HerpTime

Setting up my golden mantellas for breeding in this low boy 36x18x12 @Zoo Med Laboratories, Inc. terrarium. These endangered frogs are one of my favorites to keep and I’ve had great success with them. I use the short 12” ZooMed enclosures as these frogs don’t climb much and are terrestrial by nature. Keeping it simple aids in the process of being able to find eggs when they’re laid, as that’s one of the most important parts of the process! I found that tradescantia has been a fantastic plant to use for them and spreads quickly in their terrarium, taking over and turning it into a lush jungle floor. I’m sure this makes the frogs feel more comfortable and likely to lay eggs. To learn more about the process once the eggs are laid I’ve made videos all about that on my page as well! My hope is that continuing to breed this species in captivity makes them more accessible in the hobby and guarantees we get to keep enjoying them in captivity sustainably. I have babies out of the water and starting to get size and I’m sure this batch will make their way to some fellow mantella lovers soon!

Would you feed these micro super worms to your pets? I’ve been doing some more tests with these tiny worms from Timberline and my micro geckos love them! They’re wondering what other types of creatures would enjoy these micro worms. What would you feed them to? With enough interest these worms could become available for online order. And hope you enjoyed watching my geckos enjoy themselves! #microgecko #gecko

Egg collection time from these fire red anoles 🔥 these are the same exact species as the average and extremely common brown anole, diamond back anole, or Cuban anole (anolis sagrei). Only difference is they aren't brown! These make an amazing terrarium species and as you can see they breed very easily. Hatching them in an enclosure is 100% possible; I collect eggs just to slightly increase the odds of survival, as my goal is to share these amazing animals with as many people as possible, and artificial incubation can increase those numbers. I know this video is just a quick skim and overview of the whole process, so let me know if full length and in-depth versions of this type of video something you all would be interested in watching and learning from on a long form platform. In the mean time, can't wait to hatch some more of these fire reds as the breeding season starts to pick up — it never gets old! Thanks for watching!

Night crawlers for breakfast 🪱 my Chinese crocodile lizards (Shinisaurus crocodilurus) have been in brumation for a couple months and they're officially awake and eating. Brumation is the reptile version of hibernation, where metabolism greatly slows and they enter a state of dormancy. Once awake for a few days, food is definitely on their minds! Earthworms are an absolute favorite food of theirs and an important part of their diet. Finding clean night crawlers has worried me in the past, but thankfully I can get all my feeder crickets, super worms, roaches, and even these night crawlers from Timberline and don't have to worry about that anymore. The crocodile lizards definitely approve! #HerpTime #reptile #lizards

One of these is not like the others! I had the pleasure of having one of these Axanthic savannah monitors about 2 years ago, and here is another! I’m using @Zoo Med Laboratories, Inc. electrolytes to revamp their hydration as they go into quarantine here. Baby savannah monitors can be delicate initially, especially right after import. So it is important to me make sure they’re established before I offer them to their forever home. In a few weeks, I expect all 3 of these little ones will be ready to travel once again. This time to their permanent keepers! ##reptile##unboxing

Micro worms for micro geckos! I’m experimenting with some day old super worms that Timberline sent me to see how some of my micro herps like them… and it looks like they were a hit! Not only do these seem to be great enrichment for the geckos, but they have a different make up of nutrients that I’ll be able to include in the geckos’ diet. Plus, having a feeding dish allows for viewing of the geckos eating which adds another layer of fun to keeping these awesome little critters. This was a total experiment, and it went amazing. I couldn’t believe how interested the geckos were in these worms. I have hours of footage of it, but it gets a little repetitive lol. In nature our animals get a huge variety of foods, and though we do our best in captivity with supplementation, it’s pretty hard to beat a diverse and varied diet. I’m excited to keep experimenting with these and some other micro feeders I’m testing out. These mini supers aren’t quite yet available on Timberlines website yet, but hit them up and inquire if you want to try them out for yourself… your micro herps will thank you!

