Thursday, February 25, 2010

How to Care for Eastern Newts


Eastern Newts make wonderful and interesting pets. Many people are probably familiar with their juvenile form, the red eft, but don't realize that they are the same animal. They are native to the Eastern US, and I often see them and their efts on my summer hikes. They like water and so the tank should have 2 or more inches for them. A filter is also necassary unless you wan't to do frequent water changes. They are docile and agree in groups so 3 or 4 individuals can live in a 10 gal tank. For mine I used gravel as a substrate, with drift wood, and live aquatic plants for decoration. They eat worms (chop them if big) and other invertebrates. Some individuals will accept pelletized food but I'm not a fan of it for more than supplementation. They do not require external heating. As they do breed in captivity, I will be discussing how to raise newt larvae in a later post, maybe closer to Spring.

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