Reptile & Amphibian Forums

...I mean they can't smell under water, does the food have to be moving? If so, how do newt pellets work? I have eastern newts, but have only had them for a few days. I've seen them eat cut up worms that I give them under the water. But, there are some that they haven't eaten. Do you think this could be because those pieces weren’t moving? Thanks for any help.
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James

>>...I mean they can't smell under water, does the food have to be moving? If so, how do newt pellets work? I have eastern newts, but have only had them for a few days. I've seen them eat cut up worms that I give them under the water. But, there are some that they haven't eaten. Do you think this could be because those pieces weren’t moving? Thanks for any help.
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>>James

Im no expert, but Im sure they can probably sense food by scent. since the eastern newts water efts are adapt to living in water then Id guess yes.
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1.2 Leopard Geckos
1.0 Green Tree Frog
0.0.1 Northern Spring Peeper
0.0.1 Fire Belly Toad
0.0.1 Northern Leopard Frog
0.0.1 Red Spotted Newt (Water Eft)
0.0.1 Bull Frog Tadpole
38 gal Reef Tank

I am pretty shure they taste the water rather than smell it.
Demon

Oh, I didn't think of that, it makes sense. That's interesting.
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James

Newts and salamanders sense their food by smelling it. The food whether moving or not has a scent trail that is left through the water. A scent trail in the water is usually not a smell but just many different tastes. Most newts or salamanders are not very good at following these different scent trails so they look for things moving. For my japanese firebellies i use blackworms which work well.

Cool. I never knew that. Where can one find blackworms? I'm using cut up night crawlers and it's a pain, probably more of a pain to the worms LOL. Hopefully they can't feel it. Anyway, do you have to order blackworms or what? Thanks
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James

I have been following this thread with interest. I have had my CFBN about 8 weeks (?) and have mostly fed him blackworms, purchased at the LFS where I bought him. I have fed him a couple of very small earthworms; the other day, I was feeding my fish some frozen bloodworms, and as an experiment, put some in a small glass dish in his tank. He certainly didn't pounce on them right away, like he does the blackworms; but an hour later, they were gone! So his sense of smell works just fine, eventually anyway, and I guess he doesn't require his food to move. Which is a relief!

But it seems that if they tried to smell under water they would inhale the water. Wouldn't they???
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James

I believe they find their food by smell. I use both bloodworms & pellets with mine & they seem to sniff around until they find it.
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1.3.0 leos, Yoda, Geo, Tang, Ginger
1.0 Blue Tongue Skink Indigo (Indy)
0.1.1 frogs Buffy the Cricket Slayer, Butrose Butrose Froggy
1.1.4 firebelly newts Wayne Newton, Isaac Newton, Fig Newton, Juice Newton & Olivia Newton John, Helmut Newton
1.1.0 cats Gus & Mena

I still believe they taste the water and smell it that way,
anyway my broken striped newt eats frozen bloodworms and brine shrimp, none of them are alive and he seems to find them within 1 min
Demon

Its not so much as smelling with their nose, its more like how a snake smells with their tongue. They taste to smell. Otherwise they hunt by vibration. My chinese firebellies dig around and move over rocks to find the blackworms. You can either order them online or search for a store around you that carries them. They are pretty hard to find and there is only one store within an hour drive around me that has them, so good luck finding them! Just research your newts first and see if thats a recommended food for them. How big are your newts? Mine at most will grow up to 5 inches and the blackworms are usually at the most an inch and very very thin (at most 1 mm). If your newts are big they won't show an interest in them. I would probably just stick to the earthworms if your lucky enough to get them feeding on them! Just make sure to now do your research if your considering blackworms (they are a little bit of work).

I would say they are medium newts. They are eastern so they are a smaller species. They are all adults and range from 1 3/4 inches to 2 3/4 inches counting the tail. I'm feeding them regular sized earthworms like what you would find in your yard. But I still have to cut them up into like 10 pieces! And sometimes they squirt blood on me when I cut 'em up so I would prefer to use blackworms. I might try frozen brine shrimp. Do you think that would work? I'd like to use something freez dried or frozen. Thanks.
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James

Freeze dried is not nearly as nutritious as frozen. I've also heard brine shrimp are quite salty (they do harvest them from the Great Salt Lake & they are called "brine" shrimp), so you may not wish to use them as the sole food source.
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1.3.0 leos, Yoda, Geo, Tang, Ginger
1.0 Blue Tongue Skink Indigo (Indy)
0.1.1 frogs Buffy the Cricket Slayer, Butrose Butrose Froggy
1.1.4 firebelly newts Wayne Newton, Isaac Newton, Fig Newton, Juice Newton & Olivia Newton John, Helmut Newton
1.1.0 cats Gus & Mena

My newt has been living off of a brine cube one day then a bloodworm cube then brine etc he is fed 3 tims a week and i have had him happy and healthy off this diet for over like 5 years, i do not thing that brine shrimp are a problem as long as you do not offer it too often and also offer an alternative so that if there is too much salt then the newt will have time to dissapate it. Is your newt an eastern spotted newt? if so then it is very simmiler to mine because mine is a broken striped newt which is a subspecies of the spotted newts. sorry for the long post but what the hey.
Demon
P.S. my newt no longer shows much interest in worms.

Yep, they are all the spotted newts. I'll try those frozen cubes; I know exactly what you’re talking about. Thanks for all the information.
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James

They find their food the same way they find their mate: either by smell or by movement. Newts have a good sense of smell. They can detect the presence of females by the phermones the females release into the water. They can also find food by smell. Newts prey heavily on amphibian eggs, including those of their own kind. To find the eggs, they must use their sense of smell because eggs do not move.