# hello and a question about common/smooth newts



## horsyqueen (Jun 8, 2011)

hello everyone i am new here and to keeping anphibians (i cant even spell it). i have 3 tanks 2 tropical and one holding newts for trial.

i have a tank(at the moment i will get a larger on with a land area) of smooth newts. they are in a hard water tank like my pond i collected them from.
what do i feed them?
can they live in a tropical tank with community fish?
whats the diffrence between female great crested newts and smoth newts.


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## spinnin_tom (Apr 20, 2011)

i've been told it's a big no no keeping newts with fish.
even though they are semi aquatic, they need lots of land so unless you want to give up most of the tank and only have a single fish.. but i still say no.
great crested newts are a different species  they are alos illegal to remove from their habitat


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## horsyqueen (Jun 8, 2011)

i know about the great crested newts. i will get a pandilrium when i have space but i think i will just get them their own persanal tank. i also saw two mating but i will need some of the plants that help them breed.


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## jme2049 (Jan 11, 2008)

You can't put them in a tropical fish tank!:gasp:
They're from the wild in the UK. The water they would be in in the wild would never be over 20c.


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## horsyqueen (Jun 8, 2011)

ok they are happy in my only coldwater tank. i think i have mostly females.
does anyone know when the come out of the water and in again in the seasons.

would they hibinate and is it safe as it is not always with all animals.


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## spinnin_tom (Apr 20, 2011)

horsyqueen said:


> i know about the great crested newts. i will get a pandilrium when i have space but i think i will just get them their own persanal tank. i also saw two mating but i will need some of the plants that help them breed.


you can't keep crested newts.. it is illegal, they are protected under uk law.
wait.. did you mean the smooth newts?


do not keep them in a tank with fish, you have been told 3 times now, i think :/


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## horsyqueen (Jun 8, 2011)

i mean smooth. i will keep them away from my fish.


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## spinnin_tom (Apr 20, 2011)

and they seldom go into the water, they are mainly terrestrial i think.
you should provide land at all times though


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## horsyqueen (Jun 8, 2011)

i got them a few days ago they do have abit of land at the weekend i will get them a better tank.

they dont half stare at you. i walked past and they sat there staring.


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## sambridge15 (Nov 22, 2009)

just leave em in the wild especially as you have done zero research and have no idea how to care for them not even basic care 

imthinking troll anyways....any 1 else?


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## spinnin_tom (Apr 20, 2011)

^you were a beginner too once, sam.

my iberian newts stared a lot lol


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## sambridge15 (Nov 22, 2009)

spinnin_tom said:


> ^you were a beginner too once, sam.
> 
> my iberian newts stared a lot lol



yup and i purchased captive bred amphibians after spending a very long time researching/speaking to breeders etc.I had the tank set up 10 weeks in advanced just to make sure i had everything down.....

i didnt take some poor (protected endangered in the case of great crested newt)animal from the wild with no idea how to care for it not even simple things like temp requirment, diet etc these things need to be done before taking an animal into care!would be a different story had the op said im thinking of taking some newts from the wild what should i do?

to the op sorry if i seem blunt if you want to keep newts and your not a troll (most people who post with less than 10 posts and ask things like this tend to be:devil pop to your local reptile shop and buy something captive bred(after doing alot of research into its needs) the wc newts you have will do far far better staying in the wild and are unlikely to adapt well to viv life due to things like paracites and constantly high temps


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## soundstounite (Sep 6, 2009)

sambridge15 said:


> yup and i purchased captive bred amphibians after spending a very long time researching/speaking to breeders etc.I had the tank set up 10 weeks in advanced just to make sure i had everything down.....
> 
> i didnt take some poor (protected endangered in the case of great crested newt)animal from the wild with no idea how to care for it not even simple things like temp requirment, diet etc these things need to be done before taking an animal into care!would be a different story had the op said im thinking of taking some newts from the wild what should i do?
> 
> to the op sorry if i seem blunt if you want to keep newts and your not a troll (most people who post with less than 10 posts and ask things like this tend to be:devil pop to your local reptile shop and buy something captive bred(after doing alot of research into its needs) the wc newts you have will do far far better staying in the wild and are unlikely to adapt well to viv life due to things like paracites and constantly high temps


