Reptile care info

17 October 2011 | Boelen's Python

Natural History and Taxonomy

The Emerald Tree Monitor (also called the Green Tree Monitor) is a medium-sized arboreal monitor lizard that is brightly colored with green and transverse black banding. This species has a highly developed sense of smell and extremely acute vision. V. prasinus spends most of its time perched high above the canopy basking and foraging for food.

It is found in New Guinea and several small adjacent islands, on a few islands within the Torres Strait between Papua New Guinea and Australia, and on Cape York Peninsula in Queensland, Australia. It thrives in lowland environments, including tropical evergreen forests, palm swamps and plantations. Varanus prasinus was first described as Monitor viridis by John Edward Gray in 1831; however, his original specimen was lost. This species was later re-described by Schlegel eight years later as V. prasinus using the found specimen.

The Emerald Tree Monitor is a member of the Varanidae family, which includes a variety of interesting lizards that are commonly referred to as monitor lizards. Monitors vary greatly in size, from about eight in. (20 cm.) long for the pygmy goanna up to ten feet long (3 m.) – the length of the largest lizard of all, the Komodo Dragon of Indonesia.

Captive Care

The Emerald Tree Monitor is highly arboreal and needs lots of vertical space to feel comfortable. It is highly prone to stress and if all captive husbandry is not done correctly, it will not feed properly and could eventually perish from stress-related issues. Single animals can be housed in large vertically-spaced enclosures measuring at least 5 ft. x 3 ft. x 3 ft (1.5 m. x .9 m. x .9 m). Lots of vertical branching and limbs should be placed in the enclosure to allow for much needed climbing and foraging behavior. I recommend using several large broad-leafed plants and some smaller foliage for concealment and humidity. Flat cork slabs can be fixed to the back of the enclosure to allow for vertical access and exploration. This also will allow for arboreal air plants to be fixed to the walls.

Hydration

One of the most important considerations when attempting to keep this lizard is hydration. Misting multiple times a day is crucial. The animal also should be allowed to gain access to arboreal-placed water dishes in the enclosure. Fresh water should be provided daily.

Lighting

Varanus prasinus lives almost 90% of its life high in the canopy. I highly recommend using ultraviolet lighting for this species. I suggest using several Zoo Med 10.0 fluorescent lights fixed to the top of the enclosure. Multiple basking sites with varying intensities also should be provided. Ambient temperatures for the enclosure should be around 78-84° F. (26-29° C.). Isolated basking temperatures for this species should be in the 90°-100° F (32°-38° C.) range. The temperature should not exceed this upper limit and care should be taken when setting up the lights so that the lizard cannot come into contact with them. Varanids can and will burn themselves while basking.

Diet

In the wild this species feeds on a variety of arboreal insects, centipedes, spiders, crabs, birds, and small mammals. In captivity it will readily accept small rodents into its diet. It is thought, however, that too much of this type of prey item can lead to unhealthy, obese animals. I recommend offering insects such as Dubia roaches and crickets dusted with calcium three times a week. Offering small pink mice in moderation also is OK.  There have been reports of V. prasinus feeding on a variety of plants and fruits, but in my opinion this is a rare occurrence.

Reproduction

This species can lay as many as three clutches throughout the year. Captive clutches have been laid in January, March, April, November, and December. Clutches consist of up to five eggs. In the wild, the female deposits her clutches of eggs in arboreal termite nests. The eggs hatch between 160–190 days, typically from June to November, after which the young eat the termites and the termite’s eggs. Although this species has reproduced in captivity numerous times, it still can be challenging to have them breed. It appears that this species responds well to heavy periods of rain during the breeding seasons.

Introducing a female to a male typically will result in the male following the female and engaging in tongue flicking and attempts to copulate. The male will approach the female and try to pin her down and maneuver himself so that he can wrap his tail around her to position himself for copulation. It is not uncommon for a male to invert its hemipenis during this time. Copulation can take place from several minutes to several hours. This breeding behavior can occur for several weeks. After breeding behavior has ceased, I recommend removing the male so no unnecessary stress occurs and the chances of the male eating the eggs is reduced.

Depositing the eggs can take from 30-60 days. Multiple nesting areas should be placed inside the enclosure. This will give the female time to explore and chose which nest box she prefers. Once the eggs are found, they should be incubated in a 1:1 ratio by weight of vermiculite to water. Incubation temperature should be 84°-86° F. (29°-30° C.) and the humidity should be as high as possible.

Conclusion

The Emerald Tree Monitor is a truly fascinating species of small monitor to keep in captivity. It can prove to be very entertaining and rewarding as a captive. By following the simple recommendations in this article, you can help them flourish in your care.

Bull. Chicago Herp. Soc. 38(6):113-119, 2003

The Art of Armadillo Lizards (Cordylus cataphractus): Fifteen Years of Captive Observations

Gary Fogel

kordylus@juno. com

This article is a look back at my personal experiences over the past fifteen years during which I have been keeping and breeding armadillo lizards, Cordylus cataphractus. For you scientific types, I’m afraid this will all be hearsay and anecdotal. Written reports on these little beasts are few and far between. As far as the general population is concerned, many people might not even know that armadillo lizards exist. Even in this day and age of Internet knowledge, no one in America seems to have written any definitive article on the armadillo lizard. After years of waiting for someone else to do it, I have finally decided to do it myself. Here within these pages should be everything you ever wanted to know about Cordylus cataphractus, as my life and theirs have been forever intertwined into one. Let’s start back at the beginning, shall we?

 For me, the odyssey began back in 1985, in the pages of a small book called Lizards in Captivity by Richard H. Wynne,  under the chapter for Cordylidae. There was a short paragraph describing the armadillo lizard and its basic needs in captivity. Of course there were no photographs, just the printed word, leaving the rest to one’s imagination.

 In August 1985, the Chicago Herpetological Society, which I had just joined that June, would have a speaker who would shed some light on this subject. This was John Visser, a South African wildlife biologist, whose topic was the herpetology of South Africa. His slides at this meeting gave me my first glimpse of an armadillo lizard. To me they looked almost wooden in appearance, their scales hand-carved out of some brown balsa wood, with a triangular shaped head, heavily armored from head to toe. After seeing what these clumsy, comical fellows looked like, I knew I had to obtain a few for my collection.

 At this point in the herpetocultural timeline, we had no monthly reptile magazines to look through for animal ads, no monthly reptile shows to buy animals from, and the Internet and personal computers were still in their infancy. We had animal lists, which were mailed out by various dealers throughout the U.S. (less than half a dozen) which, from time to time, might have an animal you might be interested in. One such list from California did offer the aforementioned armadillo lizards for sale. After some hesitance, I called and purchased two. I was keeping primarily geckos at the time, so these were a departure for me into uncharted territory. It was a decision that I have never regretted.

 Armadillo lizards occur naturally in South Africa. They are diurnal creatures, reaching an adult size of somewhere between seven to nine inches in length. They live in social groups amongst rocky outcrops, wedging themselves between the cracks and crevices of the rocks, much like a North American chuckwalla does for protection from predators and the elements. These lizards have a long life span --- twenty-five years or more. The surrounding temperatures can get very hot in the summer and cold in the winter, when armadillo lizards will naturally hibernate. They can be a light brown to dark brown in coloration and are sometimes referred to with the common name of golden armadillo lizard. The underbelly is yellow with a blackish pattern, especially under the chin. They are one of comparatively few live-bearing lizards --- they do not lay eggs like most other lizard species. They are insect eaters and have an interesting defense, in that if frightened, they will grab their tail in their mouth and roll into a ball. This behavior is remarkably like that of the mammalian armadillo, which explains the common English name for these lizards. And just as it does for the mammal, this defensive posture enables the lizard to protect its soft underbelly from predators, exposing only its armored back.

                                             Figure 1. Armadillo lizards showing typical defense postures. Top photograph by Carlos Sanchez; bottom photograph by the author.

Such was the basic information I had to go on before obtaining my two. When they did arrive, they looked identical in size and shape and I found out that sexing them was somewhat of a mystery.

 I housed them in a 30-gallon aquarium with a water dish, hot rock and flat pieces of shale with small rocks glued to the bottom, like little legs, to raise the rock up about one inch from  the floor for them to hide under. I used Astroturf on the floor with more pieces of flat shale, which they would utilize for waste elimination. The two animals were fed crickets and given a reptile multi-vitamin powder. During this time I had yet to start using any fluorescent-type lighting, for fear of burning down the house, so they had only natural light from the windows. I kept them like this for over a year with no ill effects. I tried to find a few more to buy after that, but even then they were scarce. South Africa, it seems, was not commercially exporting reptiles into the pet trade anymore; so except for shipments rerouted to be exported from a different country, you didn’t see a lot of these animals offered for sale. It wasn’t until 1987 that I located three more from a place in Minnesota. When these animals arrived, I placed them in the 30-gallon aquarium with my original two from 1985. After a few days of observation, I learned that my two original lizards were males, something I had suspected all along, since they were identical in body shape and size.

 It seems the introduction of the three new lizards caused the two males not to be best buddies anymore and to now look upon each other as rivals. I would notice that one would chase the other inside the aquarium, while the three new ones got along with each other. The new armadillo lizards were also smaller in body weight and had narrower triangular heads than the two larger males. Could it be that these three were all females? Well, that was exactly the situation, as I later found out. I separated the two males, leaving one in the 30-gallon tank with one of the smaller ones and put the other male into a 50-gallon tank with the remaining two. At this time I started using fluorescent lighting, which I would manually turn on and off daily. No further aggression was noted between any of the armadillo lizards. Since no dealers had any Cordylus cataphractus to sell, it was at this point that I started placing ads in various regional herpetological society monthly newsletters requesting them. This is how I started obtaining my main collection.

Figure 2. The armadillo lizard on the left is a male; the other two are females. Note the larger triangular head of the male in comparison to both female heads. This is a reliable way to sex these lizards. Photograph by Carlos Sanchez.

As people responded to my ads, I would buy them one or two at a time, never knowing what sex I was getting, because no one could sex these lizards with any certainty. I’m sure this was part of the reason people were willing to part with them; breeding lizards commercially was just beginning to take off, and people didn’t want to deal with an animal they couldn’t breed. After seeing a few more armadillo lizards, I determined that females do have smaller, less markedly triangular heads than their male counterparts. Both sexes, however, had femoral pores on the hind legs, thereby confusing a lot of folks who thought they had males because of this feature. They both produce a waxy secretion although it’s more prominent in males. I was never one to probe or pop a lizard’s hemipenes to determine the sex, as I have heard of too many cases where the final outcome was incorrect. I would then house these animals in groups of one male and two or three females, to the best of my sexing abilities. Extra males would be housed alone, although I have housed a few males together without any ill effect. It all depends on the personality of an individual lizard.

Figure 3. Both male and female armadillo lizards have femoral pores on the hind legs. These are roughly equal between the sexes in size and number. The male is on the left, female on the right. Photograph by Carlos Sanchez.

Breeding armadillo lizards, I’d been told, was a daunting  task  - difficult at best. I decided not to handle them excessively and to keep them as wild as possible. My enclosures were in the living room / dining room area of my house and not in a separate animal room. Soon we tolerated each other’s movements. Mine, as I moved through the room so as not to startle them, and theirs, as they made intermittent scuffles that I had to investigate. It took a few months until they felt secure enough to come out from under the rocks to bask under the fluorescent lights. Even then if I walked briskly past, they would all scurry for cover and hide - a domino effect from one cage to the next.  It was in 1989 that I experienced my first live birth. It was December and I remember looking into the aquarium and seeing a smaller version of a head peeking out from under a rock. I did not know that the female was even gravid at the time, so it was a complete surprise! To this day after achieving dozens of live births, I still get an adrenaline rush when I look into an enclosure and see a smaller version of an adult basking or looking out from under a rock. The young are identical to the adults, except smaller in size. They are quite large when first born; total length up to 2.5 inches. Although most literature states it can be one or two young, I have never had a female give birth to more than one lizard at a time. And the scientific literature has recently caught up to this fact (see Flemming and Mouton, 2002).

Figure 4. Note an adult female armadillo lizard (7 inches total length) in comparison with a day-old baby. These babies are rather large, compared to other lizards, when first born. Photograph by the author.

Only once have I actually been able to witness this occurrence of live birth. I was able to photograph the process, but not very well, as it was over in a matter of minutes. I had eight photos left on my roll of film and just enough time to focus and shoot, so of course the photos were over-exposed, but at least I caught the birthing process on film, perhaps for the first time ever for this species. The female came out from under her rocky hiding place into an open area of the enclosure. I knew she was gravid, as she was somewhat swollen on her sides. She just lay there as her sides undulated a bit. She then raised her tail and hind portion and proceeded to give birth. During this time, the lizard would open her mouth as if to utter a silent scream. The baby came out in a thinly membraned embryonic sac. The baby’s body was folded in half inside of this, tip of nose to tip of tail, much like a lizard positioned in an egg would be, except flatter. It then broke the sac and stretched its jaws wide open to get its first breath. The female, having finished the birthing process, scurried off under a rock, and the baby did the same. I was very surprised that the lizard came out into the open to give birth, rather than do so under the cover of a hiding area.

