Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hi,

I am a big fan of creating a habitat for my animals that closely resembles their natural environment. I have been looking for pictures of beardeds in nature, and many of them show what appears to be red-brown clay as the natural substrate. I have also seen some pictures of beardeds in what appears to be a more temperate environment, like this:

http://bearded-dragon.org/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/centralbeardeddragon-300x225.jpg

My plan is to use random flat stones to fill the bulk of the floor space in the 75g tank I am going to use. I will try to arrange them as best possible to fill up the space, but I'm not sure how to cover the inevitable gaps. I am considering using silicon to affix a similar color of gravel in the gaps. This will prevent the small stones from being ingested, but may make cleanup difficult.

For a background I have seen large pieces of cork bark that comes in sheets. I was thinking of using silicon to affix these and create a 3d background. I have done this in other tanks with good effect, but it creates more of a woodland feel. Would a bearded ever be in this sort of an environment?

Any tips or considerations?

Inland bearded dragons do have a wide range in Australia, from semi arid scrubland to light forests. However they don't tend to live in rocky areas. But if you want to create a rock like substrate, the best to use is slate tiles. These can be cut to fit snugly on the floor and sealed with silicon sealer used in aquariums. This will make keeping the environment clean much easier. Also, a knife can be used to cut through and remove the tiles at a later date if you want to do yearly total clean ups.

There are several ways to make a natural looking 'rock' background complete with ledges etc for basking. A few people here have done it and it has been done in other forums. Checking the Enclosure forum for natural backgrounds, 3D backgrounds etc should bring samples. Using Google will help as well. From what I remember most of these backgrounds are made from foam insulation sheets glued together and covered with a naturalistic texture paint or plaster then sealed.
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PHLdyPayne

Forum Princess

I have been doing more research, and found these pictures. This picture shows a natural desert substrate as would be found in the wild:

http://ecoterrariumsupply.com/images/photo_gallery/560_desert-agama-3.jpg

And this photo here shows a setup I'd like to try and replicate...which has a similar, large-gravel substrate. This could never be ingested, but may be difficult to clean:

http://i220.photobucket.com/albums/dd247/jakemyster44/90done.jpg

Could there be any problem with using this sort of a substrate? I find it to be pleasing to look at but I'm not sure if it will be difficult for a BD to navigate this.

Thanks.

The first picture isn't a bearded dragon, though it looks alot like it. OR if its a bearded dragon it isn't an Inland Bearded dragon or Rankins. The URL of the picture says 'desert Agama' and many agamas have similar looks to bearded dragons (who are part of the Agama family).

I don't recommend using gravel as a substrate, as its very difficult to keep clean and can be ingested. Also live prey can easily hide within the gravel. The large rocks are fine if used with washed children's playsand or a non particulate substrate (ie paper towel, non stick shelf liner, slate tile etc). That and the cage in the second picture (though nice) looks far to small for what is needed for an adult bearded dragon. (min. size should be 4'x2' of floor space with height between 18-24"
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PHLdyPayne

Forum Princess

Yeah, I knew it wasn't a bearded...Just using the pics for some ideas. I have an empty 75gallon tank waiting for an inhabitant, and I want to make sure that decorations and temps are all set before moving a BD in. Thanks for all the great info, btw.

The best substrate you can use for a nauturalistic set-up is good soil. Either a mix of clean topsoil, sand, and vermaculite mixed together or locally found.

Interesting a day or 2 ago you said mulch was the best. Now dirt? Both are bad choices. BTW where are your pictures?

""Get rid of the reptile carpet, it's not a suitable substrate at all. I think cypress mulch would be suitable for your set-up. I know it's hard to get in your area though, if you'd like to pay for shipping I'll send you some for free of charge. Pro Exotics carries good cypress on their site too for those who don't have it available in their area. 2-3" of depth would be good in that tank.""

Here's my quote from a few days ago word for word. Never once did I say "best". I said ideal and heres why. Evie has a glass aquarium type cage, and cannot hold the weight of a workable depth of soil. So cypress is the next bext choice.

You're in for a real treat later when I get off work too. You'll have your pictures : )

Oh cool I can't wait. What's your plan to pirate them off of others websites?