I was totally inspired by their gorgeous vivs, so I came away with a coupe of bricks of moss substrate, a dangly plant and a fake rock water dish. I'd bought a new tank for my fire-bellies some months ago and used soil as the base (my attempts to have a mostly aquatic set up didn't really work out very well, and in the end I decided it was healthier for them to have mostly land with a deep pond for swimming in). But it was just a bit dingy and dull in there.
So as soon as we got home, I cleared the whole thing out, put down a layer of gravel followed by a layer of soil and then put the moss on top. I've never used those bricks before, so I put the whole thing in the sink (they came dry and packed into blocks) and there was SO. MUCH. I ended up redoing Bulmerhoe's tank, too, just because I had so much freaking moss (but it looks good, so it wasn't a bad mistake to make).
I replaced the toads' tupperware pond with the 'stone' one, which I sank into the moss so it looks like a little forest puddle. Then I planted the shrub in the corner, lay down their bog wood pieces, and stuck some pieces of slate in the back in an attempt to give a nice background (that part still needs work). I also arranged three pebbles I picked from a Welsh beach along the edge of the pond.
Bulmerhoe's tank is entirely moss (when I clean him out next, I will probably do the gravel/soil/moss thing that I did with the fire-bellies), with a big chunk of slate across the back and his pond in the corner.
Anyway, I'm thrilled with the results. They look like tiny forest glade dioramas now, so not only are they a nicer environment for the amphibians, but they're good for people to look at too!
Bulmerhoe (that white stuff on his back is dry moss ... I should probably have bathed him prior to photos).

Bulmer spends 95% of his time buried underground, so these photos - from when he first went back into his renovated home - are the only ones I have.

The fire-bellies tank.

Kili is the more adventurous of the two anyway, but he's been exploring all over the place.


Bulmer spends 95% of his time buried underground, so these photos - from when he first went back into his renovated home - are the only ones I have.

The fire-bellies tank.

Kili is the more adventurous of the two anyway, but he's been exploring all over the place.

He especially likes the plant and would very much like to be a tree frog.

Sometimes Fili comes out, though! I didn't know where he was hiding until I topped up the pond this morning, and he plopped out from underneath the log. Turns out there's a little cave in there by the water's edge.

Feeding time! Both of them are out and on the hunt. At one point, Kili was on the edge of the pond and he stepped forward to get closer to a cricket ... and completely failed to look where he was going. He just faceplanted straight into the water.

- Current Location:Surrey
- Current Mood:
pleased
Comments
What are the containers next to the fire-belly tank?