Figure 5. An adult pair of armadillo lizards in mating position during the breeding season. Copulation can take up to a few minutes at most. Photograph by the author.

Once a female has given birth, her job is over and the juvenile is on its own. Since 1989, I’ve produced as few as two to as many as six babies every year. Not every female lizard will always breed from year to year. I’ve had certain groups stop breeding for as long as a five-year period, then start producing young again after this absence. Breeding season for my captive lizards usually runs from the end of January through March. This is the time that I have noticed the most activity between the sexes, with males actively pursuing females in their attempt to copulate (Figure 6). I have determined that gestation for these lizards must be at least four to six months, since most young are born between September through December.

 I have read that these lizards can be cannibalistic towards the young, but I have never seen this to be the case in captivity. There have been many instances where I’ve found the babies and adults alike, basking on top of one another in harmony. During feeding time when crickets are tossed into the cage, an unforeseen baby lizard will dart out from under a rock, past an adult lizard, to chase down a food item almost as big as he is, in an effort to subdue his prey. Once I find the captive-born baby lizards, I place them in a separate enclosure. Sometimes a baby lizard will not readily eat on its own. If small crickets are ignored, I’ve found that waxworms will usually be eaten without problems. The advantage of feeding baby armadillo lizards in a group is that when food is offered, a feeding response kicks in and when one lizard begins feeding the others usually will follow suit. Care should be taken to insure that all the lizards are equally fed, so that one individual does not eat most of the food, leaving the others still hungry. I’ve found that one or two feedings per week is sufficient to ensure good health for adults, perhaps more for the baby lizards. I also have noticed that these lizards are scavengers, searching the ground for items to consume. This was discovered when I placed a small rubber piece under a rock to help keep it level. One day it disappeared, only to turn up a few days later, partially digested, on the floor of the cage. Some of the lizards were nibbling at the Astroturf also, leading me to believe that they might eat plant material. I experimented with throwing small pieces of kale into the enclosures. The result was that some of the lizards did indeed eat the plant matter. Some, of course, choose to ignore the kale and stick to their insectivorous diet. So some armadillo lizards will accept plants as well as insects for their dietary needs, although I would never recommend a diet of just vegetables for these lizards. Armadillo lizards will also accept small pinkie mice, but I worry that an exclusive diet of these would result in too much dietary protein for the animal. One interesting behavior I have witnessed on more than one occasion, is that of armadillo lizards gnawing on large rocks. They would just try to take a bite out of one, attempting this behavior for a minute or so. Perhaps they are trying to consume rock material to aid in digestion, as some lizards are apt to do. Maybe they are trying to consume rocks for mineral supplement needs, or as part of their daily scavenging routine. I have never witnessed this behavior with any other type of lizard I have kept in captivity.

 Armadillo lizards are extremely social animals, living inlarge groups in the wild. For this reason I raise up each year’sbabies in a family group, so to speak. Males seem to becomesexually active around the third year of maturity. Since Iusually house all previous offspring together from each year, they grow up and get along without incidents, usually until this third year. This is when you will notice if more than one male is present in a group, as one will become the dominant alphamale. Although they live in social groups in the wild, introducing a new lizard into an existing group in captivity may have negative consequences. If a few days after the introduction an animal is constantly chased and harassed, it is best to remove this animal; otherwise it will be bullied to death.  I’ve had instances where I tried to introduce a new female to an existing pair of armadillo lizards, only to have the male constantly pick on the new female. I then tried a different pair only to find that, this time the existing female was the aggressor towards the new female and not the existing male.

Another example shows that males aren’t the only ones who can display aggressive behavior towards a newly introduced animal. I had a group of three females whose male had died, so I wanted to introduce a new male. In the meantime, one of these females had claimed the alpha spot and she would chase the existing females around. The day I introduced a new male, she came charging out to confront him, but he held his ground against her and eventually she went back to submissive from dominant behavior.

Figure 6. A group of juvenile armadillo lizards warming themselves on a heating pad inside the enclosure. Photograph by the author.

Armadillo lizards display the typical lizard communicating skills of head-bobbing, tail-wagging and tongue-flicking, when confronting cagemates or another unfamiliar armadillo lizard. These lizards have very powerful jaws, which can be very hard to open. When they do fight, they can clamp down on legs and toes, biting them off and definitely drawing blood. They can bite down on the sides of the body and start rolling or twisting their opponent’s torso. This can cause internal damage to the animal. Although they do not readily bite in captivity, they will sometimes open their mouths to try to bite their tail. I did not witness this behavior until about a year after I had obtained my first two armadillo lizards. I had them both at an educational show, when all of a sudden one just curled up into a ball! Once they do this it is almost impossible to make them let go, until they are good and ready. I have seen them hold this position for almost up to an hour. When it happened the first time, I removed the lizard and placed him into a bag to make him feel secure until he finally let go of his tail. Because of this behavior, armadillo lizards are more reluctant than many other lizard species to dispense with their tails. This is one of the features that drew me to these lizards initially, as most of the geckos I had been keeping previously would drop their tails quite readily. If a portion of an armadillo lizard’s tail is lost, the regeneration will occur in segments, much like the original tail. I have individuals who almost never bite their tails, and others who will perform this behavior on cue, should I desire to demonstrate this ability to someone. This is an instinctual behavior, but you certainly do not want to stress out an animal by forcing him to perform this defense over and over.

 In the course of keeping armadillo lizards I have gone through various cage incarnations, from aquariums to hand constructed units, which resemble bookcases. Since these lizards are rather clumsy at climbing, my enclosures are all open at the top. The three sides are 12 inches tall laminate board and the front is Plexiglas (Figure 8). As long as no large rocks are placed along the edges, there is no possibility of escapes. Armadillo lizards do like to climb rocks, on top of which they will bask under the lights. My units are five feet long by two feet wide. I use a four-foot fluorescent lighting fixture for each enclosure with one full-spectrum bulb and one blacklight bulb. These fixtures hang twelve inches from the floor of the cage. After years of using these bulbs, I’ve wondered as to the validity of such lights, since I don’t replace them every year. Because the UVB output has surely declined with the aging of the bulbs, my theory is that these types of lights are more beneficial in triggering a breeding response than with aiding calcium absorption. As long as a vitaminmineral powder is used and the food items are fed a high calcium diet, I believe that full-spectrum lighting over regular fluorescent lighting does not make a big difference. I have never used a heat lamp since in the summer months it would get too hot, and in the winter months, I prefer to keep these lizards cool, to mimic their natural seasonal change. I utilize a heating pad in each cage, which is turned off during the spring and summer months. I also shorten the timers on the lighting cycle to mimic the natural lighting outside.

 I like to keep my cage furnishings simple for cleaning purposes, yet esthetically pleasing. I include several flat rocks for hiding places and various larger rocks for climbing. An Astroturf rug covers most of the floor, except for the front of the enclosure. This whole area I leave exposed for a six-inch width, and this is where the lizards defecate. Since it is right in front for the length of the enclosure, it makes cleaning up on a daily basis extremely easy. I want each enclosure to look the same; I feel that this reduces stress levels should I have to move any animals around. This type of cage design seems to work best for the lizards, as well as my needs. I use a very low, flat, water dish, about an inch in height. This makes it easy for armadillo lizards to drink out of it. If it were much higher, the lizards might not even know it was there. Before I switched to the lower type bowls, I had one lizard that used to lick the side of the water bowl, sensing that water was there, but not possessing the brainpower to approach the dish from the top of the bowl. I have had only one bad experience using a low-sided water bowl. One morning I noticed an object in the water, only to discover that during the evening, a baby armadillo lizard must have been born and wandered into the water by accident and drowned. I had placed a small rock right next to and level to the top of the bowl a few weeks earlier, to aid the lizards in drinking more easily. The end result for me was an accidental death. I hope that such an unfortunate occurrence will never happen to anyone else. Always leave the area around a water dish clear of any objects.

 Medical problems have been minimal, but there have been a few that I’ve encountered throughout the years. Loss of digits is common, as the toes are very small and delicate, and a single bite during mating or fighting can easily amputate one or more. I have several lizards missing various digits, but with no ill effect to the animal. Mouth infections are the most aggravating problem to treat. You can tell if an armadillo lizard has this if, during routine feeding, the animal runs around chasing its prey, but then does not try to bite it. If you look into this animal’s mouth and see a white pus-like area, it has a mouth infection. If left untreated, the infection usually spreads to the eyes and ears, resulting in an oozing swollen eye or tympanum, as the infection works its way throughout the head area. Treatment consists of cleaning the infected area together with the use of an injectable antibiotic until the symptoms have subsided. My most severe case of this involved a female who just would not open her mouth no matter how hard I tried to make her. Eventually I had the idea to stick the eraser end of a pencil in between her jaws so she could not keep closing her mouth. Upon doing this, she clamped down so hard on the eraser that she cracked her bottom front jawbone in half! These lizards have very powerful jaws and this proves it. That is why injections are my preferred choice over any oral medication. Not only did I have to treat the mouth infection, now I had to treat a broken jaw as well. I also determined that she was gravid at this time. To help speed the healing process, I decided to house her in a screened aquarium and stick it halfway out the window like an air-conditioning unit, to expose her to natural sunlight. The part of the aquarium inside the house provided the hide area and the shade, so she could venture out into the sun when she felt the need to. When all the medication was done, her jaw mended, although a bit crooked, and she eventually gave birth. I still have her in my collection to this day. This is just an example of how tough and hardy these little lizards can be.

 The second medical problem I have encountered is a femoral pore infection. This causes the rear legs to swell up and accumulate pus behind the femoral pores. The lizard will continue to be alert and eat regularly as if nothing is wrong, but if no medication is administered, the back legs will continue to swell until the lizard has trouble walking. To treat this type of infection, injections must be given and the pores cleaned out by gently squeezing out the pus and bacteria until the infection subsides and heals. I’m not sure what causes this, but it may have something to do with not enough rough substrate to continually rub up against, thereby keeping the femoral pores cleaned out naturally. These pores do secrete a waxy substance in both males and females that could build up and clog the pores. Since encountering this type of infection, I’ve included rougher climbing rocks to help scrape off these pores on a periodic basis. I have not had any recurrences since this was done.

 The last medical problem is a common one of the occurrence of arasites. This again involves a lizard that is not eating, but shows no interest in food, whatsoever. If this happens, first I’d check the mouth to make sure it is not a mouth infection. If that looks all clear, then a stool sample is taken to determine what parasite is present and what treatment is in order. After a week or two the lizard is usually back to normal and eating regularly. Sometimes in the colder months armadillo lizards will go off feed for a few weeks, as they would be hibernating in the wild at this time. If this happens, just keep an eye on the animal to make sure it’s not losing any weight and that it is still healthy. Eventually it should begin eating again when it feels ready. Make sure to check on a lizard if it is hiding all the time and never comes out. It could have an infection or be stressed out.

This has occasionally happened to me. By the time I had noticed there was a problem, it was too late to save the lizard in question. The key to good husbandry is to always observe these lizards. You become aware of their habits and movements so if something doesn’t seem quite normal it can be taken care of immediately.

 Armadillo lizards are not as common in the U.S. as many other types of exotic lizards. This is due to the fact that they are not offered commercially through the pet trade with any regularity, nor have they been since 1989. Another reason is that these lizards are not a moneymaking commodity for a lot of reptile breeders. They are slow to reproduce and only net one offspring each year, per female, if you’re lucky. Compare that to your more acceptable, double clutching lizards, who lay dozens of eggs each year, and you can see why most breeders will not bother with a lizard that is not going to contribute substantially to profits. People do keep them in this country, but not in any great numbers. Few American zoos, even, have bred them in captivity. You normally will not see them at any of the reptile shows held around the country, because nobody is really captive breeding them, at least for general sale to the public. Your best bet in obtaining this type of lizard, is the same way I purchased mine years ago - by placing various ads and hoping someone responds. You can also network through the Internet to see if there are any available. Once you do find one, there is no guarantee as to how old it is going to be or what sex. Remember, I still have my first two male armadillo lizards from 1985, and they were adults then, so who knows how old they really are at this point? Also, they are still viable in the reproductive department, mating and breeding to this day. In this day and age of instant gratification you may have to be patient in obtaining these lizards. I had to wait two years before I found a few more to add to my original two.

 Let’s now review the basics in keeping these lizards in a captive environment.

Cage enclosure:

A large aquarium will do for two or three of these lizards, although I like to give them as much room as possible so that they can behave in a more natural manner. It’s always more fun to see them run around --- something that they can’t do in a small aquarium. I’ve found in a few of my large enclosures, males will usually stay to one end of the cage, with females grouping on the other. It is very important to include several hiding areas throughout the cage and let the animals choose which one is best for them. Flat rocks, propped up an inch off the ground work best. Armadillo lizards like to be able to wedge in between rocks naturally, so they like to be able to feel that roof of rock on their backs. If you were lift up one of these rocks, you would notice that the lizards arch up their backs in order to feel where the top of their hiding place is. Avoid a hide area with too high a ceiling, as the lizard may get stressed if not able to hide properly.

