Ok, so i would like to know if anyone can help me with keeping my emerald swifts happy in the habitat. I currently have one male and two females in a 30 gallon tall tank. There is the calcisand on the bottom of one half and reptibark covering the other half. Under the tank is a heater that stays on 24/7. They have plenty of climbing branches and a water dish. There is also a UV light and a heat light that is on for about 12 hours a day and off the rest. They all eat a lot, except that one throws up her crickets every once in a while. The females just seem to sleep all day and night while the male runs around banging on all edges of the cage. Is this normal for them? Also, i would like them to mate, however, only the females tend to stick together, leaving the male to himself....any tips? If you have any suggestions or tips I would appreciate it. Thanks.
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keeping my swifts happy
Replies (1)
My son has raised two emerald swifts from birth. It is a male/female pair.
The enclosure is a 29-gallon "tall" tank. Heavily planted with things like pothos. Soil substrate. Cork bark tubes and sections. Looks semi-jungle like with high, dry areas for them to bask on. Lots of hiding places.
Lighting provided by two UV flourescents and heat by one incandescent bulb. Daytime temps are around 100 under the heat lamp, 80s elsewhere. The lizards frequently hang upside from the screen directly under the heat lamps where the temp is well over 100F. At night the temps drop into the 60s or 70s, depending on season. The lights are set for about 12-14 hours per day.
No undertank heating. The animals are used to a nighttime drop that can be as low as around 50 in their natural environment.
The enclosure is misted once or twice a day. They need higher humidity than most other spiny lizards.
They eat the usual bugs like crickets and mealworms. Dusted with calcium/vitamin powder every other feeding or so.
We've observed mating behavior but no babies. The male is often the most active. They are very acrobatic.
So give them a well-planted, semi-humid environment with a hot basking area during the day and a nighttime drop in temps.
