Notopthalmus viridicens (Green newt)

Age: 10 to 15 years
Origin: Eastern side of the United States and southeastern Canada
Length: Up to 14 centimeters
The green newt is not completely green in color but often a little brown-green with dots and other patterns on its skin. The belly has a pale yellow color with dots. What is striking about this species are the yellow eyes with horizontal pupils.

Care
Experience: Novice amphibian keeper
Food: Insects
Feed adult: Every 2 to 3 days
Feed young: Daily
Water bowl: Yes
Water change: Daily

Power supply
The newt eats insects such as crickets, flies, moths, small grasshoppers and fruit flies. It is best to give these insects alive to promote hunting, this is good for the health of the animals. Remove uneaten prey to avoid disturbing or damaging resting frogs.

To compensate for a shortage of calcium and vitamin D3 in captivity, the prey animals can be powdered with vitamins and minerals, which can be purchased at a pet store.

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

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

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

Housing
Minimum enclosure size for 1 salamander: 20 litres
Day temperature: 15-22 degrees Celsius
Night temperature: 15-22 degrees Celsius
Substrate: gravel, slate or aquarium sand.

Design
Newts are good climbers and will try to escape, it is important that this is not possible by closing everything properly. However, it is important that there is ventilation in the accommodation, without ventilation the humidity will be too high.
To ensure that the animals can hide, there must be both on land and in the water part of the enclosure.

Behaviour

Hunting method: Active hunters but can also wait for prey to emerge from dense vegetation.
Lifestyle: Nocturnal

Character
The newt would mainly be found in the water but occasionally also on land. They like to live among many aquatic plants where they can hide. All winter they are submerged or underground, except in mild winters when they do not hibernate or rest.

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

Cost and Purchase
Legislation:-
One-off costs: the costs of the animal and the accommodation.
Fixed costs: food and clean bedding.
Unexpected costs: vet costs should the animal become ill