Figure 7. A typical cage enclosure, five feet long by two feet wide, with a Plexiglas front. Photograph by the author.

The drinking area should be shallow - one inch or so high - so they can find water without a problem. Large rocks should be included for climbing and basking purposes. You can use a rock or sand substrate, but they will probably eat it, which may lead to medical problems. Astroturf works for me, although a few have tried to eat that too. I recommend full-spectrum

lighting in combination with blacklight lighting, kept as close to the lizard as possible (12– 15 inches is best). You can start out with this lighting and judge for yourself how beneficial, or not, it is. Some sort of heated area (heating pad, hot rock) is needed in the autumn and winter months, especially in the colder states in the U.S. Use common sense with these items. If the area gets too hot, it may be necessary to diffuse the heat with ceramic tiles on top and underneath. I use a twelve-inch heating pad on top of which I put a twelve-inch ceramic tile. I have never yet had an armadillo lizard burn its underbelly lying on one of these.

Temperature:

A room temperature of 70– 85°F is fine, perhaps a bit cooler in the winter, as they can certainly tolerate it. I have always worried about my lizards getting too hot, rather than too cold. The room that they are now in can get up to 100°F in the summer. I keep a small air conditioner in one of the windows to keep the temperature down when this happens. A fan of some sort to circulate the air is also desirable. Although they can tolerate high temperatures, too much might stress them out. In the winter they are still active with the cooler room temperatures, (65 to 70°F) as they utilize the heating pads during the day at this time of year.

Food:

The basic staple diet consists of crickets, superworms, butterworms and waxworms; the latter two have a higher fat content so I use them sparingly. I actually have two groups who would rather eat superworms than crickets. They will only eat crickets if they get good and hungry enough. I feed my lizards once a week, making sure that everyone gets fed. When they are in groupings of four to six, you have to see to it that certain lizards aren’t hogging the food items. Always put in only enough food items that all will be eaten, and watch to make sure this is happening. This is especially true for superworms, for if they crawl away somewhere; they will morph into a large black beetle that the lizards do not like to eat. You will probably find one somewhere outside the cage enclosure, perhaps running across your carpeting at the most inopportune time. Always use a vitamin-mineral powder on your food items. The smell of this helps the lizards to better locate the crickets and it gives the lizards the essential vitamins they may otherwise be missing in an indoor, captive environment. Also, feed the insects you intend to use as food items twenty-four hours before you give them to the lizards. Kale, collard, turnip, and mustard greens work well because they have a high calcium content. By feeding your insects, you’ll find that they will live longer and you won’t have to keep getting them so frequently.

 Armadillo lizards are one of the most easily kept lizard species. Their longevity in captivity and relatively few special requirements make them an excellent choice as a captive lizard pet. Unfortunately, they are scarce in the pet trade and command a high price as a result.

 I hope this information is beneficial to anyone who currently keeps armadillo lizards or who may just want to learn more about them. They are an overlooked, little known species who, I think, are one of nature’s most interesting lizards. May they never go extinct!

References

Adolphs, K. 1996. Bibliographie der Gurtelechsen und Schildechsen (Reptilia: Sauria: Cordylidae and Gerrhosauridae). Sankt

Augustin, Germany: Squamata Verlag.

Branch, W. R. 1998. Field guide to snakes and other reptiles of southern Africa. Third revised edition. Sanibel island, Florida: Ralph

Curtis Books.

Flemming, A. F., and P. Le F. N. Mouton. 2002. Reproduction in a group-living lizard, Cordylus cataphractus (Cordylidae), from

South Africa. J. Herpetology 36(4):691-696.

Fogel, G. 1994. Live birth of an armadillo lizard. (Photo essay) Bull. Chicago Herp. Soc. 29(1):8-9.

Patterson, R. 1987. Reptiles of southern Africa. Cape town, South Africa: C.Struik (Pty) Ltd.

Rogner, M. 1997. Lizards, Volume 2. Malabar, Florida: Krieger Publishing Company.

Switak, K. 1995. Girdle-tailed lizards. Reptiles Magazine. 3(6): 8-10,12,14,16,18,20,22,24, October

Sorensen, D. 1986. Interview on armadillo lizards. Wisconsin Herpetological Society Newsletter 7-11, November.

Stanek, V. J. 195?. Introducing dragons. London: Spring Books.

Wynne, R. 1981. Lizards in captivity. Neptune, New Jersey: T.F.H. Publications

Zimmerman, E. 1983. Breeding terrarium animals. Neptune, New Jersey: T.F.H. Publications

Introduction: The spearpoint leaf-tailed gecko belongs to an unusual group of nocturnal geckos native to the island of Madagascar. All geckos belonging to the genus Uroplatus have cryptic coloration and patterns to mimic different parts of their environment. The spearpoint leaf-tailed gecko mimics dried leaves. This species varies in color from dark chocolate brown to light tan. Some geckos are even red, burgundy or orange in color. Most have a reticulated pattern covering their body to some degree. Small fleshy projections or spikes jut out from their body and are particularly noticeable over their eyes and on their head. They are the smallest Uroplatus species, generally maturing to just under 4 inches (10 cm) in total length. Uroplatus ebenaui resemble the closely related satanic leaf-tailed gecko (Uroplatus phantasticus), but lack a long leaf-like tail. Instead, the spearpoint leaf-tailed gecko has a short angular, almost diamond-shaped or spear-shaped, tail. When threatened, some spearpoint leaf-tailed geckos will drop their front arms from the perch they are on and hang from their back legs to very accurately mimic a dried leaf.

Male geckos can easily be distinguished from females by the presence of their hemipenal bulge. Some have also suggested that tail size and shape can be used to sex spearpoint leaf-tailed geckos, but looking for a hemipenal bulge is more reliable. Most people agree that male spearpoint leaf-tailed geckos can be housed together provided the cage is large enough; however I have no personal experience housing multiple males together so I’m not able to agree with or dispute this claim. I strongly encourage those interested in Uroplatus to purchase geckos in male-female pairs or trios for the purpose of breeding, rather than simply for display or pets.

Starting with healthy stock is important. Whenever possible, purchase geckos that were born in captivity because they will generally be in better health than their wild-caught counterparts. Unfortunately, it can be difficult to locate captive-bred geckos because nearly all spearpoint leaf-tailed geckos available in the pet trade are wild-caught. Avoid purchasing a gecko that is active during the day, has sunken eyes, open wounds or sores, is missing a tail, or is being kept in poor conditions. I would suggest that each individual wild-caught gecko be quarantined in its own simple enclosure for one or two months regardless of how healthy it appears when purchased. This will provide the keeper time to monitor each individual’s weight and appetite, as well as prevent diseases from spreading between geckos. Uroplatus have a reputation for arriving from Madagascar with large parasite problems so it may be beneficial to take a fecal sample of each gecko to a veterinarian and then medicate accordingly. Wild-caught Uroplatus also often arrive severely dehydrated, so it’s important to provide plenty of water to new arrivals by misting the cage frequently, or even placing the gecko in a hydration or rain chamber for a few hours.

Cage: Spearpoint leaf-tailed geckos are not very active during the day but at night they will use all of the space that is provided to them. A 15 gallon high aquarium that measures 20 inches long by 10 inches wide by 18 inches high (51 cm by 25 cm by 46 cm) is large enough for one male-female pair of geckos. Smaller cages can be used for housing single animals. It’s important that the sides of the enclosure are made of a material that will help maintain a high humidity level, so screen cages should be avoided unless the ambient humidity in the room they are kept is already high. A tight-fitting cover is also important. Screen covers can be used if plastic wrap or glass is taped over half or more of the cover to help keep the humidity level high. If the cage is made of glass or other see-through material it can be beneficial to cover all but one side of the cage with an aquarium background or black poster board.

The main components of their setup should include a substrate, hiding spots, and perches. Paper towels work well as a substrate, particularly in quarantine and isolation cages because they make it easy to collect fecal samples. They are cheap, easy to clean, and easy to replace. It is important to replace them on a regular basis to prevent unwanted bacteria and mold from growing. Another substrate that can work well is a safe soil such as coconut husk fiber (bed-a-beast, eco earth, forest bed, etc.). Foam rubber also is suitable as a substrate, and can be used both in temporary and permanent setups. Substrates such as gravel, moss, and small pieces of bark should be avoided. It can be beneficial to place a layer of leaf compost or dried leaves over the substrate. Oak and magnolia leafs both tolerate high humidity levels and are good choices. Take care to prevent the substrate from becoming too wet. If the substrate is squeezed in your hand and more than a few drops of water come out then it is too wet.

Established, healthy spearpoint leaf-tailed geckos can be kept in living terrariums. See the article about tropical terrariums for information about creating one.

Temperature and Humidity: Spearpoint leaf-tailed geckos need to be kept cool. A range in temperature from 68°F to 75°F (20°C to 24°C) during the day with a drop to between 60°F and 70°F (16°C and 21°C) at night generally works well. They will not tolerate warm temperatures and often die when exposed to those above 80°F (27°C) for extended periods of time. The best way to keep the cage cool is to keep it in an air conditioned room or cool basement. Occasionally, it may be necessary to cool the cage by placing an ice pack on top of it. Supplemental heating is rarely required, however if it is needed I would suggest using a low wattage infra-red light bulb as opposed to a heat pad or heat tape.

Maintaining high humidity is as important as maintaining cool temperatures. The humidity level in the forest vegetation and scrub layer in Madagascar is constantly high and this should be duplicated in captivity. The humidity level in the cage can range from 80% to 100%. This can be accomplished by spraying the cage with water once or twice a day and restricting ventilation.

Water: A shallow water dish can be provided but is not necessary as long as the cage is misted with water on a regular basis. Leaf-tailed geckos generally prefer to lap water droplets off of plant leaves, glass, and other smooth surfaces as opposed to drinking from a bowl of standing water.

Food: The majority of a spearpoint leaf-tailed gecko’s diet should consist of crickets. In addition to crickets, they can be offered wax worms and small silk worms in a shallow dish. Small moths and other flying insects can also be offered. Some have suggested that fruit baby food will be accepted by leaf-tailed geckos but I have never observed my geckos showing any interest in baby food. Offer adults between three and six food items per gecko two to three times a week at night. If there are live feeders in the cage the next morning, the geckos are being offered to much food at once. Feeder insects should be coated with high quality vitamin and mineral supplements every two to three feedings. Juvenile geckos should have their food supplemented at every feeding.

Last updated 03.19.08

CORKBARK LEAFTAIL

INTRODUCTION

Uroplatus pietschmanni entered the pet trade even before being described by science. It has a variety of common names that include Corkbark Leaf Tail Gecko, Spiny Leaf Tail Gecko and Undescribed Leaf Tail. Corkbark Leaf Tail Gecko is the most commonly used name. Currently almost all of the Uroplatus pietschmanni offered for sale are Wild Caught. These are one of the rarest species of Uroplatus and often a pair will sell for $400+ United States Dollars. Captive bred animals are very rare and there have only been a handful bred worldwide to my knowledge. Because these geckos are so rare, single geckos should not be kept. An effort to breed this species should be made. Since this species is known to com form only a very small locality, it makes it one of the most vulnerable species of Uroplatus. In my experience hey are a very hardy species and many experienced Uroplatus keepers consider them one of the easiest Uroplaus species to keep. None the less they should not be kept by an amateur reptile keeper. The care sheet I have written is a description of how I keep my Uroplatus pietschmanni. I have successfully bred this species keeping them under the conditions I have described.

NATURAL DISTRIBUTION

Curenntly they are only known to come from Amboassary Gara in Madagascar. This region is rumored to be slightly drier and warmer than other areas Uroplatus are found, with the exception of U. guentheri, but thanks to information from Patrick Schönecker this rumor appears to be unfounded.


DESCRIPTION

Uroplatus pietschmanni is an arboreal and nocturnal species of gecko. The most amazing thing about them is their camouflage. They are arguably the most camouflaged of all the species of Uroplatus when in the right environment. In fact Uroplatus pietschmanni was first described in 2003 undoubtedly due to their excellent camouflage. Uroplatus pietschmanni attains a size of around 6 inches as an adult. They for the majority are more robust looking than the other leaf tails. Females are slightly larger than the males. Unlike U. sikorae, U. fimbriatus, and U. henkeli this species does not have any dermal flaps (flaps of skin on the outside of the body). While most of the other Uroplatus species appear smooth and sleek the general appearance of U. pietschmanni is bumpy and the whole body is covered in soft spines. Color varies greatly based on a number of different factors. During the day they are mostly brown colored with patches of green, black, white. At night they are almost a uniform ash grey color. When stressed, cold, or gravid they become dark and sometimes an almost black color. Their most distinguishing feature is the light colored stripe from the eyes down to the tip of the snout. This stripe is undoubtedly to break up the outline of the gecko and suggests that they reside on lichen covered trees. Males and females are easily sexed. Males have a large bulge at the base of the tail and females have none. Females also develop calcium sacks at the base of the neck.

