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I AM AWARE THE SIZE OF THIS POST, HOWEVER PLEASE BEAR WITH ME. I WOULD BENEFIT FROM ANY COMMENTS FROM MORE ADVANCED HERP OWNERS ASWELL AS THE NEW MORE NOVICE ONES.

Im setting up a vivarium complete with more than several reptile species. I have a 260 gal. mesh Exo Terra Flexarium that I picked up last week. I hope to have it complete with plants and such by the mid of august.

I know that many people reading this will start thinking "Mixing Reptiles? Oh No's!" but I have been assured that if done properly with the correct research and set up that it is entirely possible to provid several species a happy habitat together.

I started with an article in the August 2005 Issue of REPTILES (The one with the Dwarf Monitor on the front). The article was called "The living Vivarium, on page 76, written by Rex Lee Searcey. The author answered the question;

"I'm trying to make my own community vivarium, but when I mention this to most herpers, both novice and expert, they cringe and warn against it. Why? What other herps would be OK with reed Frogs?"

From reading the article and its explanations of different pathogen types and diseases, it concluded with some simple rules and a few examples of what go pretty well with most other reptiles of the same terranium type.

Reed frogs, most dart frogs, many Day Geckos, rainbow tree lizards, rough green tree snakes and Dwarf Stump-Tailed Chameleons make excelent tank mates in a community vivarium. Keep in mind I have a 260 Gallon Flexarium to fill.

It stands upright at 180 CM (72 inches) tall. The sides are 75 CM (30 inches) in width. I have a giant peice of tree (Looks like driftwood that is 2 meters (180 CM/ 72 inches) and is drying out and being treated right now. It will take another few weeks before it is ready to be used. Then I will start building the terrain around this one peice that is just incredibly shaped and formed. Having the tank sitting tall allows it to have variable temperatures and areas which each species will eventually take a liking to best.

I gave this a few days of thinking...

I decided I wanted to have 3 small reed and dart frogs (which need about 10 gallons for all of them), 2 day geckos (several will work great in a 20-25 gallon upright tank) and 3-4 stumped tailed or dwarf leaf chameleons (needing 8-10 gallons each).

All this equals about 75 gallons. The tree does take up a large space and so lets eliminate 50 gallons fo that. Leaving us with 125 gallons.

125 gallons to fill with a pair of larger chamelons maybe? Yes, I hope so.

I have been reasearching and there are two suitable species I think I have determind. Either Jackson's or Fisher's Chameleons need about 30-35 gallons for each adult. I could have a male and a female of one of those two types.

Making it come to about 190 gallons filled in a 260 gallon cage. I figure that would be perfect. Putting in some ficus or other plants of which I have not researched yet...

This subject I found is not well documented on the internet, but and so I need all your help on this.

Help me point out things that I have calculated wrong and tips.

Also, I HAVE NOT found breeders and stores in Southern Ontario and no one from the USA will ship without it being a import order of 2000 US dollars or more.

Please Help!

Don't bother replying to this, I have decided to redirect my efforts.

I'm replying for reference to other people that might want to be doing this.

Community tanks can be achieved, but they are generally frowned upon because people are generally idiots; they want to mix species of irrational compatability, I know of someone who posted a few years ago on the ks.com forums wondering why his monitor ate his beardie in his community vivarium...

That said, many species will also canibalize each other if you are a bad reptile keeper, if one gets sick or there is lack of food for everyone in the tank, it will turn into survival of the fittest, like birds who nock out the weak ones in the nest, and the mommy birds feeding the stronger ones over the weak, it's natural selection even in controlled environments.

If you are logical on what species you want to mix, and you have sufficient experience in keeping many of the animals you want to be mixing, or if you've kept ones of similar husbandry, then you're set to start making a herptopia.

Species you want to be mixing: I also read the magazine article mentioned in the original post, and highly recommend anyone wanting to achieve a successful community vivarium. Having done research with this specific magazine article and on the internet or any other sources, put together what you've learned and establish a list of compatable species. Reed frogs, Rhampholeon species of chameleons, SMALL species of day geckos such as gold dust days, dart frogs are a bad idea because I'm sure they will get eaten by the day geckos or chameleons or even the reed frogs, there are reed snakes that usually feed on insects like slugs, these would be alright to keep in a vivarium as long as you didn't have anything else as small as a prey item for these snakes (like some dart frogs). Frogs are usually very aggressive eaters, and will basically go at anything that moves, personally I would keep a reptile-only theme to a vivarium. Uroplatus species, if you're willing, would also be an alright choice for this vivarium.

There aren't many combinations you can do, I once went to a petstore and there was a basilisk, long tailed grass lizard, anole, firebelly newts, firebelly frogs, and a crappy landscape in one 20g tank, this is not the kind of combination you want to go for as these are all from different habitats and some are even toxic. On another note, I have heard of two males of different species of larger chameleons being kept together before, an Ambanja panther male and quardicornus male were both happily kept together in one of those hanging, cageless chameleon enclosures, so there are exceptions to rules based on the individual personality of some animals.

In conclusion, do a lot of research on the animals you can keep together, the above mentioned combinations are probably the tried, tested and true ones that work successfuly, but don't expect any hatchlings to make it in this type of enclosure. Have a cage that allows at **LEAST** 10g per animal if you are going to mix species. Personally I'd recommend you keep to Madagascan animals that are all of equal or similar size that won't predate on each other, and that only.

-Brock

I agree with almost everything you said Brock. Even after I decided not to do this, I still studied on the Subject.

And Im not, not doing it because you shouldn't, because if done well and thourough they ARE the greatest Enclosures without question.