KINGDOM	Animalia
PHYLUM	Chordata
CLASS	Amphibia
ORDER	Caudata
FAMILY	Salamandridae

GENERAL INFORMATION ABOUT
TRITURUS NEWTS

• The genus Triturus is a relatively small Eurasian
  group which contains some of the most spectacular
  transformations in the animal world.
• From relatively dull subterranean denizens to
  beautiful adorned and colored water creatures, newts
  are popular vivarium subjects throughout the world.
• There are several TRITURUS NEWTS
  including the Triturus cristatus, the Triturus vulgaris,
  the Triturus alpestris, and the Triturus helveticus.
• All these newts are European newts whose males dress
  for breeding.
• There’s no mistaking a Triturus male in breeding
  season, and the crested is particularly distinctive.
• Males of this genus grow tall, tadpole-like tails,
  with a fin or jagged crest, from the neck, along the
  back, and to the tail where the tail crest begins.
• Most male newts exhibit some reshaping of the tail
  in breeding season, but few so dramatic as this.
• Newts must be hibernated before they breed at 50
  F/10 C
  for 2-3 months.
• They eat the usual small invertebrates like little
  worms, daphnia, artemia, etc, and do well on pelleted food.

ABOUT THE GREAT CRESTED NEWTS

(Triturus cristatus)

• The Great Crested Newt (Triturus cristatus) occurs
  through much of England and into Eastern Wales.
  
• It is uncommon in Scotland and Southwest England.
• Within its range it can be relatively common.
• The crested newts are the largest (to 15cm) and most
  heavily built newts of the genus Triturus.
• They have a warty skin, quite unlike the smooth or
  granular skin of the smaller species.
• The back is dark brown or black, and there may be
  white stippling along the flanks.
• The belly is usually yellow or orange, with large
  black blotches or spots.
• The males develop a high, toothed, black crest
  during the breeding season, and a white band at the
  sides of the tail.
• The group was originally considered as one species,
  but has recently been split into four separate species.



• Triturus carnifex: The Italian Crested Newt.
  The Italian crested newt has a distribution centered
  around Italy and the former Yugoslavia.
  Females and juveniles may exhibit a yellow dorsal stripe,
  which is usually absent in the other species, and there
  is little white stippling on the flanks.
  The throat is yellow and black with white stippling.



• Triturus cristatus: The Northern Crested Newt.
  The northern crested newt is widely distributed across
  northern Europe.
  The wide distribution of this species leads to some
  variation in appearance, though white stippling is
  almost always present on the flanks, and the throat
  is dark with similar stippling.



• Triturus dobrogicus: The Danube Crested Newt.
  Formerly also known as T. cristatus danubialis, the
  Danube crested newt has a restricted distribution around
  the Danube flood plains.
  This species is the smallest and least bulkily built of
  the cristatus group.
  Males have a particularly high crest, which may extend
  onto the head.
  The distribution of this species is not well known.
  It has a small range, and, apart from a small part of
  the Black Sea coast, it's distribution is bordered by
  the ranges of other crested newt species.
  This leads to hybrid zones where the ranges meet, making
  it difficult to establish the exact distribution of the
  pure species.



• Triturus karelinii: The Southern or Turkish Crested Newt.
  The southern crested newt occurs in the far south-east
  of Europe.
  This is the largest species of the group.
  Belly colouration usually extends onto the throat.



• These species are very closely related, and hybrids
  have been succesfully bred from most combinations of the
  four species.
  This group of species, together with the marbled newt,
  exhibit a chromosomal anomaly leading to a 50% mortality
  of all eggs produced.
• This species is the most rapidly declining of all of
  European amphibians.
• For this reason it has legal protection.

ABOUT THE PALMATE NEWTS

(Triturus helvecticus)

• This newt's helvecticus name comes from Switzerland,
  where the species was first discovered.
• During the breeding season the male Palmate Newt
  has webbed hind feet and a thread at the end of its tail.
• The male has a wavy crest along its back.
• The females have none of these features and are almost
  identical to each other.
• They are protected under the Bern Convention and the
  Wildlife and Countryside Act.
• Its habitat on land is at base of vegetation, under
  stones or in soil crevices.
• Its habitat in water is almost any stand of water no
  matter how small. Mainly in soft-water areas.
• They usually spend the winter on land in the
  hibernating (resting) stage, entering water for breeding
  in March/April.
• Individuals may choose to remain in water during
  spring and summer or to return to the land.
• The Palmate newt is the smallest British newt species.
• It is widespread although it is not found in Ireland.
• It is less common in hard water areas.
• Because of the skin between its toes, the feet are
  like palms of the hand, from which it gets its name.
• Its diet consists mainly of worms, slugs, snails,
  small aquatic insects as well as frogspawn tadpoles
  and even their own young.
• If there are plenty of beetles then beetles, if a
  surfeit of worms then worms.
• They spend much of their time in the weedy shallow water
  on the margins of ponds, lakes & slow-flowing rivers.