QUARANTINE/ACCLIMATION & TREATMENT OF PARASITES

If you are buying Wild Caught geckos you are going to have to deal with a number of issues. Most imports come in a little skinny and dehydrated but generally seem to look pretty good unlike many of the other Uroplatus species. Acclimation is very simple with this species and most specimens seem to bounce right back and get accustomed to their new home pretty quickly. When you first get your gecko keep it in a dark and cool area for about a week. Try to disturb it as little as possible. Make sure you spray it two to three times per day when you first get it. I would also recommend quarantining all geckos individually for a month. This will help prevent the spread of disease and or parasites and allows you to nip any problems in the bud before they spread to your whole collection. Imports will often have red mites on them. These need to be treated as soon as possible. When you first get your gecko make sure to thoroughly check the whole body including the two pads a favorite hiding spot for mites. I use Reptile Relief on mine which works extremely well. Treatment of internal parasites is best left to an experienced veterinarian.

CAGING

Large screen and glass cages seem to work well and are preferred over glass. Keep in mind these are an arboreal (live in the trees) species so the cage should be vertically oriented. Screen is easier for the geckos to cling to and also allows for better ventilation which in turn keeps mold from growing. I think that the importance of good ventilation is often downplayed with Uroplatus. My cages have glass on the front, back, and bottom with screen on the rest. Plants should be included in the cage. Broad-leaf, sturdy plants with thick stems seem to be preferred over pothos and ficus. I recommend leaving the plants in the pots because not only does it make cage cleaning a whole lot easier but females seem to like to lay their eggs in the pots. Slabs of corkbark and sticks of arm width are placed so that the geckos have access to the whole cage via the corkbark and sticks. For substrate I use Coco-fiber. Other substrates such as peat moss and green moss can be used but in my experience they break down rather rapidly.



FOOD & WATER

Variety is the key. Crickets and/or roaches make a good staple food but other prey items should be offered if possible. Crickets should be dusted every feed with a calcium supplement and every other feeding with a vitamin supplement. I feed mine moths and grasshoppers during the summer. Snails are taken with special relish by this species but are only accepted by females. Snails are also a great way to boost calcium intact for breeding females. A food cup seems to work well for some of the geckos but others will refuse to eat from it. These geckos will not drink from a dish, at least in my experience, and need to be sprayed. I spray my enclosure very thoroughly once a day.

Note: Make sure any field collected prey comes from areas where pesticides and herbicides are not used.

HEATING

A heat gradient is provided in the cage with it being around 73-74F on the low end and 75-76F on the high end. I also use a spot lamp for a basking location which reaches a temperature of the mid to high 80’s depending on the season. Temperature fluctuates several degrees depending on season. Night time temps are around 65F but can drop to the low 60’s to high 50’s without a problem. I use a small nocturnal heat light during the winter when it gets really cold which they really like, it also seems to boost their activity and food intake. The main thing to remember with these geckos is to make sure they don’t get too hot. The ambient cage temperature should not enter the high 70F or 80F degree range. On the hottest days of the year the ambient have temperature for me is around 75F-76F.

HUMIDITY

Humidity is around 65-70%. I don’t strive to keep this species really wet and for the majority of the day their cage is relatively dry. I spray my cage very thoroughly once a day. Since my cage is screen it usually dries out relatively quick.

LIGHTING

An incandescent lamp for heat and a full spectrum UV fluorescent light should be used. It is not clear if UV is needed for calcium absorption in this species but it never hurts, plus it will help the plants in the cage grow. Also even though this isn’t a very colorful species of gecko they show their best color under UV light. These are nocturnal species of gecko so a day time and night time should be simulated. Keep in mind that although these are nocturnal they are not cave dwellers so keeping them in the basement with absolutely no light during the night time is not a good idea. Make sure there is some light at night in the room the geckos are kept in.



BREEDING

Uroplatus pietschmanni seems to be one of the most difficult species of Uroplatus to breed. There have been very few bred of this species and this is one of the reasons I do not recommend this species for beginner reptile keepers. I keep mine in pairs of one male to one female. Some people have experimented in keeping them in groups in various arrangements of males to females but this does not seem to aid in breeding this species. Females lay 2 eggs at 2-3 month intervals. Breeding time seems to be from late summer to spring. Mating involves lots of tail waving plus vocalizations and may appear violent but no damage is actually done. A neck bite is sometimes implied. Gravid females develop a darker and a noticeably different body shape. It is still unclear as to what triggers breeding but an attempt to mimic the seasons of Madagascar is advisable. From the months of May to October, Madagascar is slightly cooler and drier with the other months being more wet and warmer. Mating has often been observed with no egg production. The eggs are white and about the diameter of a dime. Females will not bury the eggs if an egg laying location is provided. A laying location can simply be a small pile of leaves or moss in the corner of the cage. If you keep the bottom of your cage clear besides the egg laying location females will most certainly lay only in that area. This saves you from searching for eggs every time you clean the cage Eggs should be incubated at around 73-75 degrees during the day and 70-72F degrees at night in moist vermiculite. However the eggs themselves should not be in contact with moist vermiculite. Eggs hatch at around 110 days of incubation but can take longer than even 150 days to hatch. The higher the temperature you incubate the eggs the quicker they will hatch.

HATCHLINGS

Hatchlings are approximately 2 inches in length and accept 1-2 week old crickets. Fruit flies are too small and are not accepted. They should be sprayed several times a day to keep them from becoming dehydrated. Hatchlings should be kept in a small enclosure that is not clear. They do have very good visual perception and if kept in a glass or plexi-glass cage will spend countless hours trying to crawl through it. I keep my hatchlings in large cottage cheese or yogurt containers that have been washed out and modified to accommodate them. They can be housed together. Hatchlings should always have food available to them. Besides crickets the hatchlings will also accept small moths and grasshoppers.

HANDLING

These geckos should be handled only when necessary. Occasionally taking them out to take a few pictures or to examine them is okay but frequent handling is not advisable and will lead to a stressed, unhappy gecko.

CONCLUSION

Uroplatus pietschmanni is a very enjoyable species to work with. Since they are such a rare species I would only recommend them to an advanced reptile keeper. There is still a lot to learn about them and I hope to be adding to this car sheet in the future.

The Dwarf Shield Tailed Agama (Xenagama taylori) is a small agamid originating from arid regions of Northern Africa and Somalia.  The tail resembles a miniature "shield", hence the common name, Shield Tailed Agama. They are very hardy lizards which adapt well to captivity.  One unique characteristic we have discovered is that they will dig a shallow tunnel and block the entrance with their tail at night in hopes of deterring any would be predators. The Xenagama taylori is a very personable lizard with many interesting habits and characteristics, many of which resemble the very popular bearded dragon (pogona vitticeps), which makes them an excellent choice as a new breeding project or a pet lizard.

Xenagama taylori grow to an adult size of 3" to 3 1/2" in length and weigh up to 20 grams.  Hatchlings range from 5/8" - 1" in length and weigh as little as 3 grams at birth.  Coloration varies from a dull sandy brown to a brilliant "brick red" body color with varying amounts of black speckling.   Small amounts of  partial white spotting is noticeable on young specimens, but seem to fade with age. Adult males display a brilliant neon blue chin coloration when "fired up", usually during breeding behavior, male combat or a heightened state of alertness.  Some females will also show varying amounts of blue chin coloration, but is very nominal compared to that of the male.

Housing & Substrates:

Communal cage set-up

We have tried several housing and substrate combinations and have had varying amounts of success with each.  At first sand was considered to be the substrate of choice, due to the belief that this most resembled their natural environment, but was quickly discarded because of the lack its tunneling ability.  Our next choice was a combination of cypress mulch and sand, where sand was placed on one end of the enclosure and mulch on the other.  The lizards did not seem to prefer either end over the other, but we did notice they spent the night time hours buried under the cypress mulch.  The problem with this type of set-up was their food items would bury themselves in the mulch and go unnoticed, and after several days and feedings the enclosure would have hundreds of crickets or mealworms running around stressing the lizards.  We have found that garden soil dug from outside works the best.  It has great compacting abilities, which allows for tunneling, is easily cleaned or replaced, and does not offer the food items a place to hide and go uneaten. Substrate should be between 3" to 5" deep as Xenagama taylori are great diggers, they are often seen digging multiple tunnels under and around the rock slabs and/or driftwood pieces supplied for basking.  Their basking area usually consist of a large piece of driftwood and/or slabs of rock or brick.  Temperatures at the basking site range from 90 - 110 degrees Fahrenheit which is supplied by an overhead lamp with a reflective shield.  We use a 75 watt bulb placed 10" - 12" above the highest point of the basking rock.  The cool end of the enclosure is approximately 20 degrees cooler, which allows for thermoregulation.  Water is offered continuously in a small water dish about 1" deep, and is buried to where the rim of the dish is even with the top of the substrate.  The lizards occasionally drink from the water dish, but we noticed they seem to prefer to drink droplets of water which form on the sides of the enclosure and the basking spots as a result of being misted every other day.

Rock slabs provided for basking.

Additional Lighting:

There are some concerns about the amount of UV-B and UV-A light requirements of shield tail agamas.  At this time we offer little or no additional lighting except for an incandescent bulb used for basking. To date, we have not seen any ill effects from the lack of natural sunlight, although a vitamin/mineral supplement with vitamin D-3 is offered in hopes of fulfilling these needs.  Long term deprivation of direct sunlight may prove detrimental, so some exposure is suggested, even if it consist of only a few hours per week.

Feeding:

The diet of the shield tail agama very much resembles that of the bearded dragon, consisting of small to medium crickets, mealworms, occasional super worms and a varied "green" leafy salad.  Crickets or mealworms are offered daily in amounts which will be eaten over the period of the day. This is generally 3 - 5 food items each.  We also dust the crickets/mealworms with a vitamin/mineral supplement such as "Miner-all" or "Reptamin" twice per week.  Although, it is not known what importance leafy matter plays in their diet, finely chopped dark greens and vegetables are offered twice a week in small amounts and are misted with fresh water. Greens offered are: Collard greens, mustard greens, romaine lettuce and endive.   Vegetables consist of shredded yellow squash, zucchini and carrots.  Sub-adult taylori and gravid females seem to relish the greens, but others tend to turn their noses at the offering.

Sexing:

Males (on left) can be identified by the enlarged femoral pores and a yellowish waxy substance present around the pores.  Female on right has very small femoral pores which are barely noticeable.

Sexing of hatchlings and young juvenile shield tails is very difficult if not impossible. Sub-adult and adults can easily be sexed by examining the femoral pores present just above the ventral opening.  A males femoral pores are very pronounced and secrete a waxy substance which is dark yellow in coloration.  The waxy substance is not present on females, and the femoral pores can barely be seen.

Breeding & Egg Deposition

Male (left) showing typical blue coloration on chin.     Gravid female (right) shows increased girth as eggs develop.

First thought to be a solitary animal, we kept our lizards separate from each other except during breeding trials.  The animals were brumated for a period of two months from November 15th to January 15th, where temperatures were kept at night time lows of 65 degrees and daytime highs of 80 degrees Fahrenheit, and a photoperiod of 8 hours.  Food was offered once per week in smaller amounts than normal, with water available at all times.  At the end of the brumation period, temperatures and daylight hours were slowly increased along with their regular feeding regimen.  By February 1st they were back to normal feeding schedules and had a 12 hour daylight cycle.   Males were introduced to the single females one at a time, but no breeding activity was noticed.  Thinking that they may be a communal breeder, we set up larger enclosures consisting of one male to four or five females.  Breeding behavior was noticed almost immediately.  The male would "fire up" his chin to the brightest neon blue we have seen yet, and commence to head bobbing erratically and "doing push-ups".  The male will chase the females around the enclosure and literally "wrestle" the female while attempting to breed.  The first time we witnessed this behavior, we thought we mistakenly placed two males in the same enclosure and they were fighting, but upon closer inspection we discovered they were actually in the act of mating.  Males have also been seen copulating with multiple females over the course of a single day.  From our experiences, multiple males or male combat is not required to induce breeding behavior.

Approximately two weeks after the first successful copulation, the females start to show signs of being gravid. The abdomen increases in size and bulges start to appear from the eggs forming inside.  On several occasions, gravid females were pulled from the colony and placed in an egg laying chamber, which consist of approximately 10" - 12" of tightly packed soil, but failed to dig a nest and lay their eggs.  So they were placed back in with the colony, thinking that they were not quite ready to lay.  We then noticed that the gravid females started digging furiously after being sprayed with water during their every other day mistings.  It seems that the females prefer to dig and lay their eggs after a simulated rain, so we started misting the egg laying chambers heavily to induce the females to deposit their eggs.  The female will dig a deep tunnel, approximately 8" - 10" deep and deposit 5 to 8 small white eggs.  After deposition, she will completely fill the tunnel and compact the dirt with her nose. Once finished there are no signs of any tunnels or eggs being deposited.  After the female has deposited her eggs, we remove her from the egg laying enclosure and soak her in a container of water approximately 1/2" deep for 30 minutes so she can get re-hydrated, then place her in an enclosure by herself for a few days to recuperate from egg laying.  After a couple days she is reintroduced to the colony.  We have females which have already deposited their first clutch of the season become gravid for a second time, confirming the belief that they lay multiple clutches during a single season.  The number of clutches per year is still unknown, but we believe they are similar to bearded dragons, and can deposit up to 4 or more clutches per season.

