Reptile & Amphibian Forums

So, I was talking to JediKnight about this not too long ago...it seems that juvenile Gray-bands get a bit husky on a diet of mice (I know mine do, though they don't look really bad, per se)...some of the babies can even get a little obese, and they don't grow even nearly as fast as his gray-bands that have eaten mostly f/t lizards.

Any way to mitigate the fat content of young mice or do something short of feeding them lizards? I wonder if Peromyscus are more lean than lab mice (but then State laws and fear of Hanta virus will impede most from that option too)?

Thanks.

DR
Suboc.com

You're right, Peromyscus are an improvement over lab mice, and there are actually domesticated strains available-I've even seen them offered in designer colors!

That said, some of the most successful breeders purportedly feed primarily lizards.
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Brad Chambers
WWW.HCU-TX.ORG

The Avalanche has already started-it is too late for the pebbles to vote....

where does one get all them leezards

I have them by the dozens 5 minutes from my house.They just love zebra tails.

can you send me a crap load of lizards....those knobs you got were from my original pair...

>>where does one get all them leezards

I'd suggest Mediterranean Geckos. The Terlingua post office is infested with the damn things.

Hi,
can someone tell me some scientific name of lizards, young alternas prefer to eat?

I want to try out feeding the hatchlings with lizard cause the most of my offspring doesn´t voluntary eat mice.
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Greetings Malte

www.lampropeltis-alterna.de (german site)

>>Hi,
>>can someone tell me some scientific name of lizards, young alternas prefer to eat?
>>

Just off the top of my head, Uta stansburiana, Hemidactylus turcicus, and I believe Urosaurus ornatus have been eaten by young alterna.

I've read that Sceloporus poinsettii are a main prey item of wild alterna too.

Somewhat off-topic, but I once saw some interesting old footage of a Lampropeltis splendida biting and swallowing the tail of a Coleonyx brevis while the gecko beat a hasty retreat and lived, though tailless. It was on a "Magical World of Disney" Program from 1953 called The Living Desert. Anyone else remember that? I watched it on Disney as a kid, and my mother picked up an old VHS probably 15 years ago, which I still have. Amazing footage in that program, even by today's standards.

Anyway, I imagine Coleonyx brevis of all ages are eaten by alterna, particularly young alterna.

I'm sure a few other people on this forum can add a fews lizard species names that I did not think of to mention.

DR
Suboc.com

Hi,
thanks for the answer, now I can start searching for some breeders here in germany.

You write that alternas eat Hemidactylus turcicus this is a european species and I think it´s better not to feed it to other reptiles because they can have Eimeria turcicus (Protozoans/Coccidia, which attac the gall).
This can be deadly for other reptiles.
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Greetings Malte

www.lampropeltis-alterna.de (german site)

Actually, H. turcicus is now a North American species as well (I have a nice population living around my house and deck here in S. Texas).

ANY lizards you feed are going to be likely to cause a parasite problem-even if pre-frozen. Lizard feeding calls for fairly aggressive parasite monitoring and treatment program.
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Brad Chambers
WWW.HCU-TX.ORG

The Avalanche has already started-it is too late for the pebbles to vote....

in The Vivarium quite a few years back (in 1992) written by John Rossi, a snake veterinarian here in the U.S., and it was all about Hemidactylus turcicus as an ideal prey item for captive snakes that specialize in lizards. The article was titled The Incredible Edible Gecko: A New Food Source for Snakes, and Rossi states that "the parasite risk may be reduced...by freezing the geckos for several days before thawing them and feeding them to the snakes."

He also says that "four out of five Lampropeltis alterna hatchlings, which had refused pinkies (one of which had refused other lizards) consumed these lizards without hesitation."

The reason Rossi says they are an ideal food item for snakes in the U.S. is because they are (1) introduced, (2) very widespread and common in the southeastern U.S (sort of like a reptilian Starling), and (3) snakes seem to REALLY like them.

In the past, I've personally fed them to Bogertophis subocularis and Pantherophis guttatus without any subsequent parasitic problems. Not that these snakes wouldn't eat mice, I just wanted to vary their diet a bit. When I lived in Texas, I could stand in one spot in my parents' driveway at night and count up to 35 of these geckos on the wall by the spotlight over the garage. That these animals are widespread and prolific is an understatement. You could find their spent eggshells in the cracks and spaces behind the sheetrock in the garage all the time.

The article is worth a read.

Dusty Rhoads
Suboc.com

Hi,
thanks for the Article.
Hemidactylus turcicus is a very popular species in europe so it´s very easy to get some.
I will try to "build" a breeding stock with them for my alterna offspring.
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Greetings Malte

www.lampropeltis-alterna.de (german site)

Yup...I see tons of Uta stansburiana or common blotch lizard in the backyard. Have no idea how some people can even catch one...too quick!
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Gray-Banded Kingsnake

WOOOOOOOO...HOOOOOOOOOO! I just caught 2 today. One is a male and one is a female. I'm so excited I'll show you guys some pics later.
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Gray-Banded Kingsnake

>>WOOOOOOOO...HOOOOOOOOOO! I just caught 2 today. One is a male and one is a female. I'm so excited I'll show you guys some pics later.
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>>Gray-Banded Kingsnake

Tony,
Look into stunning them with a rubber band shot off your finger, or noosing them with fishing line slip knot on the end of a long pole.
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Herp Conservation Unlimited
Mexicana Group Directory
Photography by Joseph E. Forks

Oh, wow, I actually never thought of using a rubber band. That's an excellent idea! I caught them using a plastic jar I have them in currently. It was difficult because I arrived at my cousins house around 7pm and they were pretty much hiding at that time. They were hiding in cement cracks and I scared them out using a little twig and then I would slap the jar on top of them, but lizards are very quick. That's a very good advice Joe! Next time I won't have to try as hard as I did yesterday lol!

~Tony
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Gray-Banded Kingsnake

You used to be able to get them from commercial collectors in Texas, but most the lizards are now black listed and can no longer be bought. I used to be able to get them from a guy in Kingsville, but he no longer gets them. Its the same guy that Dan Johnson used to buy 3-5000 lizards a year from. But no mas.
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South Texas Herps

Yet another reason why the Black List is a horrible regulation and should not be supported by any "herper" or "herp group". I have said this, and other things that I have been correct about, over and over again for the past year and a half. Unfortunately many "herpers" don't listen.

Welker
El Paso

>>Yet another reason why the Black List is a horrible regulation and should not be supported by any "herper" or "herp group". I have said this, and other things that I have been correct about, over and over again for the past year and a half. Unfortunately many "herpers" don't listen.
>>
>>Welker
>>El Paso

Maybe thats because everyone has a mind of their own.
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Steve W.

>>You're right, Peromyscus are an improvement over lab mice, and there are actually domesticated strains available-I've even seen them offered in designer colors!

Thanks, Brad. Please shoot me an e-mail...I'd be interested to know how/where to acquire some.

DR

i catch these guys by the droves arround here, they breed like crazy Uta stansburiana that is. i have 6 oil leases, there all over them, feel free to come on down and catch as many (or herp) as much as you might want to, all sizes from itty bitty, to pretty darn good sized, good luck catching them, best luck i have is early in the morning, and flipping things...also have tons of whiptails, the Edwardsi seem to love em....
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To you im just the crazy snake guy, but to some I'm a 'Herper'.