Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I´m getting a chance this week to buy 1.1 Tribonolotus gracilis and would like to know as much as possible, so if there are anyone out there who are keeping them it would be nice if you could share some info about them.

Best regards
Michael Jonasson
sweden

Notes on Tribolonotus gracilis or the Red-Eyed Crocodile Skink:

I have observed and photographed them in the wild periodically over the last 15 years in the lowlands of Papua New Guinea, and I have kept a small colony of these armored lizards here in the States. In the wild, they tend to inhabit moist, almost marshy areas. Within those areas, they are found in leaf litter and especially in rotting piles of fibrous mulch from sago palms. Those piles also frequently contain the larvae of the sago beetle and I suspect that in the wild, they are an important dietary constituent. Climate-wise, they are found in areas that are upper 80's daytime and lower 70's nighttime with near-100% humidity. I have 2.3 of these guys and house them individually in a rack system. Each enclosure is a 32 qt. Sterilite Clearview container with cypress mulch substrate and a cork bark hide. Each cage also has a water dish with about 2" of water and a plastic hide filled with moist whole green sphagnum moss. They are commonly found in the moist hide and occasionally enter the water for a soak. They will eat crickets and larger ones will take pinkies, but they mostly relish any type of larvae - superworms (Zoophobas) are their daily staple and they go crazy over waxworms (bee moth larvae). Food items are supplemented with a calcium/D3 powder at most feedings. Tribolonotus are fairly easily sexed as males have greyish pads (known as 'plantar pores') on two of their rear toes. Females lack these. When restrained by predator or human, these strange lizards vocalize and wiggle from side to side in an effort to rub their spikes against the aggressor and cause release. Females have only one active ovary and one vestigial ovary, and lay only one egg at a time. If you'd like any more information on this species, please feel free to get in touch!

Best,
David

Ophidiophile Farms

Well, i have been keeping my boy for 15 months already and he is doing great!
First they need a 20l tank, well ventilated with a lid.Then you put inside the tank a large bowl of water.Regular tap water because tribs dont have problems with chlorine.Inside the large bowl of water you put a sponge, a small kitchen sponge that floats because they love to surf in the sponge on the water!lol!
Then you put a hiding place, a tube of towel paper for instance, because they love to hide.Then you put a bowl of mealworms because thats what they love to eat and thats all! Not complicated at all!I didnt put any substrate, only a decorated aquarium plastic paper for decoration.I included also some plastic plants and plastic little frogs only to make his cage more pretty!lol!

Im keeping my boy in the living room on the top of a closet, at room temp.When its not too hot ( 80-85F) i put him in his outdoors cage for half an hour, 3 times a week, in the morning because tribs do need sun light.