Egg Incubation:

Usually 6 to 8 small eggs are deposited in a 10" to 12" deep nest. Incubated at 82 to 84 degrees farenheit, the eggs will  hatch after 45 to 50 days.

The eggs are carefully excavated from the egg laying chamber and placed in a perilite/vermiculite mixture and placed into an incubator calibrated to 82-84 degrees Fahrenheit.  The incubator is kept at 100% humidity by keeping a container of water inside the incubator, and periodic misting with a spray bottle.  After a 45 to 50 day incubation period the eggs start to darken in color and usually hatch within 48 hours.   The young xenagama are left in the incubator for 24 hours to allow the yolksac to be absorbed, and then moved to a small enclosure and kept on a paper towel substrate.   We mist the newly hatched lizards twice a day to keep them hydrated, and offer pinhead crickets after 2 or 3 days of emerging from the egg.  Young Xenagama taylori grow fairly rapidly, and will double in size in the first two months.  Size of the food items are increased as the young taylori grow, and greens are introduced at about one month of age.  We keep the hatchlings and juveniles in communal set-ups identical to that of the adults.  With the fast rate of growth, we believe sexual maturity is reached within the first year, but do not actually attempt breeding until well into their second year.

Captive born 2001 hatchlings at three months are approximately 1 3/4" long.

Although the exact husbandry of keeping Xenagama taylori is not yet completely known, we are well on our way to understanding this unique species.   Successful captive breedings will become more common and will help to promote the shield tailed agama as an exciting and interesting lizard kept by hobbyist.  We urge hobbyist who have had success keeping this species to share their husbandry techniques, and help promote the species.

THE CONSERVATION INITIATIVE FOR GIANT GALLIWASPS AT NASHVILLE ZOO: A PRELIMINARY ACCOUNT

BY DALE MCGINNITY

Introduction

Giant galliwasps are diploglossine anguid lizards restricted to the Neotropics. They are rarely-seen skink-like lizards with snout to vent lengths (SVL) greater than 200 mm. Four species in the genus Celestus, collectively known as West Indian giant galliwasps, occur or occurred on Jamaica and Hispaniola. One, C. occiduus, is endemic to Jamaica: one, C. warreni, to Haiti: and two, C. anelpistus and C. carraui, to the Dominican Republic. Two species in the genus Diploglossus have maximum SVL less than 200 mm. D. monotropis is found from Panama through Colombia, and D. millepunctatus is restricted to Malpelo Island, located off the Pacific coast of Colombia.

These giant galliwasps are impressive lizards, worthy of conservation resources as a unique group of animals. Most have extremely limited ranges and an apparent propensity for extinction. The Jamaican species, C. occiduus, is probably extinct (Schwartz, 1991). One of the species from the Dominican Republic (DR), C. anelpistus, was recently reported to be `at best exceedingly rare and at worst extinct' (Powell et al., 2000). The 1996 IUCN Red List of Threatened Animals listed C. anelpistus as Critically Endangered and C. carraui as Endangered. The status of the Haitian species is unknown, but its limited range occurs in a mostly deforested habitat in northern Haiti. The Central/South American species D. monotropis is considered rare throughout its range. The Colombian species D. millepunctatus has an extremely small range restricted to Malpelo Island, a 1-mile by 0.5-mile (1.6 by 0.8 km) barren island.

Giant galliwasps often have significance in the cultures of indigenous people, who often fear the lizards and consider them venomous. Lynn and Grant (1940) described how Jamaicans regarded galliwasps: `They are greatly feared by the natives and are the subject of many yarns and fables.' Currently, a widely held belief in Jamaica is that galliwasps are venomous and that if a bite occurs and the galliwasp reaches water first then the person dies, but if the person reaches water first, the galliwasp dies. The Haitian species is considered venomous by locals, and has significance in Voodoo religion (Needham, pers. comm.). Myers (1973) wrote the following about the giant galliwasp in Central and South America:

`People in northwestern Panama know Diploglossus monotropis by the name escorpion coral. The names used by Colombian Negroes living in eastern Panama are madre de culubra and madre [de] coral. Medem (`1968' [1969]) also recorded the last two names for Colombia. This ``mother of coral snakes'' is naturally believed to be poisonous and is something to be feared.'

The goals of this project are: (1) to conduct and support fieldwork on the endangered giant galliwasps; (2) to help educate people about these lizards; and (3) to developed standardized husbandry protocols for the groups.

Conservation plan

The conservation plan includes captive, field, and educational components. The captive history for giant galliwasps (primarily C. warreni) in the U.S. was less than stellar prior to 1999. Reasonable captive longevities (maximum recorded 12 years) for wild-caught adults were reported, and captive reproduction had occurred at several zoos (Bronx, Knoxville, and Milwaukee) (Lawler and Norris, 1979; C. Berg, pers. comm.; J. Behler, pers. comm.). However, the captive population became extinct in U.S. zoos by 1995, as the inability to raise offspring and the ban on exportation by range countries allowed for no recruitment. In 1998, the AZA Lizard Advisory Group (LAG) voted to add this project to its three-year action plan, and it was determined that a small group of giant galliwasps should be acquired for research to develop husbandry techniques.

The range and conservation status for the endangered and possibly extinct West Indian giant galliwasp species are poorly known. To the author's knowledge, no formal surveys have been completed for any of these species. However, Sixto Incháustegui has been collecting data on C. carraui in the DR for years. Fieldwork is needed, especially for the potentially extinct species, to determine their actual status. An educational component could both aid the fieldwork and help dispel some common misconceptions about galliwasps, which are often killed on sight.

Captive component

Development of a successful captive-management plan could help insure against future extinctions of populations or even species of giant galliwasps. The only known habitat of C. anelpistus, the Come Hombre forest in the DR, was being destroyed as the only four reported wild specimens were collected in 1977. The animals were sent to a zoo where they produced many offspring; but because successful captive management techniques had not been developed, all of the specimens died. A living C. anelpistus has not been documented in almost 20 years. The inability to successfully raise young giant galliwasps is the primary reason captive programs have failed in the past.

As C. warreni is the least endangered West Indian giant galliwasp species, it seemed the best choice for use as a conservation surrogate to develop captive husbandry techniques for the group. After nearly a year of respectful correspondence, the Director General of Haiti's Ministry of Agriculture, Natural Resources and Rural Development graciously provided permits for the scientific collection of 9.9 C. warreni. In July 2000, with funding provided by Nashville Zoo, Dr Don Gillespie, James Needham, and the author of this paper traveled to Haiti and collected a founder population of C. warreni. Due to the expert care and dedication of the zoo's lead herpetology keeper, Nicole Atteberry, over 300 offspring have been produced from the founder population. The mortality rate has been less than four percent and the oldest offspring are reaching subadult size. The three factors believed to be important for successful husbandry are: (1) intense UV-radiation created by utilizing self-ballasted mercury vapor bulbs; (2) a deep substrate, hot and dry on one side of the cage and cool and moist on the opposite side; and (3) a varied high-calcium and low-fat diet. The captive program will be considered a success when healthy F2 offspring are produced, hopefully in 2003 or 2004, at which time a studbook will be initiated for the group. In addition, the herpetology department at Nashville Zoo recently acquired a small group of Diploglossus monotropis, which will be utilized to develop captive husbandry techniques that may be utilized in the future for the more highly threatened D. millepunctatus.

Field and educational component

Fieldwork should concentrate on the endangered species, about which the least natural history information is available. For this reason, it was decided that fieldwork would concentrate on C. occiduus, C. anelpistus, and C. carraui. These species are represented by relatively few known specimens, indicating that they are extremely rare – two of them may be extinct. However, they may be more common than presently believed due to their presumed crepuscular and semi-fossorial lifestyles. Locating living specimens of any of these species will require some effort, as their relatively unknown localized distributions and apparent rarity may make them difficult to find. Some initial work has been completed in Jamaica.

George Shaw formally described the Jamaican giant galliwasp (C. occiduus) in 1802. It is the largest diploglossine anguid, with a maximum known SVL of 303 mm (Schwartz and Henderson, 1991). Sloane (1725) reported that this species occurred in marsh grounds on several parts of the island. Gosse (1851) wrote that `in the swamps and morasses of Westmoreland, the yellow galliwasp (C. occiduus), so much dreaded and abhorred, yet without reason, might be observed sitting idly in the mouth of its burrow, or feeding on the wild fruits and marshy plants that constitute its food.' In addition to plant material, this species was reported to eat fish (Schwartz and Henderson, 1991). The few preserved specimens are bleached, so few data are available on color or pattern (Schwartz, 1970). Sloane (1725) described a living individual as having scales on the back or upper parts of a brown color, with spots of orange color and an orange belly. In addition, Boulenger (1885) reported that this species was `brownish above, with dark brown spots or cross bands.'

In addition to traditional survey methods, it was determined that an efficient strategy to locate unknown populations of giant galliwasps would be to involve local people. This strategy could also help to educate the local people about the presence, lack of venom, and need for conservation of galliwasps. A poster was developed and produced for the project in Jamaica with a grant received from the Columbus Zoo Conservation Fund. A generous donation to the project by Rob Ferran funded the initial survey work in Jamaica. In January 2001, Dr Byron Wilson (University of the West Indies), Steve Conners (Miami Metrozoo), and the author conducted initial habitat surveys and interviews with local people, and distributed posters in wetland areas along the southern coast of Jamaica. In addition, a television spot about the project was taped and played over the entire island, and a newspaper article about it was published some time later. Three sites (the upper Black River morass, a small patch of swamp forest on the lower Black River morass, and Alligator Hole) were identified for more intensive survey work based on the results of the initial survey and feedback from local people.

In 1956, Cousens reported that a Jamaican giant galliwasp had not been collected in over one hundred years. Several authors have presumed that it is extinct, although no comprehensive survey has been conducted. Recently, Crombie (1999) reported that he believed that `. . . declarations that the species is extinct may be premature.' The Jamaican iguana (Cyclura collei) was thought to be extinct on mainland Jamaica in the twentieth century until 1970 when a dead specimen was found (Vogel, 1990). The first living specimen was found in 1990 (Vogel, 1990). If a large, diurnally active, terrestrial iguana could go unnoticed for almost 100 years in Jamaica near the capital city of Kingston, then a smaller lizard with a probable crepuscular or nocturnal and semi-fossorial lifestyle may still occur there in an area that Crombie (1999) described in relation to herpetology as follows: `. . . the single most extensive wetlands area in Jamaica is the Black River and its tributaries. With its large estuary and bay, in addition to broad inland freshwater swamps, this area remains very poorly collected and barely explored.

'Conclusions and the future

Two (C. anelpistus, C. occiduus) of the four species of West Indian giant galliwasps have been listed respectively as possibly and probably extinct. Surveys for these two species are critical. Collar (1998) stated that a `commitment to extinction' is perhaps most likely `when we declare species extinct too soon, sealing them off from further investigation.' He also suggested that these assumptions of extinction can be self-fulfilling.

Intensive surveys of the identified localities in Jamaica are planned for late 2002 or early 2003. Funding sources are being identified to support researchers in the Dominican Republic to conduct surveys for the endangered galliwasps in that country in 2003 and 2004. When captive-management techniques have been developed for Diploglossus monotropis, Nashville Zoo staff will work to acquire a small genetically viable captive population of D. millepunctatus. This population will be utilized for research and as a reserve population for this species, which could become extinct by a single catastrophic event due to its extremely restricted range.

Ideally, populations of the potentially extinct species will be found and habitat will be protected for them. Due to their fossorial lifestyle, specimens of these species may be found as their isolated habitats are altered by heavy equipment, as was the case for C. anelpistus in 1977. None of these specimens or their offspring survived longer than three years in zoos, and a living specimen has not been recorded since. If a similar situation occurs in the future, hopefully, the chances for survival will be enhanced.

Acknowledgements

I would like to thank Rick Schwartz, the Nashville Zoo Director, for his support for this project. Thanks are also in order for the herpetology staff and veterinary staff at Nashville Zoo for their help with the captive population of giant galliwasps. Thanks also to James Needham, Dr Don Gillespie, Dr Byron Wilson, Dr Robert Powell, Sixto Incháustegui, Jose Ottenwalder, Rick Hudson, Julian Duval and others who have contributed to the making of this project over the years. My special thanks to Dr Robert Powell, Sixto Incháustegui, and my wonderful wife Marcia for help with this article.

References

Dale McGinnity, Curator of Ectotherms, Nashville Zoo, 3777 Nolensville Road, Nashville, Tennessee 37211, U.S.A. (E-mail: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it )

Bull.  Chicago Herp.  Soc.  35(12):277-280,  2000

Observations on the Giant Sungazer Lizard,  Cordylus giganteus,  in Captivity

Gary Fogel

Email:   kordylus@juno. com

In the past few years,  it has come to my attention that more sungazer lizards have been introduced into the commercial pet trade.   For this reason I thought it would be a good time to share my observations and interactions with this species,  in the hope that others might benefit from my experience in keeping these lizards.   As you may be aware,  there is still very little written on Cordylus giganteus,  compared to other,  more popular,  types of lizards.   The only articles I’ve seen in herpetocultural magazines have been Switak (1995) on the genus Cordylus as a whole,  and Donovan (1997) on sungazers specifically.   The Vivarium has never published an article on the genus Cordylus,  and popularized reptile books are general in their information,  often contradicting one another on the facts (e.g. ,  Bartlett and Bartlett,  1997; Mattison,  1983,  1991; Wynne,  1981; Zimmermann,  1983).

