Question
Hi, i wanted to get a salamander. Can you tell me how big they grow and if they need dry land or not? I have a 40 gallon tank containing the following: 1 blood parrot cichlid, 1 yellow lab cichlid, 1 firemouth cichlid, 1 juvenile jack dempsey(i will be moving soon), 1 figure eight puffer, 1 bristlenose pleco, 1 clown pleco, 1 convict cichlid, and 5 albino aires tetras. Do you think they will get along with the salamander? Last, do salamanders need special lighting? Thanks.

Answer
There are many different species of salamander.  Some are only an inch long while others can grow to 2 or even 3 feet long!  The larger ones tend to be totally aquatic.  Most species are terrestrial, living on damp land and only coming to water to lay eggs.  A few don't need water to lay eggs.

Your tank is not only too crowded with your current fish but salmanders aren't really compatible with most fish.  Aquatic salamanders (such as Axolotls) will eat small fish.  In turn, larger fish may try to eat them.  Salamanders are delicate and need cleaner water than most fish tanks afford.  Most need land areas.  Some are poisonous which can harm other animals with them.

Salamanders don't need special lighting, just a fluorescent light during the day.  Most hide during the day in a cave or underground and come out at night.

My salamander page doesn't have much on it but it's at
http://www.fishpondinfo.com/saly.htm

Good luck!