Husbandry

Maintenance:

Routine Cleaning: It is important to provide a clean environment to ensure healthy animals. This can be done through daily spot checks and removing any un-eaten food.

  

Water Changes/ Misting: As animals have delicate skin it is important to use de-chlorinated water in the animal's enclosure and the water in misting bottles. It is possible to purchase normal bottled water, a de-chlorinator to treat tap water or some keepers collect rain water. 

 

Feeding:

Abundance of food: To ensure healthy animals an amount of food and providing a variety is essential. It is important to provide a variety of prey/ food to prevent animals becoming accustom to certain food sources and developing feeding habits. The amount of food is essential to ensure successful feeding; this can be ensured by appropriate enclosure sizes and regular feeding. Feeding adults 2-3 times a week and juveniles/ larvae daily. 

Target Feeding: As some individual species are quick to learn and depending on temperament; some can be conditioned to be target fed, using plastic tweezers. This is not essential as animals are perfectly able to locate food in their environments. However, keepers may find it of benefit as it allows to monitor food intake and health checks.   

 

Handling: 

Animals are slow moving therefore easily captured for restraint. They can be placed in the palm of the hand, index finger beneath the throat and thumb gently resting on the neck; this was the preferred restraint in order to minimize movement. Gloves can be worn to protect the animal’s sensitive skin and protection from their anti-predator response; or alternatively with damp hands. In this case, the hands must be cleaned with just warm water and must not have been in contact with soaps or lotions prior to handling. These kinds of substances will be absorbed by the salamander’s skin and become severely dehydrated. Even the warmth and the natural oils of a human hand can draw the moisture out of its skin and make the individual very uncomfortable and will try and escape. To avoid this, hands should be sprayed with dechlorinated water before handling to keep the salamanders skin moist. However, handling should be to be kept a minimum due to animal’s delicate skin.

 

Anti-preadator Response: 

The species defensive mechanisms, as the orange colouration markings are glands that secrete noxious and toxic poisons, in some species and an anti-predator response triggered by pressure on the animal pressing its ribs against the glands. Includes aggressive posture, such as the T. shanjing have the potential to display unken reflex that exposes the glands beneath the tail and if extremely aggravated they will whip their tail and even head-butt. T. wenxianensis also have the potential to use mimicry and play dead. 

 

Imprinting:

A consequence of the removal of natural pressures, such as predation and husbandry practices therefore animals relate the human presence with the receiving of food. This behavioural adaptation has been well documented in captive amphibians and results in genetic differences. This is believed to be caused by the number of generations kept in captivity and possibility of recessive, deleterious genes being expressed. This has resulted in much debate of the genetic fitness of captive populations of amphibians and suitability for reintroduction programmes. Some have shown anthropomorphic traits in captivity; such as being bold, inquisitive and develop their own personalities.

 

T. verrucosus Colour Morph

As previously mentioned T.verrucosus are classed into three colour variants; although recently a new unique golden colouration has occured. Juvenile pictured hatched February 2013. 

 

T. verrucosus Rearing  By J. Daley-Davies

A breeder's personal account on successfully rearing verrucosus; with only one fatality to date. In this example the breeder harvested the eggs as they weren't secured to the hornwort, however, the breeder would of preferred to leave them in the tank to develop.

The eggs start off in beakers. Individuals develop and hatched within two weeks. The larvae are moved into plastic containers with shallow water, plant material and fed micro-worm (Panagrellus redivivus), daphnia (Daphnia pulex) and white-worm (Enchytraeus albidus). The individuals were kept constant at room temperature; which resulted in slower growth compared to other breeders that use heaters. These containers then spot cleaned daily with the occasional complete water change. Constantly supplied with abundance of various insect larvae.

As individuals grow they get separated into bigger containers with shallow water. Once individuals are eating chopped earthworms (Dendrobaena veneta), they can be placed in a tank with deeper water until they morph. Individuals in the tank are provided with a small land area, but still fed in the water. Animals soon return to being fully aquatic, although occasionally the odd stubborn one may refuse to enter water.