I acquired my first sungazers in 1989.   At the time,  information on these lizards was not easy to find,  so I really did not know what to expect from them as far as behavior and temperament were concerned.   I had experience keeping and breeding smaller cordylid species,  such as armadillo lizards,  Cordylus cataphractus,  and girdled-tailed lizards,  Cordylus warreni depressus,  but none with the majestic sungazer lizard.   My first job was to find written information currently available.   I did as much research as I could,  talking to other people and gathering information from various technical articles from the Field Museum library.

Having gathered verbal and written information,  the second step was to prepare a habitat enclosure for them,  as these lizards are really too big to be kept properly in an aquarium environment.   I modified a homemade wooden table,  adding pegboard walls for ventilation,  and two screen doors in the front,  one on each side,  for easy access.  The enclosure measured seven feet by four feet with two fluorescent light fixtures overhead,  each containing one full spectrum light and one black light,  approximately 15 inches from the ground.   I furnished a heating pad in the center of the cage for autumn and winter use,  and a large dog bowl for water.   Hiding places were provided in the form of two clay tiles,  24 inches long,  cut in half lengthwise,  to serve as burrows.   These lizards live in open grassland areas,  and hide in underground burrows,  rough ly three feet long,  either dug by the lizards themselves,  or dug by other animals and adapted for use by the sungazers.   The flooring of my enclosure was floor tile,  over which I placed artificial turf,  except for 12 inches at the front of the enclosure. 

This is where I placed the water bowl and I hoped was the place the animals would  use for their bathroom area (they tend to use the same spot repeatedly for this activity).   These lizards come from a temperate climate,  with low humidity,  where they hibernate in their burrows during the winter months.   I have never used a heat lamp in the enclosure,  as these animals prefer a relatively cool air temperature.   Extreme heat,  such as needed with Uromastyx and chuckwalla species,  could prove fatal for the sungazer.   Use of a small fan,  during the summer months, to help circulate the air,  has also proved helpful.   The cage was now ready for its inhabitants (Figure 2).

When I unpacked the shipment of sungazers,  I didn’t know what to expect.   Would they be aggressive and bite?  I was surprised to find them quite non-aggressive,  preferring to just lie there with their arms at their sides.   This is a defense posture they use in the wild,  as they are heavily armored from top to sides with sharp thornlike scales.   Anything biting them gets a mouth full of thorny protrusions,  not unlike biting a pincushion.   The other defense they use is to swing their armored tails back and forth at the mouth of their burrow.   This can draw blood if one is not careful.   Other than that,  I have never had any aggressive action taken towards me by the sungazers. They have never actively bitten me in defense,  only when I have gotten in the way during feeding.   They prefer to run and hide,  rather than attack,  unlike girdle-tailed lizards,  Cordylus warreni,  which will bite readily,  given the chance.  

 The group consisted of one male and three females.   Males, incidentally,  are very easy to sex.   They have pronounced
raised scales on the inside of their forelimbs,  which are very noticeable (Figure 3a),  as well as larger femoral pores on the hind legs.   Females have regular scales on their forelimbs (Figure 3b).   I do not know the reason for these raised scales on the males,  but males of other Cordylus species do not have them at all.

 Figure 3.   A) Male sungazer,  Cordylus giganteus,  showing raised scales on the forelimbs.   B) Female sungazer,  showing normal forelimb scales.   Photographs by Carlos Sanchez.

 I  watched and waited for the usual lizard behavior patterns to emerge:  head-bobbing,  tail-wagging,  tongue-flicking,  etc. 
The sungazer lizards rarely or never exhibited these behaviors. They seemed oblivious to one another.   They chose their respective burrows; occupied by two animals each.   Over the years,  I’ve noticed that the male would change burrows from one side to the other,  every year or every other year. One year he would use the one on the left,  then move to the one on the right two years later,  for no apparent reason. The females would interchange with him,  depending on which side he occupied.   I’ve observed attempted copulation only twice in 10 years.   Of course this doesn’t mean that it hasn’t happened more frequently; perhaps I just wasn’t home at the time,  to witness it.   The first observed copulation was five years after I had obtained them.   It was in November and the barometric pressure had just dropped that day.   I heard scurrying inside of the cage and went to investigate.   I found the male chasing one
of the females slowly around the entire cage attempting to mount her from behind.   At one point he bit her head region,
and tried to position himself underneath her tail region.   I did document this with a photo,  but I didn’t get as close as I might have liked,  for fear of disrupting the action.   I couldn’t tell whether this was a successful breeding because of their position within the enclosure.   Afterwards,  they went back to ignoring each other.   Three years later,  I would witness this action again,  also in the autumn months,  but to my knowledge,  no young were ever born,  unless they were eaten after birth.   I have read that males can be cannibalistic towards any young (Marais,  1984).
In 1994,  I acquired six more yearling sungazers,  which were housed in two groups of three each,  until I could build
another large enclosure.   They were about seven inches total in length,  and unsexed at the time.   As they grew,  I discovered that the sex ratio was four males and two females.   Since I did not have the space for a lot of large enclosures,  I decided to put all six in another seven feet by four feet enclosure with an open top this time,  sort of like a big wooden box.   I also included six hide areas on one side of the cage,  using clay tiles again,  and 12 inches in length (Figure 4).   Housing them all together,  I was not sure how all the males would react to one another,  but then again,  this species interacts and behaves by their own set of rules.   When I first placed them all together,  I actually saw
tail-wagging and tongue-flicking,  as the two groups got to know one another.   The aggression towards one another sub sided after one hour and they have been living as one group ever since.   I personally was surprised that four males would tolerate one another in an enclosed area,  but they are now about seven years old and I have not yet had a problem.   I do not know,  however,  at what age they reach sexual maturity.   They are not as large as my other adults,  so perhaps they are not yet sexually active,  but at seven years,  I would think that they are mature enough.

The water dishes for both enclosures are large enough for the sungazers to immerse themselves,  and I have noticed a rather unusual behavior.   In both cages,  these lizards like to sit in the water bowl,  much like a athtub.   I have used large water dishes for other species of Cordylus,  and they do not show this behavior at all.   The sungazers,  however,  seem to like their occasional dip in the water dish.   I have seen other
enclosures at zoos,  which use little dishes of water for the sungazers.   Perhaps if they knew they liked bathing,  they would give them larger bowls.   In the wild,  they do experience a rainy season,  so coming in contact with water is not an unheard of experience.   Sometimes their burrows can become flooded out,  leaving these lizards to locate other,  drier burrows,  or digging upward in the existing burrow.   They also do not like venturing far from the protection of the burrow entrance.   I have left the cage door open on one occasion,  only to find that not one had even left the enclosure.   Should they become startled; the sungazers literally fly into the burrow openings,  seeking refuge from impending danger.   Should I open the cage door at this point,  they would whip their tails back and forth inside the clay tiles,  resulting in a hard,  hollow, thump-thump sound.   Occasionally,  one can be heard digging inside its shelter,  at the end against the wall.

 Perhaps in part because these animals behave unlike other lizards,  breeding them remains a mystery.   They may only give birth every other year (van Wyk,  1988),  and the gestation period is unknown  - - -  it might last a year or even longer.   People who have claimed to breed them,  usually have done so only once,  leading me to believe that the allegedly bred sungazer was gravid when purchased.    If gestation can last a year or more,  then this scenario certainly seems plausible.   If someone had bred them after having kept them in captivity for two years or more,  I would be more inclined to believe that,  yes,  they actually had bred them.   Because they are notoriously difficult to get to breed,  I feel it is important for people purchasing them to know this fact.   If one is buying sungazers in hopes of making a small fortune off the offspring produced,  then one is in for a big surprise.   Many zoos and individuals have tried for years,  but breeding is still an elusive nut to crack.   It seems hibernation plays a key role in reproducing this species,  but if
you do hibernate,  are you willing to run the risk of a sungazer fatality as a result?  I have talked to someone in South Africa who did breed these lizards regularly by hibernating them in a refrigerator for several weeks,  in the winter months.   He also kept them outside the rest of the time,  utilizing natural sunlight in the process.   Bert Langerwerf maintains his reptiles in much the same way.   After many years of keeping sungazers outdoors at his Alabama facility,  with no young being born,  Bert Langerwerf finally did report breeding success this past year.

These days,  I find it shocking the obscene amounts of money that sungazers command in the commercial pet trade,
especially since the chance for breeding success is so slim. Should breeding occur,  they only give birth to one or two
young and the process could take two years.   This is quite a contrast from some species of commercially bred lizards,
which may lay 20 eggs each,  three times a year.  
At least if more people are buying and working seriously with sungazers,  then breeding may become more common-
place.   The more people contributing to the existing knowledge base,  the better for the animals’ continued survival in captivity.   It’s my hope that this article will inspire other sungazer keepers to share their experiences in print.

We've included a detailed care sheet for the most common Uromastyx species. Please take the time to read it before purchasing your Uromastyx.

General Husbandry / Breeding

Most Uromastyx species currently in the U.S. seem to have fairly similar requirements so I'll lump them together for the purposes of this care sheet. Where the various species differ in their care requirements, I'll so note in the text. Please also look at care sheets posted at The Uromastyx Home Page for additional information on a variety of Uromastyx issues. Also check out The Uromastyx Forums. These are useful forums for posting questions and sharing information concerning Uromastyx.  Be careful taking advice posted on forums as a fair amount of inaccurate information gets posted by well meaning but inexperienced individuals.   Use your common sense and get more than one opinion before making any major changes in how you keep your animals.

Lighting/Heat

First and foremost, Uromastyx are heat lovers, the ultimate heat lovers! They must have a basking site that reaches between 110°F and 120°F (surface temp). No, that's not a typo, one hundred and ten to one hundred and twenty F! This is actually easy to produce with a Zoo-Med or comparable reptile basking bulb (reflector or flood type bulb) shining over a smooth piece of slate or other suitable rock. Adjust the height of the basking light so that it heats an area at least as large as the whole body of a basking Uromastyx and make sure the light is placed high enough to prevent the animals from accessing it. Do NOT use hot rocks or similar "in-cage" electric underbelly heaters. These will not suffice and can cause serious injury to your animals. An under-the-tank heating pad is ok but only for supplemental heat.  The overhead basking light is still essential. You're aiming for a general background temperature around 100°F in the warm end of the cage, and the mid 80's°F in the cool end of the cage. This permits your animals to self-regulate their body temperature. Night temps should be much cooler, typical of their desert homes. Most people shoot for the low 70's in the summer, the upper 60's in the winter. Along with the basking lights, we recommend installing a UV producing bulb such as Zoo-Med's Reptisun 5.0's, Arcadia High OutPut UVB or  Mercury Vapor basking bulb. The usefulness of these bulbs is still debated and some breeders feel they are a waste of money ($20 to $30 ea. for Zoo-Meds, $35 up for Mercury Vapors), but the jury is still out.  UVB initiates the conversion of vit. D3 precursor into active vitamin D3, and in theory these bulbs produce enough UVB to stimulate this reaction. However, for this to be reasonably effective, the bulbs must be mounted within a foot or so of the basking animal. Also these bulbs gradually loose the ability to produce UVB with use and thus should be replaced annually to biannually. Look for a change from bluish white to a clear white glow with age, faint blue tint = good, white = worn out).  Some breeders choose to simply add vit. D3 to the diet and dispense with the bulbs. This approach also seems to work, but which is more reliable is still unknown.  Regardless of how well UVB impact Vit D3 issues, strong UVB exposure does produce more intense pigmentation in captive Uromastyx.   For some species, this alone may be sufficient justification to use the UVB-producing bulbs. In addition to UVB, these bulbs also produce UVA, which has been suggested to increase appetite and give desert animals a "psychological" benefit. Again the jury is still mixed with some swearing the bulbs help and others equally convinced there is no noticeable impact on behavior or health.  We use a mixed approach.  We feed low levels of Vit D3 to our animals (by dusting w/ Miner-AL brand mineral supplement w/ D3) while using Arcadia Hi UV compact fluorescent bulbs in all our cages.

