Caecilians

[VolkswagenBug]

Does anyone here keep caecilians? If so, what are your experiences, and where in the world did you find them? I'd quite like to try my hand at keeping a terrestrial/semiaquatic species such as Dermophis mexicanus or Herpele squalostoma, but there's not much information available online, much less anywhere to buy them.

 

[schmiggle]

I've seen caresheets. They're supposed to be sort of painful to keep alive, largely because none are captive bred so they come in with parasites.

 

[VolkswagenBug]

I've seen caresheets. They're supposed to be sort of painful to keep alive, largely because none are captive bred so they come in with parasites.

Interesting. I've also seen a couple of care sheets online, though they don't mention parasites.
I think there are some CB specimens, but they're mostly scientific and there's not really a caecilian hobby (shame, too; Siphonops paulensis is absolutely gorgeous, for example). It may also depend on the species.

 

[schmiggle]

I'm a member of caudata.org, and you very occasionally see caecilians for sale, but it's rare.

Just because a population is primarily circulated among scientists doesn't mean you can't access it. You just need to talk to the right people. The most common method for breeding tardigrades comes from this British guy who just breeds them in a shed for local schools.

 

[Ajohnson5263]

I have never owned any, however i am in a Facebook group dedicated to their care. The aquatic ones seem to have the easiest care, however, i believe they are no longer imported due to legislation.

 

[Lyrognathus]

I have a H. squalostoma. I keep it in a shoebox with some moist dirt and a condiment cup as a water dish. Temps stay at about 68-73ish. I've never seen her eat, but she's been with me since last August. I feed crickets, but I'm going to try some worms soon. I hear T. natans is the only species that's available as captive bred with some regularity, but most people don't keep them so they're a bit of a niche species now that exportations have stopped.

 

[SonsofArachne]

Probably your best bet would be Typhlonectes natans - the aquatic caecilian. They're kept in a number of US zoos and seem to be more available in the pet trade, at least according to the quick Google search I did.

 

[VolkswagenBug]

I have a H. squalostoma. I keep it in a shoebox with some moist dirt and a condiment cup as a water dish. Temps stay at about 68-73ish. I've never seen her eat, but she's been with me since last August. I feed crickets, but I'm going to try some worms soon. I hear T. natans is the only species that's available as captive bred with some regularity, but most people don't keep them so they're a bit of a niche species now that exhortations have stopped.

Where'd you get the squalostoma?

 

[Lyrognathus]

Where'd you get the squalostoma?

A reptile expo. Usually they're found in the odd importer's list.

 

[VolkswagenBug]

A reptile expo. Usually they're found in the odd importer's list.

Ah, that makes sense. I'll try to head to the next expo around here, which I think is in June or something. Perhaps I can also talk to my local exotic pet store's amphibian specialist.