Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I just went to the pet store today to browse and saw this little uro called a turnip uromastyx. i asked the guy what it eats and how big it gets and he said all was very similar to a mali which i already owned so i bought it. ive never heard of these guys before but i couldnt resist so i was wondering if anybody had any info on them to let me know. thank you

I've never even heard of a turnip uromastyx before. I know Dr. Douglas Dix is breeding all kinds of rarer speciemens but turnip definitely wasn't on the list.

Have you got a pic of the little one? It would be more helpful.
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1.1 Mali Uromastyx (Ra, Isis)
1.0 Satanic Leaf-tail Gecko (Diablo)
0.1 Satanic Leaf-tail Gecko (R.I.P. Samael)
2.0 Tabby cats (Cloud, Magus)

after doing a little research i think i may have bought what is called a false turnip tailed uromastyx. i couldnt get a clear picture so i found a pic of almost exactly what my new addition looks like. heres the link to it:

http://aqualandpetsplus.com/Lizard620.jpg

any helpful thoughts would be appreciated

Its scientific classification is Xenagama batillifera in case anybody was wondering and im also wondering if it would be safe to keep it with my juvenile mali after its been quarantined for a while.

The size difference and the differences in husbandry would make it better to keep them separate.

I have the Bartlett Spiny-tailed Agamids book which briefly mentions the Xenagama species. Looks like temperature requirements are similar to uros, but the xenagamas are omnivorous and need a water dish, too. No clue how accurate this information is, and I've never kept the species. Just sayin'.
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Torey
Eugene, Oregon, USA
1.1 Saharan Uros (Joe and Arthur)
3.0 Mali Uros (Spike, Turtle, and Tank)
1.1 Ornate Uros (Scuttlebutt and Shazzbot)
0.1 Collared Lizard (Rorschach)
2.0 Green Anoles (Bowser and Sprocket)
1.1 Chubby Housecats (Roscolux and Jenny)

Hon, those cute little critters are in the agama family, related more to the bearded dragon than the uro. He will need slightly different care. He MUST have uvb, while some people argue that uros don't need it. Basking temps should stay in the 110 range. He will need bugs and I think they also eat veggie matter.

Do a forum search for beaver tailed false uromastyx care, and you should get lots of hits.

Its really cute, but no, it shouldn't be kept with a uro. It won't ever be as big as a mali, and the care is different.

Xenagama taylori-
(aka) common names:
sheild tailed agamid
dwarf sheild tailed uromastyx
turnip tailed uromastyx
false uromastyx

aka beaver tailed agama.
batillifera, huh? never heard of it before. got me.

There are two species, one is Xenagama batilifera and the oter is X. taylori. X. batilifera seems to be the more common of the two in the pet trade but both are not seen often. The easiest way to differentiate the two is by the tail. In X. batilifera, the tail comes to a sharp point(assuming it has not been lost), whereas X. taylori has a very short, round, blunt tail. They are really cool and make very fun pets, but if you do keep them, keep them in trios or larger as females will be aggressive to the male if only in pairs.
-Nat

If heard quite a few reports of X. batilifera becoming quite aggressive to other species, sometimes killing lizards larger than themselves. Personally, I wouldn't even mix them with X taylori.

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Lindsay Pike
Urotopia Uromastyx