Our data on bulb-generated UVB's effects are mixed. Some Uros seem to do better with the bulbs while others show no detectable differences with or without the bulbs. We have noticed better coloration in many Uromastyx exposed to strong UVB from Mercury Vapor bulbs or Arcadia bulbs and Uro pairs in cages with these bulbs tend (by coincidence or not) to be some of our better breeders. Uromastyx do detect the difference between normal "man made" light and sunlight and are unmistakably attracted to sunlight. Uromastyx raised outdoors in unfiltered sunlight are the most dramatically pigmented of all.  Of the available commercial reptile UVB lights, the Mercury Vapors bulbs seem a better choice in open topped cages, however the cost and excessively short life span (most rarely last 6-8 months for us) make them impractical for us. The current wattages/sizes available also put out excessive heat and so are unusable in our solid-topped Vision and ShowCase brand cages. The fluorescent bulbs have minimal heat output and come in many lengths and are thus more user friendly. Their useful lifespan however is often comparable to the Mercury Vapor bulbs.  We use clear infrared bulbs for heat in our ground pens and standard silver-backed reflector-type bulbs for our oak cages and "Vision" / Showcase brand pre-fab cages as the heat sources.  We currently use compact Arcadia UVB bulbs for our UVB source but have been experimenting  with other brands of Mercury Vapor bulbs for our ground pens.

For most of the year, we are looking to produce a 13 hour day and 11 hour night time period for all species of Uromastyx.  You can shorten this by a few hours during the  winter, but only if you don't mind the possibility of them cycling and going through breeding behaviors in the spring.  This is NOT an option if you have multiple specimens of the same sex housed together. Going through a yearly full brumation cycle does not appear to be essential to the long term health of most Uromastyx.  Seasonal variation in day length and background temperatures is probably a good idea, but  for most pet owners, don't go below a 10 hour day during the winter or 68° F night time low temperatures.

Bedding

Opinions vary on the ideal bedding. It's a common misconception that Uromastyx prefer sand and come from a sandy environment. In fact they tend to avoid overly sandy locales in the wild, preferring clay/sand or gravelly-loam mixes, rocky outcrops or other soils better suited to holding a burrow without collapsing. If you use sand, make sure it is a natural sand (rounded edges) like beach sand or washed playground sand. Man made sand (from crushing gravel) has jagged edges which easily interlock, leading to gut impactions in animals that swallow it. We personally don't like sand and restrict it's use to only in the nest boxes.

We've tried bark, which the Uros enjoyed but the excessive dust produced was unacceptable and picking out fecal pellets was far too labor intensive. We then tried rabbit pellets (alfalfa), but the problems were essentially the same as bark but with more odor. We finally switched to high quality wild bird seed (predominately millet) in the mid 90's and have been extremely pleased with the results. The Uro's can snack on the seed throughout the day, it's generally dust and odor free, and sticks to fresh fecal pellets, quickly drying them. Seeds which the Uro's crack before swallowing are digested while uncracked seeds pass whole, acting as much needed roughage. The fecal pellets can be quickly sifted out of the cage with a 1/4" mesh hardware wire sieve (easy to make from a cat litter scoop), allowing us to easily maintain a large number of Uromastyx without needing additional hired help. The seed is good for several months per cage, then with one final cleaning, can be fed to our other livestock (Fallow deer) or wild birds. If the Uros drag damp sand into the bedding or pile bedding in the nest box, the seeds sprout.  As a side note, we've also looked into using calcium carbonate sand (Calci-sand, T-Rex), but other Uro keepers have told us the dust produced is too great to be acceptable bedding. The fine dust has a tendency to get into the eyes as well, potentially causing significant irritation/injury.  It is particularly dangerous to use around hatchlings and juveniles, getting into the lungs and causing severe desiccation. It tends to clump when damp and form semi-hard masses which potentially could lead to intestinal blockages. There is also some concern calcium-based sands act like giant anti-acid tablets, upsetting the digestion process. Ground walnut shell has also been suggested as a good bedding and is advertised as an attractive, digestible, odor free, safe bedding by the manufacturers.   While we agree it's quite attractive, it is otherwise a nightmare of a product.  Walnut shell is composed primarily of lignin which in fact is not digestible by vertebrates, and the crushing process basically leaves most the resulting pieces with jagged edges. These edges have been indicated in the deaths of several Uromastyx - necropsies revealing their stomachs had been extensively lacerated by ingested bedding.   All in all, we strongly suggest avoiding it. Similarly, ground corn-cob is too dangerous to use. While it has smooth edges, it's extremely hydrophilic and if swallowed absorbs water from the gut and greatly swells. This can easily lead to fatal impactions and as Uromastyx don't normally drink water, even small amounts inadvertently ingested can easily dehydrate smaller specimens.  Bed-a-Beast (shredded coconut husks) are used by some with good success, but again fecal pellets have to be removed one by one by hand and it tends to be quite dusty. We've tried it in our nest boxes but it readily molds and attracts gnat flies which can harm newly laid eggs, so we've had to eliminate it.  The chucky version of it works well as bedding for our Agamas and Tortoises and at least for them is an attractive, low dust, no odor bedding.

Note for all these bedding, make the depth very shallow -say 1/4 inch max.  For most situations, making the bedding deep enough to burrow in greatly complicates their care.  Use artificial burrows or hide boxes to satisfy your Uro's desire to burrow.  For hatchlings/juveniles under 6 inches total length we recommend bare tank bottoms or butcher's paper. Hatchlings are much more sensitive to ingesting dry, hard material so it's best to avoid the problem.

Shelters

Uromastyx are burrowers by nature and must be provided with some form of low shelter. In most of our breeding pens, we use patio blocks (8"x16" red cement bricks) and solid plastic boards (1/2" thick x 8"x18") glued onto 2"x2" boards to give a ground clearance of approx. 2".  The goal is to produce a shelter just high enough so that the Uro's can feel the top of the shelter while standing inside it. It's best not to place these directly under the basking area unless you also place a second one elsewhere in the cage.  For most cages we also add a nest box to simulate a burrow/sleeping chamber and the naturally higher humidity contained there-in. This is usually made from a Rubbermaid "Roughneck" brand 3.3 gal. or larger soft plastic tub. We then insert a piece of 3" diameter flexible plastic drain-pipe into the upper side of the box to act as the "burrow" leading to the nest/sleeping "chamber". The tube then extends approx. 18" from the side of the tub with the end touching the ground, preferably along the back wall of the cage. We prefer soft ABS drainage pipe as it's flexible, cheap and ribbed for easy footing. Fill the tub with only very slightly damp 50/50 sand/potting soil (preferably soil w/out perlite or added fertilizers or "water" holding pellets).  "SuperSoil" brand  potting soil is generally considered the best for terrarium use.

Housing

Uromastyx tend to  have a low tolerance for cohabitating with other Uromastyx unless reared together. Under most circumstances, two mature males may not be kept together! Sooner or later one will attack the other, possibly causing serious injury. While females of most species are more variable in this regard, many females also are intolerant of same-sex housing (Saharans and Mali's are occasional but not reliable exceptions). Many Uromastyx will tolerate and even prefer being housed with a member of the opposite sex, but exceptions exist even here (note: Moroccans, Orange benti, and Ornates in particular tend to be common exceptions to this rule). Females of all species tend to become very belligerent towards all other Uros, male or female, once they are bred and begin preparing a nesting site. Most are very moody the first few weeks pre-and post-laying and may need to be separately housed for several weeks or even months. The aggression can be subtle and easily missed if you're not around the animals throughout the day. Periodically examine your animals, noting their weight and the condition of the skin along their flanks. Individuals intimidated by others tend to gradually loose weight. Aggressive animals tend to bite others along the flanks, leading to distinct thickening of this area. If allowed to continue, this can lead to significant tissue damage or even death, even if the aggressor never directly breaks the skin.

If you wish to try to house a sexual pair or trio together, first setup the cage so that each individual will have access to separate basking, sleeping and feeding sites. Then introduce them to the new cage simultaneously. Uros are by nature territorial, and even calm animals tend to attack new individuals placed in their cage. A notable exception occurs between individuals of vastly differing size. In particular, large adults are very tolerant of sharing their cage with small juveniles. Note trios generally only work if you don't cycle them for breeding. Bred females are rarely tolerant of a second female living in the same cage.

As far as cage size, the larger the better for all but hatchlings. Our ground breeder pens run approx. 4' long by 2 1/2'deep by 2' high and house strictly pairs. We primarily use Vision brand and Showcase brand 4' cages for housing single individuals or breeding pairs off the ground.  If you wish to use a standard aquarium or terrarium as a cage, we'd strongly suggest not going smaller than a 40 gal. "Breeder" style long tank for young adults and no smaller than a 20 gal. (long version) for hatchlings. You should  cover the back glass with some background (dessert scene or whatever)  and at least initially, the two sides as well, leaving only the front open glass. This will help prevent the Uros from excessively clawing at the glass or running face-first into the sides of the tank if spooked. Placing cage ornaments (logs etc.) along the edges will also help in this regard. A better option would be to build your own cage out of A-grade plywood sealed with non-toxic polyurethane to produce a cage at least 4' long, 24" wide, 18" tall for an adult pair of Uromastyx.  Many breeders maintain their Uros in large steel or plastic livestock water tanks. This is an inexpensive means of housing them but the aesthetics are somewhat problematical for "in the home" housing!  Uros are active creatures and like to run around. Shoot for as large a cage as you have space for.

We keep our hatchlings 8 to 10 per cage in 4' Vision "low profile" cages (4' long, 24" wide, 14" tall). Larger than that and they tend to have more trouble finding the food or regulating their temperatures. Note hatchlings of some species such as  Moroccans tend to get very territorial after about 4 weeks of age and must have separate shelters throughout the cage. The more aggressive individuals may need to be housed separately (or at least moved in with much larger individuals) as soon as they start showing aggression.

Diet

Uromastyx are primarily herbivores, with a taste for insects on the side. Our primary diet is composed of  two main fractions.  The first is fresh leafy greens.  As of 2006, we are trialing Earthbound brand "SpringMix" as our base diet as we can buy it in bulk and it needs no further chopping etc. to be used.  It comes in 1 pound clear plastic resealable tubs and  for the most part contains a good mix of nutritious greens.  It is a bit too high in leaf lettuces so we mix in one chopped head of either Endive or Pok Choy leaves for each 1 pound tub of Spring Mix. We rinse it all in cold water, shake off the excess moisture then dust it very lightly every day with Miner-Al (I) mineral supplement. On alternate days we also dust it heavily with ground up Mazuri Tortoise pellets.  For specimens 1 year old or older we also add a handful of warmed up frozen mixed veggies (peas, carrots, corn, cut green beans)  to the mix once or twice per week. During the winter and early spring, this is our primary daily diet.  During the summer and early fall, we harvest home grown leafy greens and blooms and use that to replace about 50% of the Spring Mix.  The  greens/blooms we primarily use are dandelion greens/ blooms, clover greens /blooms, Rose of Sharon hibiscus blooms, nasturtium blooms, cats claw blooms (a late-season dandelion-mimic), viola (Johnny jump ups blooms), rose blooms, and fresh (not dried) alfalfa leaves / blooms. We try to feed a slightly different mixture of food items each day, alternating what greens we add to the base diet. The primary store-purchased greens we add are endive first and foremost, followed by Pok Choy, mustard greens, grated yellow squash, and collards. Spring mix is already very high in romaine and oak leaf lettuces so while those are fine as lesser food items, we don't want to add any more of those to the spring mix. We do not pre-chop the added leaves for hatchlings but simply tear it fresh into chucks for everyone. When available, we also periodically place cactus pads in each cage (Opuntia sp, commercially produced as human grade food, de-spined at the store). These last for days, allowing for periodic nibbling at will.

As stated above, we dust the food lightly but daily with Miner-AL brand mineral supplement. We use the indoor version which has low levels of vitamin D3 in it.  We're not convinced that the UVB levels from the commercial  UVB bulbs are completely adequate for natural vitamin D3 synthesis so the dietary D3 is our insurance policy. Other products on the market work as well, but for us Miner-All is the safest one. An alternate product usually available from  larger pet shops is Mardel Labs mineral supplement and no doubt several other brands should be ok as well. We personally really dislike the most commonly stocked pet shop product: Rep-Cal,  as we feel it is too high in D3 levels and it only supplies calcium, ignoring the other essential minerals. The excess calcium in the gut can then lead to excessive excretion of the other minerals in the diet, leading to other nutrient deficiencies.  What ever product you use, make sure it contains a well balanced list of minerals, not just calcium.

For yearlings on up, we also dust the food once per week with Uromastyx Dust. This is touted as a complete diet and looks good on paper, but we choose to use it only sparingly. We don't feel this is essential  if you dust the food with ground up Mazuri pellets, but it's a nice insurance policy. We're not sure it's safe for use in hatchings to sub-yearling, so we don't add it to the diet until the Uro's first birthday. Mazuri tortoise pellets have a longer track record and is well accepted by our Uros and we feel it serves a very similar function in the diet.  We use to feed it by moistening the intact pellets with water and adding it to the frozen mixed veggies, but this proved too problematic for us.  It tends to stick to the mouth, occasionally leading to bacterial infections and it spoils by the end of the day.  We now grind it up in a blender and use it dusted over the damp greens.  There is less waste this way and it non longer is a spoilage problem. 

