animal had to give its life to provide it.

At the beginning, eggs have no nervous system, and thus no capacity to feel pain. If you would like a painless method to euthanize older eggs/larvae, I can give you one.

I have been feeding the adults live blackworms and white worms since I have them. Can the very young larvae eat them or must they start with Daphnia? I'm out and I noticed about 4 newly hatched ones this morning in tank #5! I still have my frozen combo I gave them but have lots of worms.

They can start off with whiteworms (some of which are very small) and finely chopped blackworms. Daphnia are not essential.

 

[Azhael]

I too understand the feeling, but think about nature. It happens constantly in nature. In fact in some areas the majority of the diet of aquatic caudates is eggs of others species and their own.
I know it´s kind of cruel, but in my experience most eggs are left alone anyway (in fact i think my female might only eat infertile or bad eggs), and the larvae do pretty well in an established tank. Some will die because of competition(just like in a pond) and others will grow big and fat. It´s even a reduced type of natural selection...so it´s good for the species.

 

[vistajpdf]

SludgeMunkey, I have read and reread so much on all of this over the past 2+months, but suddenly I feel like it's all becoming a blur!

Jen, I think I have far less of a problem with new eggs being eaten over larvae that we've seen swimming around. It's my three dear sons, bless them, who probably have names for each of the 35 larvae we have in the various tanks! I will post on the site about shipping eggs to a good home. Someone was interested but then lost interest. I'm not the best about getting to the PO, either, and I don't feel good about shipping larvae, so I need to find someone quickly and get them off!

I guess if the end is near, I can deal with all of this. But, if we're only midway there and I'm looking at another 30-50 eggs, then I'm afraid I'll have to donate a bunch (should they survive) to a pet store. The one that was selling them for $20 looked good (an exotic reptile type of place), but then they fed a live mouse to a pit of snapping turtles as I wrote about awhile ago...we made a quick exit. Anyway, I swore I'd never return. Then, the adoption counselor from a wildlife rescue center we support here called me to take an abused/abandoned hedgehog. I told her of this incident and she said they were supposedly the biggest importer of illegal animals in the state! So, maybe not!

Anyway, if she began laying eggs in March and the male has been away from her for a few weeks, is there any way to tell how long this will continue? She still looks pretty gravid to me...

Thanks,
Dana