Feeding a newly morphed Notophthalmus Viridescens

[Crystalann0219]

Hey again guys, I want some input on what to feed my newly morphed babies. They are so small, I knew they would be. I set up a terrarium months ago with a springtail culture, and I also have another springtail culture on standby. I have also put isopods into the terrarium and can see some babies in there. Right now I have the newly morphed one (only one so far) in a separate small container so I could monitor him more closely and make sure he is eating, it has moss, soil, dead leaves, springtails and last night I went out and scavenged a few of the smallest isopods I could find. The terrarium is just so huge I didn't want to put him in there and not see him again. I think the springtails I got said "temperate springtails" so Im not sure if I got the wrong type because even the largest ones are still so tiny I don't know if they will be substantial. Can he even see them? I am thinking of starting my own isopod culture because I have a lot of them in my yard under flower pots and stuff. And we don't use any chemicals in the yard. But I want to know if it is worth it. Will they eat them? I read they can be hard to digest. Has anyone seen Notos eating the isopods? The baby isopods seemed like a nice size but Im just not sure. What do you all feed yours when they first morph?? I was going for a more naturalistic approach and wanted them to forage on their own. I don't really have time to be hand feeding these guys, but I will if I need to. I misted his habitat last night and I saw him come out and forage around. He looked like he was hunting but I didn't see him eat anything. I really want these guys to live a nice life and prosper, but I also don't want to be spending a lot of money on creature cultures online. I really appreciate any tips and advice from you guys.

 

[JM29]

Hello !

I had the same case with some Cynops ensicauda newtlets.
I keep them on my garden compost which is full of little animals and they thrive well. I've been keeping them like that for 5 months now and I add nothing else. No problem.

I suppose they have access to a very various diet.

 

[Otterwoman]

Good luck! This is the hardest stage to rear notos. I could also suggest fruit flies, maybe blackworms in a shallow lid and change daily.

 

[Sith the turtle]

You could also try putting woodlice in the tank to be eaten and to clean up waste by the newts. These article may be of some help: Caudata Culture Articles - Food Items for Captive Caudates Caudata Culture Articles - How to Feed a Large Worm to a Small Newt

 

[Crystalann0219]

Thanks for your replies. I added some fruit flies to his enclosure last night, and a small pieceof fruit hoping they would.land on it and be easier for ghimto catch. II'llcheck tonight to see iif itlooks like he has eaten any of them.

 

[Thomas F]

AW: Feeding a newly morphed Notophthalmus Viridescens

The first food for my freshly morphed Notophs are springtails. But be patient, it could least a few days till they visible begin to eat. The first days they live very hidden.

Cheers,
Thomas

 

[Crystalann0219]

I just wanted to post an update and let you guys know that my first little morphling is eating now. I saw him snap and chew today. I didnt actually see him catch anything though. However I can tell by his round little belly that he must be eating. There are tons of springtails in there and i collect the smallest isopods i can find about every other night and throw those in as well. So far no others have morphed although one does have reduced gills and I'm expecting him to leave the water any day now. Waiting for them to morph is so exciting/frustrating. I look at them all day anyways but Im always looking on land hoping to see another one!

 

[Chinadog]

I don't have Notos, but that's how I find it easiest to gauge weather really tiny Cynops morphs are eating enough. Sometimes I never actually see them eat from one week to the next, but if they have convex looking sides when viewed from above and their hip bones aren't really visible I'm happy to leave them to it.

 

[Niels D]

My noto's do eat small isopods and springtails, also the indeginous European species, especially the black ones. If you plan on raising noto's in the future you may want to try the aquatic method:

http://www.caudata.org/forum/f1173-...8-difference-between-aquatic-terrestrial.html

At this moment I'm raising noto's terrestrial in styrofoam boxes filled with beech leaves. I throw in a little white worm packed compost every three days on a plastic bottle cap, which also carries a lot of springtails. You might want to think about starting your own compost heap. You can feed so much animals with the free goodies it brings you.

Check the first page of this thread for an example of the styrofoam box (lid included): http://www.caudata.org/forum/f1173-...ton/106471-alternative-method-l-laoensis.html

 

[Crystalann0219]

I have a lot of larvae still, probably about 20ish, I would like to try to keep some of them aquatic because I have so many of them. The tank they are in now has a small land area but no food on land, they only get food in the water, frozen blood worms and whatever else I can find from my outdoor tubs that were once flourishing but now slim picking for food. Last night my second one morphed and I moved him into a terrestrial enclosure with the other one. If I want to keep aquatic should I just leave the new morphs in water tank, keep offering food in the water? I guess if they don't go back in the water to eat after a week or so I should just move him to the terrarium?? I read the thread you posted and that one seemed to adapt well. I don't want any to drown but I know raising them in water is so much easier for feeding. I also do have somewhat of a compost pile. I started it maybe 2 months ago. I haven't been able to find any whiteworms in it, but it's not a very big pile or been going very long. There are lots of spirngtails and isopods in there though. When you feed from your compost pile do you just dump in dirt and all? I've tried putting pieces of fruit on top to collect easier but usually there are just ants and spiders on them

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[Canecorsonewt]

I did what others on this site suggested to me and it worked great. I put 4 inches of water in a 5 gallon with lots of plants java moss extra. The moss is basically my land area. I have scuds thriving in their but the newts main diet is white worms. I put white worms in the water every other day. I did this since the day they morphed. I never see them eat but the worms disappear. I think they morphed in January so they must be eating. They stay on land or on the glass mostly but one likes the water. I see it in ther every once and a will. This will work on C.oriental and n.v.l

