Salamanders feeding

Caudata (Urodela)

Eric J. Baitchman, Timothy A. Herman, in Fowler's Zoo and Wild Animal Medicine, Volume 8, 2015

Feeding

Most salamanders are eager and enthusiastic feeders so long as the appropriate food items are provided. A salamander that frequently refuses food is likely suffering from compromised health or an inadequate environment. Unlike most frog species, many salamanders use olfactory cues in conjunction with movement to detect food. As a result, some species (typically aquatic taxa) will feed on nonliving foods, including frozen thawed insect larvae and even commercially available pelleted foods. Many aquatic salamanders and larvae use a lateral line system, similar to that of fish, to detect movement of prey underwater. By and large, live moving food items are more readily detected and eaten by all salamanders. Many caudates have occasionally been documented to eat other salamanders, and the risk of consumption of smaller taxa or conspecifics should be considered in husbandry.

A broad diversity of invertebrates comprises the staple diet of most salamander species. Earthworms and nightcrawlers (Lumbricus terrestris and others) are an excellent food source for many terrestrial and aquatic taxa, although the “red wiggler” (Eisenia foetida) sold for bait and composting may be refused because of its production of yellow defensive secretions. Smaller worm species that may be used for larval and adult salamander food include California blackworms (Lumbriculus variegatus), tubifex worms (Tubifex spp.), whiteworms (Enchytraeus albidus), Grindal worms (Enchytraeus buchholzi), and microworms (Panagrellus spp.). Insects provide the staple diet of most terrestrial salamanders. In captivity, the most readily available and useful feeder insects include the domestic cricket (Acheta domestica), wax moth larvae (Galleria mellonella), house fly larvae (Musca domestica), fruit flies (Drosophila melanogaster and D. hydei), bean beetles (Callosobruchus maculatus), terrestrial isopods (woodlice), and springtails. Aquatic insect larvae form an important dietary component of many salamander larvae, although their availability is limited in captivity. Fly larvae such as bloodworms (family Chironomidae) and glassworms (family Chaoboridae) are occasionally available at pet stores, live or frozen as food for tropical fish. Mosquito larvae (family Culicidae) and other aquatic insect larvae may be locally collected for salamander food.