Shipping some lizards across the world 🌎 everyday thousands of reptiles, amphibians, fish, invertebrates, and even birds are getting shipped through the mail and this is how I do it too. These lizards will get dropped off and arrive at their destination in less than 24 hours! This is the most effective and safest way to get reptiles from point A to B and is extremely effective with near zero mishaps. It’s always an amazing feeling to hear from the recipient how happy they are with the animals they unpacked. So fortunate that I get to share this passion with others and that I'm able to send them across the country with such ease. And even if I don't ship you a lizard, sharing the passion on here thru video counts too!

Cuban false chameleons in the wild… are we keeping them right? I traveled to Cuba to find out! Guided around the eastern part of the island by my friend Dr. Luis Díaz, we encountered 3 species of false chameleon, 4 species of micro gecko, and countless other species of anoles, all only found in the island nation of Cuba. I took many measurements and photos in so many environments to better understand these animals, so we can keep them in captivity the right way! One important measurement is UV index. Using my trusty @Zoo Med Laboratories, Inc. Digital UV Index Radiometer, I took measurements in all sorts of habitats. As evident in the video and based on Dr. Díaz’s observations, it seems false chameleons avoid bright UV throughout the day, opting to get just a bit in the morning before the sun gets strong. This implies they are minimally use UV most of the day. Of course, this digital UV meter works under UV Lightbulbs at home as well, so checking with a meter and mimicking these natural conditions indoors are important: an index of 3-5 near the top in an accessible area, and enough cover or height to get a near zero reading at the bottom of the enclosure. I use these meters to not only make sure my animals are getting the UV gradient they need, but to also just make sure my bulbs are still working and don’t need replacing. An important tool for herp keepers! I’ll be posting a few more moments of this trip, but I’ll mostly be sharing my findings at the next Reptile Talks on May 16-18 in Anaheim, California, where I’ll talk about micro geckos in the wild and keeping them in captivity! Stay tuned!

Tiny living works of art 🦎 showing off some of the adult pairs of micro geckos that have begun (or should start) breeding this year. The amount of color and patterns that can be on such a tiny animal is just so cool. You can also see that in many species the males and females are “dimorphic”. This means that the two sexes are visually different. Usually, the males have more vibrant color, but that doesn’t make the females any less attractive; they still have some of the most amazing naturally occurring patterns of the animal world. Most of the pairs in this video are full grown. You can see why they make great terrarium subjects as they are small and beautiful. But please remember, they are best for watching, as handling really isn’t an option: they’re very fast and very fragile. I only have them out as I was relocating pairs to new enclosures and figured it was the perfect time to share how beautiful they are. #microgecko #sphaerodactylus #gecko

Testing out a new product my friends @Zoo Med Laboratories, Inc. sent me… the Reptitemp Dimming Thermostat! This gadget solved 1 problem I knew I had and also solved another problem I didn’t even think I had! I’ve always fought the battle of keeping my reptile rooms warm enough without them getting too hot for the animals. I have the whole space HVAC on thermostat (which gets expensive). And I never wanted to use a normal thermostat to have the lights turn on and off at designated temps because the lights would be flashing all day and really disrupt the animals’ day/night cycle. With this dimming thermostat, the lights can dim up and down depending on the temp of where the probe is! Genius! And I didn’t even think to offer my lizards sunrise and sunset… but this thermostat can be programmed go dim up in the morning and down in evening, giving them that gradual wind up and wind down. Rather than immediate on and off. I’m going to have to tinker with this device a little more to best fit my needs for so many herps, but this is a new piece of technology that is so worth investing in! Now to convince ZooMed to send me some more! Lol! #reptile #terrarium #lizard

Speed run making a baby gecko with me! These are ashy geckos (sphaerodactylus elegans), a very easy to keep species of micro gecko. The babies pop out looking like little highlighters and are adorable, but I think the even more incredible feat of nature is how the females lay eggs. This female will go thru this process of laying one large egg (in relation to her body size) at a time. Sometimes once a month, sometimes in even shorter intervals! All species of sphaerodactylus lay one egg at a time just like this, and I find it amazing what their little bodies are able to accomplish. Just the amount of space in the body the egg takes up, and the energy and nutrients it takes to create such a proportionately large egg. Extremely taxing on their bodies, yet they can lay several in a breeding season! Just another reason to be amazed by these little geckos. A fun video I couldn’t help but share again!