 

[Crystalann0219]

I did what others on this site suggested to me and it worked great. I put 4 inches of water in a 5 gallon with lots of plants java moss extra. The moss is basically my land area. I have scuds thriving in their but the newts main diet is white worms. I put white worms in the water every other day. I did this since the day they morphed. I never see them eat but the worms disappear. I think they morphed in January so they must be eating. They stay on land or on the glass mostly but one likes the water. I see it in ther every once and a will. This will work on C.oriental and n.v.l

Mine are n.v.v. not n.v.l. but I may still try leaving some in the aquatic tank. I have a lot of them and have been trying a few different methods for rearing so that if I end up with more eggs maybe life will be easier next time around. I took a trip out of town today and was able to purchase some live blackworms! I bought 3 teaspoons of them and am thinking of starting a culture. Lots of the larvae are still pretty small, I'm just not sure if it would be worth it the time and effort needed and by the time it's flourishing i may not have many larvae left. I've been reading for the past hour on culturing them. Would you guys think it's worth it. Are they very nutritious for the newts? I really only bought them because I can never find any thing live at all in my own town. Had to get a cup of ice to keep the cool on the long trip home hahaha.

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[jewett]

Hi Crystal,

If you can culture the black worms, do it! They are a great food for newts of all ages and are pretty nutritious.

If you have success with your culture please post what your methods are. I have read a few different methods and would like to try doing this myself some time in the future.

Best of luck!

HJ

 

[Lostfrog]

My two morphed in July and I decided to keep them aquatic. I keep a small colony of live blackworms in the bottom of the tank for them to hunt, but I've also seen them go after some of the smaller snails as well. Mine spend half their time on their turtle dock and half in the water and seem to do very well getting around, but I have lots of plants in there and a heavy layer of duckweed to help them haul out. The blackworms are just the right size for their little mouths. I had to cut the blackworms up before they morphed but now just leave them whole.

 

[Crystalann0219]

My two morphed in July and I decided to keep them aquatic. I keep a small colony of live blackworms in the bottom of the tank for them to hunt, but I've also seen them go after some of the smaller snails as well. Mine spend half their time on their turtle dock and half in the water and seem to do very well getting around, but I have lots of plants in there and a heavy layer of duckweed to help them haul out. The blackworms are just the right size for their little mouths. I had to cut the blackworms up before they morphed but now just leave them whole.

Are yours n.v.v. ? I still have roughly 30 larvae and want to keep some aquatic. How long did they stay on land after morphing before returning to the water to feed? I'm just worried about them staying on land and starving, but I guess if they know food is in the water they will go there? And do they not just eat all the blackworms. Every time I feed blackworms they are all devoured in just a few short minutes, maybe I should be adding more at once and some will colonize in the tank? I may be setting up a blackworms culture soon in my basement, I'm still trying to decide if I want to undertake that.

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[Lostfrog]

Are yours n.v.v. ? I still have roughly 30 larvae and want to keep some aquatic. How long did they stay on land after morphing before returning to the water to feed? I'm just worried about them staying on land and starving, but I guess if they know food is in the water they will go there? And do they not just eat all the blackworms. Every time I feed blackworms they are all devoured in just a few short minutes, maybe I should be adding more at once and some will colonize in the tank? I may be setting up a blackworms culture soon in my basement, I'm still trying to decide if I want to undertake that.

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Yes, mine are n.v.v. They were probably on the turtle dock a couple of days before they went back to the water. There are maybe 100 or so worms living in the sand substrate if I had to guess. I will say they were much better hunters as larvae than they are now. As morphs, I see them try to grab a worm several times before they succeed but they have nicely rounded bellies so they are doing ok. I have a culture of 1/2 pound of blackworms in a 10 gallon tank and it's really not hard at all to keep them going, so if you have a spare tank, I would recommend it. I do have it full of water to keep the water parameters in check and I run a sponge filter and an air stone to keep them oxygenated. I change 2 gallons of water every week when I vacuum the gravel, they produce a lot of waste! I like to culture my own because I can control what the worms eat and in turn, know what the newts are eating. Getting the worms separated from the waste is the time consuming part, I will throw that in.

 

[Crystalann0219]

Thanks for your reply. I will try to culture some blackworms when I get the time. I don't have an extra tank but I do have a big plastic tub I was growing daphnia in. And I have space in my basement for them. I have an air bubbler but not a sponge filter. The only filters I have are canister style, and some others not sure what type they are but they suck in water from the bottom and it flows out the top, I'm sure the worms would get sucked into those so I'll try a bubbler only for now. I'll let you guys know how it goes for me.

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[Crystalann0219]

Well I wanted to post another update because my 3rd one morphed a few nights ago. I saw him go onto land and stay there for a little while. It was late and i decided to just leave him be for the night. A little while later he went back into the water! I watched him for a while walking around the bottom and going up for air! I was worried at first bc he was swimming very fast and acting frantic but he soon calmed down. Hes spent most of the days in the water on some rocks and plant that are close to the surface. Im making sure there is always food in the water so he may stay aquatic. Maybe keeping them aquatic wont be so hard after all, he just decided to stay on his own so maybe some others will follow his lead. Some of the other larvae are getting really big so if i do have to keep them terrestrial it will hopefully be easier. Maybe ill just let them decide for themselves hahaha. One of the two terrestrial morphs is eating good. I dump springtails in near him and e goes crazy eating them. I still havent seen the other larger one eat but hoping he will in time. He doesnt look too skinny so i guess he is ok.

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