ABOUT THE ALPINE NEWTS

(Triturus alpestris)

• One of the most attractive newts, both on land and
  especially in its aquatic form is the small but extremely
  distinctive species, the Alpine newt. The term 'Alpine`
  is slightly misleading because although occurring in the
  mid and lower elevations of that mountain range they also
  dwell vast regions of lowland and other mountain ranges
  throughout Europe and Western Russia.
• The Alpine newt possesses the widest range, from
  Denmark, the Benelux countries (Belgium, Luxembourg
  and Holland), to northern Greece and eastern Russia.
• This 9 - 12.7cm (3.53 - 5in) newt’s dorsal coloration
  varies from drab brown in females to a beautiful marbled
  arrangement of iridescent blue mottling in males.
• Females also tend to have a granular skin texture
  as opposed the velvety texture of males.
• The underside varies from a yellow-orange in females
  to a deep blood-red orange in males and speckles are
  completely absent.
• During courtship males develop a low (1½ - 2mm) crest
  consisting of sequential yellow and black bars.
• Northern Italy is inhabited by the Italian Alpine
  (T.a.apuanus) which at a maximum of 10cm is smaller than
  the nominate form.
• It is also more aquatic than T.a.alpestris, often
  spending the entire year in cool ponds.
• Females are larger and duller than males possessing
  flaccid folds of skin on the head, abdomen and limbs.
• Dorsal color is dull brown with black blotches along
  the flanks where the venter is a tangerine hue.
• In contrast males are slim, elegant and the most
  attractive Alpine newt when in courtship (which is most
  of the year).
• Their dorsal colours comprise of opalescent silver
  and blue mottling with sky blue along the lower flanks.
• At the edges of the vivid orange venter (which is
  heavily spotted on the throat) is a band of silvery white
  with black speckling (which extends to the head, legs and
  cloaca).
• The lemon-colored crest is 2 - 3mm high with uniform
  black zigzags.
• The tail also shows heavy blue and black blotched
  cresting. Even the eyes do not escape transformation,
  enlarging and turning gold.
• Alpine newts are currently split up into ten different
  subspecies.
• Only three subspecies are regularly available in
  captivity, almost of an entirely captive-bred derivation.

ABOUT THE SMOOTH NEWTS

(Triturus vulgaris)

• The smooth newt varies greatly in appearance
  over it's range.
• The maximum length attained is around 10cm.,
  although some individuals may be much smaller.
• The ground colour is olive-grey in both sexes.
• The belly is white or grey, with a central flash
  of red or orange.
• The belly is spotted, as is the throat.
• Males usually have more numerous and larger spots
  on their flanks than females, and some form of crest is
  present on breeding males, as is partial webbing on the hind
  feet, and a blue flash along the lower edge of the tail.
• The appearance of breeding males varies widely
  throughtout the smooth newt's range, although females are
  relatively similar.
• They are nocturnal eaters. As they live around the
  edge of ponds they tend to eat what is found there,
  although they travel quite far from water.
• They breathe through their skins, as well as with
  their lungs.
• In the breeding season they become much more brilliant
  in colouring, and the males assume a handsome ornamental
  crest on the back and tail.
• Several subspecies of this newt exist:



• T. v. vulgaris.
  In this subspecies, which occurs over most of northern
  Europe, the breeding male has a high, wavy-edged crest.
  There is no tail filament, and no dorsolateral ridges.



• T. v. ampelensis.
  This subspecies occurs only in northern Rumania.



• T. v. graecus.
  This subspecies is found in Greece and Bulgaria.
  Breeding males exhibit relatively straight crests.
  There is also webbing on the hind feet, and tail
  filaments, much like the palmate newt (which does not
  occur in this area).



• T. v. kosswigi.
  This species occurs in northern Turkey, along the south
  coast of the Black Sea. Like T. v. graecus, this subspecies
  exhibits a straight crest, foot webs, and a tail filament.
  In addition, it also has strong dorsolateral ridges, also
  like the palmate newt.



• T. v. lantzi.
  This subspecies occurs along the eastern edge of the
  Black Sea.
  It is another subspecies having a tail filament, and well
  developed foot webbing.
  However, this subspecies has a rather denticulate
  (toothed) crest, like that of T. v. vulgaris.



• T. v. meridionalis.
  This Italian and Slovenian subspecies is another that
  has a tail filament, pronounced webbing on the hind feet,
  and a straight crest.
  The crest in this form is also rather low.



• T. v. schmidtlerorum.
  This is a dwarf subspecies, growing to perhaps 6 cm,
  and occuring in north-western Turkey.
  The foot webbing is very rudimentary, and there is no
  tail filament.
  The crest is denticulated, even spiky.



• These newts are carnivores at all stages of their
  life cycle.

TO HELP PROTECT THE
TRITURUS NEWTS

• Existing ponds need maintenance, and local conservation
  bodies will advise on projects in your area.
• Surveying is needed, both to locate unrecorded newt
  populations, and to monitor existing ones.
• One of the best ways to help newts, if you have a
  garden, is to build a pond. Even a small garden pond may
  support some of the smaller species.
• To avoid depletion of wild populations, anyone desiring
  to maintain captive newts should only buy captive-bred
  stock. All of the Triturus species are bred by private
  breeders in Europe, and the large numbers of eggs and larvae
  produced mean that surplus young newts are often available.
• To halt and reverse the decline of newt populations,
  raise awareness of the importance of newts conservation
  and the dependence of the species on wetland and terrestrial
  habitats.
• Raise the awareness of newts legislation with landowners,
  managers, developers etc.
• The GREAT CRESTED NEWT is
  protected under Annex IIa and IVa of the EU Habitats
  and Species Directive, Appendix II of the Bern Convention
  (SI 1994 No. 2716) and by Schedules 5 and 9 of the Wildlife
  and Countryside Act 1981.

Music From: I Will Survive

Last Updated: 3-April-1999
WebMaster: Daisy Moreno daisymoreno@HotMail.com
Copyright © 1999. All rights reserved

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