TankMatesTankMates
Sign in
Encyclopedia / Frogs & Newts / Himalayan crocodile newt
★New · no ratings yetPicture coming

Variations

1 kinds · tap one for a closer look

Himalayan crocodile newt

Tylototriton verrucosus · Crocodile newt, Himalayan newt, Verrucosus

Peaceful but toxic; keep in a damp, cool paludarium.

Local price coming soon
· real AED shop prices, never conversions
18 cmAdult size ✓
UnknownTemperature ?
UnknownpH ?
UnknownSmallest tank ?
Add to my tankCompare
Tank mates
Check your own mix →

This one is best kept on its own, or with its own kind.

Not recommended
  • Himalayan crocodile newt should be kept without other species, and it needs a land area too.
Not recommended
  • Himalayan crocodile newt should be kept without other species, and it needs a land area too.
Not recommended
  • Himalayan crocodile newt should be kept without other species, and it needs a land area too.
Facts checked against sources on 16 Oct 2026. ✓ means a source backs it; ? means no reliable source yet. See sources

Care and water

Hardness ?Unknown
Group size ?2 or more
Temperament ?Peaceful
Swims at ?All levels
Care level ?Moderate
Diet Carnivore
Lifespan ✓up to 11 years
Size in shops 8–14 cm
Growth Slow

Behavior

Peaceful but toxic; keep in a damp, cool paludarium.

Check your local laws. CITES Appendix II (all Tylototriton since CoP18, 2019): international trade needs CITES permits. US: genus Tylototriton is listed as injurious under the Lacey Act (Bsal rule), so import into the US and shipment between US jurisdictions are prohibited without a permit. Check the rules where you live before you buy one, and never release it into the wild.

Good to know: Largely terrestrial; needs a large damp land area.

Food

Crickets, worms and pellets.

Tap a food to see what it is.

Male or female

MaleSlimmer with swollen vent
FemalePlumper
TipCompare vents
How hard to tellModerate

Health

Common problems. Tap one to see the signs. This is a guide, not a diagnosis.

Breeding

Egg-layer · Hard

Breeds in water from March to May (can continue through the rainy season to September), timed with the start of the monsoon. Eggs are laid on submerged vegetation and on the bottom, rarely out of water.

Pairing

Group of 3-4.

Setup

Paludarium with moss.

What starts it

Cool dry rest then rain.

Eggs

Clutch of 26-60 eggs.

Raising the fry

Larvae eat daphnia and brine shrimp.

Common mistakes
  • Heat
  • No land
  • Dry conditions
Full breeding guide, day-by-day plan and simulator →

Where it lives in the wild

RegionEastern Himalaya to Indochina – India, Myanmar, China & Thailand
Rivers and lakesHill areas of the eastern Himalaya and Yunnan
HabitatPonds and pools in mountain forest
Native rangeAbout 800 km across
See it on the world map

The story of the himalayan crocodile newt

A large, warty, dark brown newt with knobbly glands along its sides, often called the crocodile newt. In the strict sense it lives in the hills of NE Myanmar and western Yunnan; it breeds in pools in the wet season and leaves the water in autumn.

Scottish zoologist John Anderson described the crocodile newt in 1871. Its rough skin and ridged back give it its common name. Recent studies have split several new species from it.

First described by John Anderson in 1871.

  • Its bumpy skin resembles a crocodile's.
  • Several new species have been split from it.
  • It spends much of the year on land.

Sources

10 facts checked with sources