If you house your Uros on anything other than bird seed, you can partially replace the Mazuri pellets with a dish of  dry "Pretty Bird" brand finch pellets or T-Rex tortoise pellets or Juvenile Iguana pellets (Uros housed on seed tend to ignore these pellets). These are a synthetic "seed" which has multiple vitamins added and is much better digested than most bird seed.  Hopefully if the Uros main diet is lacking in some minor nutrient, snacking on this will make up for it. Some breeders also like to add ground dried bean mixes to the diet. This mix is generally comprised of various soup beans to which low levels of a multi vitamin-mineral supplement is added then run through a coffee grinder.  The final mix is offered to the Uros in a shallow dish left in the cage.

It's wise to highly limit spinach, beet greens, Swiss chard, or true cabbage in the diet, and go easy on  broccoli, kale and collard greens ( the exception being the blossoms of these). These leaves either bind important nutrients or tend to induce metabolic problems over time. Peas have their faults as well but if you supplement with a balanced mineral supplement (especially ones containing zinc, manganese, magnesium  along with the more common additive calcium), the benefits out-weigh the potential harm as long as you use them sparingly in the diet.  In our experience, it's very difficult to reliably acclimate wild-collected specimens or underweight long term specimens without adding peas to the diet. In particular, we don't consider Sudanese or Orange or Rainbow benti to be successfully acclimated until they are eating peas. Insist on this when buying these 3 species, it will greatly improve your success potential with them.

While most Uros consume the occasional insect in the wild, these generally cause more problems than they are worth in domestic specimens.  On very rare occasion, we may offer an occasional superworm (Zoophobia sp.) to individuals that are slow to settle in. These are a great way to tame your Uros.  Many are easily addicted to superworms and will go to great lengths to procure them. Conventional wisdom suggests gravid females fed a slightly higher than normal amount of insect matter produce better clutches, but we have not found that to hold true.  Most commercially available insects are excessively high in phosphorous which causes the body to excrete calcium into the feces.  Be careful to supplement w/calcium whenever you feed insects and never feed more than just a couple per sitting and only a few per week at most.  Hatchlings in particular easily develop metabolic problems if fed too many insects.  All in all, we strongly suggest you avoid insects in the diet except under special circumstances (for example for individuals that are refusing to eat or refusing to tame down).

Water

Opportunities to drink are a rare occurrence in the wild for most species of Uromastyx. Uromastyx solve this problem by producing metabolic water from their digesting food. As long as their bellies are relatively full, most are making more than enough water to meet all their needs. Thus we don't normally offer water to our healthy Uros. The exceptions are for newly acquired/shipped animals, individuals which haven't kept up a reasonable gut mass of digesting food, females which are near term-gravid or have just laid their clutch, and for fresh hatchlings. Individuals with near empty bellies MUST be offered drinking water on a regular basis. If a Uromastyx goes off-feed, their bellies slowly empty. As this progresses, their bodies tend to dehydrate. As they dehydrate, appetite is often further suppressed, resulting in a spiral down towards death. (Note: dehydrated animals have limited abilities to process proteins so NEVER offer insects or dry bean mixes to an overly thin, dehydrated Uromastyx. The burden on the kidneys and livers may prove fatal months down the road). Despite all I've stated above, there are still very few circumstances when it is acceptable to put a water bowl in a Uromastyxs' cage. If you feel an individual needs water, take him or her to a tub filled with approximately 1/2" of bath-water hot (100°F) water. It must be as warm as you can safely make it so that the individual stays near their optimum body temperature (105°F). Some will drink on their own, others can be enticed by dripping water on their snout. (Note: Saharan Uromastyx are prone to aspirating water into the lungs so be very careful when soaking them.  Put them very slowly into the tub and keep the water very shallow (1/4" max.)  Other Uro species seem much less likely to have this problem). Many unacclimated  individuals will not drink while being watched.  You must leave their line of sight. It's also wise to leave them undisturbed for a few minutes after drinking to avoid them regurgitating. Truly dehydrated animals may need to be tubed with a warmed electrolyte solution. See your vet if you are unfamiliar with this procedure. Using Pedialtye or even Gatorade or similar product instead of water for the soak is one way to supply these electrolytes.  Just make sure to rinse the solution off them and dry them well afterwards.  The hindgut is also capable of absorbing water, so use of dilute electrolyte/vitamin enemas may also be useful for seriously dehydrated individuals.  Individuals with intestinal problems (parasites or bacterial infections) may not be able to absorb water through the gut and will need to  be taken to a Vet for injections of a saline/glucose and  sterile water mixture (even ratio of each is usually best).  Note it's easiest to give this injection under the front arm pits - if placed just right, you hit what appears to be a lymph duct and you can easily inject several cc's of fluid without any backwash out of the injection site.  If you tube them orally, juveniles usually will hold down 2 cc, medium adults 5 cc, large adults 7 to 10 cc's of fluid.  While it's easy to give more than this, they will often regurgitate larger amounts a few minutes to hours later.  If given rectally, reduce these doses by about 1/3.

An alternative method to offer water is to take a small jar lid (approx. 1/4" deep) early in the morning, fill it with water and  place it in the cage (along a wall  in a corner).  Most Uro's have a higher tendency to drink in the morning, perhaps being programmed to seek potential dew at this time. This small amount of water should evaporate off during the day, causing no harm. We routinely have a lid of water in our hatchling tanks, but stop this practice once they go though the first  sheds (when 8 to 12 weeks old).  Note if you feed ground bean mixes, especially to hatchlings, a water dish can cause significant health problems. The Uro's tend to constantly walk through their water dishes. If they then walk through their bean dish, they essentially glue the powder to their bellies and toes. This can result in significant skin infections/lesions which can take months to clear up. Note feeding soft fruits can cause the same problem - the material easily glues itself to their bellies as they walk through it, resulting in significant infections if repeatedly left unattended.

A species exception to the no water rule are the benti and Saharan Uromastyx. While most Uromastyx species will commonly refuse offered water, both species of benti and Saharans will often accept the offering and drink heartily. While they can do fine without water as long as they keep a belly full of digesting food, since they readily drink, we offer them soaks more often than the other species. Note, we still don't keep a water bowl in their cages, we just offer more opportunities to soak in the tub.  Please be sure to dry them off afterwards as dampness will eventually lead to health problems.

Breeding

Most breeders believe Uromastyx need to be put through some form of winter in order to sufficiently cycle to induce breeding and fertile egg production. The various species vary over how "severe" a winter they need, with Moroccans, Mali's, and Egyptians needing the coldest/longest winters, Ornates, Saharans and benti needing moderate/mild winters, and Sudanese needing the bare minimum of seasonal differences to successfully cycle. We've tried numerous approaches to wintering or "brumating" our Uromastyx, with widely variable results. Too warm or too short a "winter" and most species won't cycle, too cold or too long and mortality becomes a problem. The best solution for us has been as follows:

First, stop feeding Mali's, Moroccans, and Egyptians about 2 weeks prior to the start of your "winter". Cut severely back on the amounts but continue to feed Ornates, both benti species, Saharans and Sudanese Uromastyx. We mostly offer Romaine and endive at this time primarily for their high water content.  Avoid peas, beans, and any high protein foods. At the same time cut your day length to 10 hours of light but leave the cage temperatures close to normal during the day, while trying to keep no hotter than 70°F at night. After the first week, we drop day length down to 8 hours per day. All else stays the same. At the end of week 2, we drop day length to 6 hours per day, and try to maintain the cage temperatures around 60°F to 65°F for at least 20 hours per day. Then for at least 4 hours per day, we turn on the basking lights so that the cage temperature hits at least 80's °F, preferably 85°F,  for at least 2 full hours. The goal here is to stimulate the immune system to kick in and gut function to reactivate for at least 2 hours each day. Failure to do this will significantly increase your mortality rate, especially for Ornates, Sudanese, and the benti. If you haven't cleared the guts of your Mali's and Moroccans, they too risk suffering from gut paralysis and eventual necrosis. During this time we still offer limited food to the benti and Saharans  but generally restrict food for everyone else. Note we still have bird seed in the cage as bedding, so some feeding might be occurring, but except for the benti and Saharans, most Uromastyx will not seek food at this time. We continue this to produce a "winter" of approx. 6 to 8 weeks. We then bump the cage day temp to the mid 80's°F and day length to 8 hours per day for a week. The next week we go to normal daytime cage temps and 10 hours day length, the third week 12 hours, the forth week 14 hours. During this "spring" time , we try to keep our night temps near 70'°F. Most our Uro's will be up and basking by the end of "spring" week one and eating lightly by week two. By the third week most should be back to their normal activity levels. This system has worked well for us for several years running now and several other breeders use a very similar system with excellent success as well.

For egg laying, we use 3.3 gal. or 10 gal. Rubbermaid "Roughneck" soft plastic tubs, lids intact. We cut a 3" round hole in the upper corner of the long side of the tub, and insert a 2' to 3' section of 3" diameter drainage pipe (flexible, ribbed plastic, see photo above). We then cut a hole in the side of the pipe so that the Uro's have easy access out of the pipe and into the nest chamber. The insides of the nest boxes are half filled with a 50:50 mix of playground-grade sand and SuperSoil brand potting soil moistened just enough to allow it to hold a tunnel. We've taken to adding a handful of lime to the mix as well to lower the overall acidity of the soil. Our long-term established wild-collected animals and captive-breds use this setup without hesitation. Most of the newly imported Mali's have balked and buried their eggs in the bird seed, often under the basking spot. It appears that the nest boxes are best put in w/ the females PRIOR to the onset of the breeding season so that they can become accustomed to moving in and out of them and digging preliminary tunnels. As a side note, be sure to trim the toenails of your gravid females a few weeks before they lay. They are notorious for nicking their eggs while burying them.

We remove the eggs as soon as they are detected and place them on their sides in specially designed egg-holding cartons (these are a Deer Fern Farms "invention" (for  lack of a better term). These cartons are then placed in our incubator at 93°F.

Uromastyx eggs relay their fertility and viability status very clearly. Fertile eggs have a distinct red circle (the developing embryo) clearly visible at the time the eggs are laid. We orient our eggs so as to position the embryo along the side of the egg, but it's highly unlikely that this is necessary. Fresh eggs are somewhat water-balloon-like when laid, but good eggs usually firm up and whiten within a day or two at most. Eggs which are distinctly yellow or in which you can see the contents moving around inside in a two-toned pattern (milky yellow in a clearer yellow) are already in the early stages of disintegration and will not hatch. Dud eggs will begin to smell almost immediately and are often easy to detect in the incubator within 3 to 4 days. Duds also often keep a faintly oily look to them and rarely firm up.

In the past, we've incubated at temperatures ranging from 85°F to 88°F with so so success. This results in hatchlings in about 80 to 100 days.  Initial thoughts from various other reptiles breeders suggested that we were incubating too high.  However,  field data for Ornate Uromastyx now suggests we've actually been incubating too low.  Several of us thus tried 92°F to 94°F several seasons ago with excellent results. Thus while you may still see others list the lower temperatures as correct, we've decided to permanently change our temperatures to 93°F ±2°F.

At 93°F, incubation for most Uromastyx species should range closer to 55 to 65 days. The hatchlings are quite vigorous and ready to feed within a day or two. Treat them as you would adults, but slightly cooler and periodically offer water. Watch for signs of aggression. Dominant animals will significantly repress the growth of the other hatchlings housed with them. Siblings usually get along with each other (with one individual per clutch almost always being an exception). However intermixing already established clutches almost always leads to fighting. Sudanese and the benti Uromastyx must have drinking water available as described earlier until the first or second shed have been past. The other species do well with or without this extra water, as long as they keep their bellies full. Note hatchlings MUST be offered fresh fecal pellets from a healthy adult Uromastyx during the first few days post hatching. They need this in order to properly inoculate their guts and grow normally. Failure to do this will often significantly stunt their growth and increase their potential to suffer gut impactions early in life. The drive for them to eat this material wanes quickly, so you must do this as soon as possible. Crumble fresh fecal pellets into their normal food and watch to make sure each individual eats at least some of the fecal mass. Don't use a fecal pellet from an adult whom you've recently wormed or treated with antibiotics. Pick an individual that is obviously thriving and is free from an excessive load of parasites (not a lot of "rice"-like particles in the fecal pellet), but it doesn't have to be parasite-free. Parasite-free may not even be desirable - they jury is still out on that one. By parasites, we're strictly referring to nematodes. Other parasites such as coccidia etc. are undesirable at any levels.

Try not to offer hatchlings any dry foods for the first month or two. They easily get gut impactions from overly dry food lodging in the intestines. If you feel a hard mass in their bellies, try to induce drinking and later GENTLY massaging the mass to try to break it up. A warm water enema may prove necessary to hydrate the mass from both sides to free it up and allow passage. If you feed only moist foods and occasionally mist their foods, impactions should not be a problem. Hatchlings are also much more prone to metabolic bone disease from insufficient vit. D3 and calcium/trace mineral imbalances in the diet (or from excessive insect consumption). Avoid the temptation to feed insects, you are not doing them a favor! Getting your hatchlings off to a good fast start significantly lowers the incidence of problems down the line, especially for impactions.

Hopefully this covers the basic's you'll need to successfully keep and potentially breed your Uromastyx. Enjoy!

We express our thanks to the author of this article Mr. Douglas Dix. Original article you can find on his web-page http://www.deerfernfarms.com/