Scientific name
Triturus cristatus
Popular name
Great crested newt
Description
The great crested newt is the largest species of newt in Europe (females can reach up to 18 cm in body length), but also the most endangered. Its body is robust, with rugged / rough skin, large head, rounded snout and the tail equal to or shorter than the rest of the body, and during the reproduction period, the male has a high and jagged dorsal crest extending from the occipital area to the tip of the tail. Its color is dark brown to black, with white spots on the sides, including the head. The belly is yellow to orange, with black irregular spots, which make up a mosaic drawing (because this pattern varies a lot among individuals, but changes only slightly over time, it can be used to individual identification).
This species needs large ponds, with rich submerged vegetation to provide protection. It stays in the water between March and June (some specimens remain there for the whole year), then goes out on land, but stays nearby and operates at night. During the day, it is hidden under stones, in holes in the ground, beneath foliage or fallen logs. When disturbed, it secretes a toxic, white substance with characteristic smell.
Food
The great crested newt is an extremely voracious species, feeding both on arthropods and earthworms, as well as on tadpoles and smaller newts.
Reproduction
In this period, males gather in groups and perform nuptial dances in front of the females. After fertilization, the female deposits more than 100 eggs (many of which do not develop) isolated on plants, during March-April, and the larvae hatch after 2-3 weeks.
Critical period
The species is particularly vulnerable during mating period and until larval metamorphosis (March-July), when changes in the aquatic environment can influence the survival of the new generations of newts.
Habitat
The great crested newt is a predominantly aquatic species, which prefers stagnant or flowing waters, with pond vegetation and partial exposure to the sun. It can also be found in artificial basins (watering places, ponds, pools), rarely in ditches or traces of car wheel covered with water. During terrestrial life, it prefers wet meadows or deciduous forests and can even move for several hundred meters from the aquatic habitat to the terrestrial one.
Distribution
It can be found in most of Central and Northern Europe, from northern France and UK to the Ural Mountains. In Romania, it is spread almost everywhere, at altitudes ranging from 100 to 1000 m, missing only from Dobrogea and the Danube Meadow, where it is replaced by Triturus dobrogicus.
