Crocodile Newt

Tylototriton verrucosus

Crocodile newt usually refers to Tylototriton verrucosus, a ridged, heavy-bodied salamander from cool forested hills of the eastern Himalaya and adjacent Southeast Asia, although the name is also applied to related Tylototriton species in trade. The animal has a broad head, rough skin, raised ribs or glandular warts along the sides, and orange to rusty markings on the head, tail, and limbs. It breeds in ponds, ditches, or slow water during wet periods and may spend part of the year on land in damp leaf litter.

For amphibian keepers and zoological collections, correct identification matters because several crocodile newts have been split taxonomically and some are threatened or regulated. Captive care is usually cool, clean, and quiet: dechlorinated water, easy land access, hiding places, and food such as earthworms, bloodworms, and other small invertebrates. Heat, fouled water, and rough handling are common causes of decline. Captive-bred animals are strongly preferred over wild-caught imports, which may carry chytrid fungus, ranavirus, or parasite loads and can add pressure to small mountain populations.