Age: 8 to 12 years
Origin: China
Length: 5 to 10 centimeters
The Chinese fire-bellied salamander is mostly dark brown to black. The belly is reddish-orange and marked with black spots. With a tail that is approximately the same length as its body and has a rounded end, it can reach a length of 10 centimeters.

Care
Experience: Beginner amphibian keeper
Food: Invertebrates
Feeding adults: Every 2 to 3 days
Feeding juveniles: Daily
Water bowl: Large water section
Water change: Daily

Diet
This salamander species can be fed with dead or live food, with live food often being preferred. Prey animals that can be fed include mosquito larvae, water fleas, brine shrimp, or earthworms. Newborn larvae do not need to be fed for the first few days as they live off their yolk sac. After that, they can be fed with water fleas, mosquito larvae, or tubifex worms. When they are larger, young brine shrimp or finely chopped worms can be fed.

Water
Given that salamanders spend the majority of their time in the water, it is important that the water section is larger than the land section. The ideal temperature is between 15 and 22 degrees Celsius; an aquarium cooler can be used to achieve this if necessary. It is recommended to use a pump with a filter to maintain good water quality. However, this pump should not create too strong a current, as they live in stagnant water in the wild.

Cleaning
Keeping the terrarium clean is very important. The water in the water bath must be changed weekly, as salamanders often use the water as a toilet. Inspect the terrarium daily, remove dirty furnishings, clean them, and put them back. The entire terrarium and interior must be cleaned several times a year. If disinfectants are required for cleaning (use only mild variants), rinse everything thoroughly and dry it off. This prevents the frog's sensitive skin from coming into contact with chemicals.

Handling
Handling salamanders is discouraged due to their thin and sensitive skin, which absorbs substances. Holding the animals is therefore bad for their health. If handling the animals is unavoidable, it is important to first wash your hands thoroughly, without soap, and handle the animal with wet hands. You can also pick them up using vinyl gloves. Given that salamanders are venomous, though not dangerous to humans, it is important that you always wash your hands after handling them.

Housing
Minimum enclosure size for 1 salamander: 60x40x40

Daytime temperature: 15-22 degrees Celsius
Nighttime temperature: 15-22 degrees Celsius
Substrate: gravel, slate, or aquarium sand.

Enclosure setup
Fire-bellied salamanders are good climbers and will try to escape; it is important to ensure this is not possible by sealing everything off properly. However, it is important that there is ventilation in the enclosure; without ventilation, the humidity becomes too high.

To ensure that the animals can hide, there must be ventilation in the enclosure in both the land and water sections.

Behavior
Hunting method: Active hunters, but they can also wait for prey to emerge from dense vegetation.
Lifestyle: Nocturnal
Character
The Chinese fire-bellied salamander is said to be found primarily in the water, but occasionally on land as well. They like to live among many aquatic plants where they can hide. They spend the entire winter underwater or underground, except in mild winters when they do not hibernate.

Points of attention
This species can be housed in groups. It is not recommended to house them with other animal species to prevent injuries.

Costs and Purchase
Legislation: -

One-time costs: the cost of the animal and the enclosure.

Fixed costs: food and clean bedding. Unexpected costs: veterinary costs should the animal become ill.