 Sam makes alot of sense here,and i agree we were all beginners and at some point might make mistakes, but its so so important to reserch before we keep not after aquiring animals.
Smooth newts are terrestrial i believe for almost all the year,only really going into water in the spring to breed,this is also when the male gets his breeding regalia,canadian pondweed elodea can be used by the females to wrap their eggs in which are laid individually.
To the op maybe its best to return these,get you head down and read loads and then come back to this stage,with a prepared tank,and knowledge of diet etc for your chosen animals,please don't be put off from keeping phibs by my reply,its just so important to look after these guys properly,
Stu


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## fardilis (Mar 22, 2011)

smooth newts are mostly terrestrial exept if there babys or during the breeding season.you cant keep them in tropical heated water as they only normaly live at britesh temps, and I would not keep them with fish as they will eat newt eggs and potentially harm the small amphibians. great crested newts are protected by britesh and european law and it is illegal to disterb, harm or handle the newts ,let alone snatch them out of the wild to keep as pets.

P.S all amphibians are better off in the wild and you shouldn't keep them especialy when captive bed ones are easily available, so leave them where are.


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## marcuswinner1 (Sep 24, 2009)

Although I agree with some of what has been previously stated, to answer the questions:

1. You can feed them on bloodworm (live or frozen) Daphnia and small/chopped worms whilst Aquatic or gutloaded small crickets, worms and small slugs once they are back on land.

2. They will become aquatic almost as soon as they come out of hibernation, I have struggled to get mine interested in the water when not hibernated. They should be wanting to get out of the water once breeding is over (late spring/early summer so any time now).

I keep mine on land all year round but put them in an aquarium (still with a small land section available) in the spring for a couple of months.

Yours might be showing signs of breeding as they have been properly cycled in the outdoors, although you may struggle to get them interested next year (I have had limited success)

3. Great crested Newts are larger (10-15cm) and darker with warty skin, Female Smooth Newts are a brown colour about 7-10cm in lenth and have smooth skin.

4. Newts do tend to stare at you a bit as you walk past, most of mine get quite excited at the prospect of food and start to beg as I approach!

There are a few species available (on here or various shops/sites) that are easier to keep in my opinion as they are from slightly warmer areas of Europe and seem to do better in an indoor enviroment i.e Spanish Sharp Ribbed Newts or Marbled Newts. Or even easier the Fire bellied Newts from China or Japan.

I say easier in that they can be cycled without the need for such a temperature drop. They all ideally need to be kept below 20c though.

Hope this helps. If you do decide to try with the Smooth Newts there is no legal reason why you cant but you need to make sure you can meet all of their requirements.

Good luck.


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## spinnin_tom (Apr 20, 2011)

fardilis said:


> smooth newts are mostly terrestrial exept if there babys or during the breeding season.you cant keep them in tropical heated water as they only normaly live at britesh temps, and I would not keep them with fish as they will eat newt eggs and potentially harm the small amphibians. great crested newts are protected by britesh and european law and it is illegal to disterb, harm or handle the newts ,let alone snatch them out of the wild to keep as pets.
> 
> P.S all amphibians are better off in the wild and you shouldn't keep them especialy when captive bed ones are easily available, so leave them where are.


 
how did the captive bred ones start off?
wild caught ancestors.
all pets started wild once


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## spinnin_tom (Apr 20, 2011)

sambridge15 said:


> yup and i purchased captive bred amphibians after spending a very long time researching/speaking to breeders etc.I had the tank set up 10 weeks in advanced just to make sure i had everything down.....
> 
> i didnt take some poor (protected endangered in the case of great crested newt)animal from the wild with no idea how to care for it not even simple things like temp requirment, diet etc these things need to be done before taking an animal into care!would be a different story had the op said im thinking of taking some newts from the wild what should i do?


if i were an animal, i would much rather be living somewhere, there is a constant supply of food, housing etc.
but yes, the op needs to do a lot more research, set up a proper, thought out viv for them, have is set up and acclimatised a good 3 weeks minimum and finally, get the newts.


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## sambridge15 (Nov 22, 2009)

spinnin_tom said:


> how did the captive bred ones start off?
> wild caught ancestors.
> all pets started wild once


You have a very very nieve view...the wild has more food housing etc than any viv in existence! I'm not saying captive amphibians have a bad life, but don't kid yourself that they are better off than being in the wild.

