The Iranian Kaiser Newt (Neurergus kaiseri) is the single rarest newt in the world. It originates from an area of land that is only ten-square kilometers in size in the hostile desert climate of Iran, making it hard to come by in captivity.
Brilliantly colored with orange, black, and white markings, the Iranian Kaiser Newt is a hardy amphibian, largely due to the obstacles it has to overcome to survive in a harsh, relatively inhospitable habitat like Iran. We don’t hesitate to say it’s perhaps the hardiest newt we’ve ever had the pleasure of keeping–in fact, we have never lost a single one.
In captivity, the Kaiser Newt should be cared for much like any other newt or salamander. This species of newt seems to highly prefer an entirely aquatic setup. While we do provide floating cork bark for them to climb out onto, they very rarely use it. We have 20-gallon tanks with about 5-6 inches of water, a filter that helps clean and circulate the water, a floating piece of cork bark, and a pebble bottom (large pebbles). They absolutely thrive using this setup.
The Kaiser newt is gregarious and multiple newts can housed together in one enclosure–it’s not uncommon for them to spend time huddled together. These newts eat virtually any insects they can fit in their mouths and the captive-bred ones have been known to go so far as to beg for food. Suffice it to say that they are not picky eaters!
Our’s happily consume a diet of live blackworms and frozen bloodworms, and have also accepted small waxworms and crickets dropped onto the surface of the water.
While we do provide moderate lighting during the day, Kaiser Newts enjoy the dark and will be most active once the lights go out. In fact, they may utilize their hide spaces all day and only emerge once the Sun has set (or once you have turned off the lights in your home and their enclosure).
Backwater reptiles currently has a selection of flawless captive-bred Iranian Kaiser Newts for sale and due to the endangered nature of this species and the fact that it is illegal to export them nowadays, we encourage hobbyists to breed the animals to help contribute to the conservation effort.+
