Would Red spotted newts survive in a UK pond?

Question

Would they survive all year? Can they live off the mosquito larvae in my pond and bugs near it. Will my dog be safe near them?

Answer 1

well im pretty sure thay would suvive the winter (they have been found searching for food in icey lakes) but thats not this issue here. first of all the pond would need to be escape proof and new and have no other occupants other u run the risk of Incompatible toxins bacteria and illnesses (especially with phibs but is common with others 2 just cause one species can handle one type of bacteria/doesn't mean they all can these animals evolved in totally different ways meaning there resistant to different things, as for toxins many phibs and invert have these as defense mechanisms and can easily kill or make the others ill)

also wild insects carry disease parasites and bacteria that may be harmless to them but will kill your newts so in other words no u can never ever feed wild insects to any reptile

also there's the chance of pesticides

its illegal to introduce non native species into the wild u can be find alot of money (maxing out around £250,000) or face a jail sentence.

all in all its a better safer and more sensible idea to keep them inside

Answer 2

as they come from america i am not sure they will survive our British winter, but you can't introduce these newts to our countryside, they are not native to us and could upset the balence of our native newts who are already an endangered species, i am not sure if it is legal either but you can't let them loose it would be irrisponsible to introduce a species from another country