Also considering crested newts are protected and consequently illegal to trade this is hardly going to start a cb population and I'm sure every captive species/ captive population will have been started by experts that new exactly what they were doing.taking a species that is protected due to being endangered in the wild is a great way to make the problem worse

This isn't even taking into account other reasons like cytrid ,parasites,stress,legality,ethics that also make this a bad idea


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## marcuswinner1 (Sep 24, 2009)

Im sure this thread is about Smooth newts? I thought the only mention of Cresteds was how to tell them from Smooths????


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## Ron Magpie (Oct 11, 2009)

marcuswinner1 said:


> Im sure this thread is about Smooth newts? I thought the only mention of Cresteds was how to tell them from Smooths????


Marcus the Peacemaker! :lol2::2thumb::lol2:


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## sambridge15 (Nov 22, 2009)

marcuswinner1 said:


> Im sure this thread is about Smooth newts? I thought the only mention of Cresteds was how to tell them from Smooths????



hmm i though this quotation ment they had both?



horsyqueen said:


> i know about the great crested newts. i will get a pandilrium when i have space but i think i will just get them their own persanal tank. i also saw two mating but i will need some of the plants that help them breed.


either way taking stuff from the wild isnt the best of ideas :whistling2:


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## spinnin_tom (Apr 20, 2011)

sambridge15 said:


> You have a very very nieve view...the wild has more food housing etc than any viv in existence! I'm not saying captive amphibians have a bad life, but don't kid yourself that they are better off than being in the wild.
> 
> Also considering crested newts are protected and consequently illegal to trade this is hardly going to start a cb population and I'm sure every captive species/ captive population will have been started by experts that new exactly what they were doing.taking a species that is protected due to being endangered in the wild is a great way to make the problem worse
> 
> This isn't even taking into account other reasons like cytrid ,parasites,stress,legality,ethics that also make this a bad idea


what does this have to do with what you quoted though?
and i'm not nieve, it's just common sense, all pets started wild


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## sambridge15 (Nov 22, 2009)

spinnin_tom said:


> what does this have to do with what you quoted though?
> and i'm not nieve, it's just common sense, all pets started wild


i was lazy and was referring to both your posts 



spinnin_tom said:


> how did the captive bred ones start off?
> wild caught ancestors.
> all pets started wild once





spinnin_tom said:


> if i were an animal, i would much rather be living somewhere, there is a constant supply of food, housing etc.
> but yes, the op needs to do a lot more research, set up a proper, thought out viv for them, have is set up and acclimatised a good 3 weeks minimum and finally, get the newts.


the fact all pets started wild doesn't mean we should all go out and catch wild animals and force them into less than optimal conditions.

as for you being naive that was towards "i would much rather be living somewhere, there is a constant supply of food, housing etc." although your general opinions on taking things from the wild because thats where pets come from is pretty naive also:whistling2:


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## spinnin_tom (Apr 20, 2011)

^ this is quite stupid imo. in captivity, they have no risk of being eaten or killed. you are to stubborn to listen to other people's opinions


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## Ron Magpie (Oct 11, 2009)

Oh, give it a rest, Tom! Yes, of course all captive/domesticated animals came from the wild originally, but there are a wealth of captive-bred, hardy, tried-and-tested species for sale, so there is hardly any need to collect local ones, especially as they are under serious threat from pollution and habitat loss as it is. True, they don't have the threat of predators in a viv, but they also have nothing like the variety of food that is available in even a small pond or hedgerow. If you really want to keep them, why not set up a pond of your own? You may well find they move in on their own, but if not, there would be no harm in introducing a few. You could then have them as temporary pets in a tank, releasing them back into the pond afterward- watching their breeding behaviour can be really fascinating.:2thumb:

Wild newts can carry a lot of bugs, though, so keep them away from any captive-bred 'phibs.


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## spinnin_tom (Apr 20, 2011)

i'm considering setting up a pond.. but we live in a rented house and i'd have to do it whilst my mum is out lol


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## sambridge15 (Nov 22, 2009)

spinnin_tom said:


> ^ this is quite stupid imo. in captivity, they have no risk of being eaten or killed. you are to stubborn to listen to other people's opinions


are you honestly trying to say that captive is better than wild......


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## spinnin_tom (Apr 20, 2011)

sambridge15 said:


> are you honestly trying to say that captive is better than wild......



no. i'm saying that all captive bred animals originate from wild caught specimens.
now let's leave it and be grown up, ron told me to stop going on, so stop being picky.


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