19 Nov Sleep well, newts!
The increasingly colder and shorter days are a signal for amphibians to look for winter hiding places where – in a state of numbness – they will spend their time until spring. The great crested newts, which we released this year to the reservoirs in Umianowice, have probably already found a safe shelter. In the meantime, at the beginning of November, we prepared a wintering area for young newts, which will spend the winter under our watchful eye in a specially adapted aquaterrarium.
To provide the newts with the best possible conditions, we supplemented the aquaterrarium with plenty of moist, dead organic matter, mainly fallen autumn leaves and dead wood; mixed in places with soil and small stones. We also placed dendrobens, which can be a snack for our newts when they wake up (such a handy, amphibian pantry).
Throughout the winter, we will monitor the temperature in the wintering place (it should not fall below 0oC) and check the humidity so that it is sufficiently high all the time. Before introducing the newts to the wintering ground, we also made detailed morphometric measurements and photographic documentation of all individuals. So… see you in spring, our dear newts!
Małgorzata and Tomasz Łaciak
Pictures: Małgorzata and Tomasz Łaciak
