Reptile & Amphibian Forums

so why must they be kept the same temperature in incubators? i just got my first pictus gecko eggs a couple weeks ago and found 2, possibly 3 more in the cage this morning. i am only using a rubbermaid with an under tank heater and some pill bottle tops for incubating them. one of the eggs a couple weeks ago went bad, probably from me mishandling it. please please give me some advice on egg care, incubation. thank you
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1.0 White's Tree Frog - Tony Montana ( 2004)
1.1 Mali Uromastyx - Mali and Zoltan (2002)
0.0.1 Tokay Gecko - Jeb (2001)
2.0.1 Crested Geckos - Layne and Jerry and Alice (2004
1.1 Pictus Geckos - John and Yoko (2004)
1.0 Velvet Gecko - Scott (2004)
1.0 Tarantula - Mickey (2002)
2.0 Bearded Dragons - Jude and Oswald(thought jude was a fem and name stuck) (2002)
0.0.1 Millipede - Demri ( 2000)
1.0 Mini Schnauzer - Cosmo (1998)
4 Striped Tail Scorpions (2004)
5 Desert Hairy Scorpions (2004)
Hissing and Lobster Roaches - Food

i do not know about pictus eggs, but i can tell you that with cresteds for example, a lot of breeders will use an incubator with a steady temeperature, and others will incubate at room temperature.

one benefit of an incubator of course is the fact that you have the ability to easily control the temperature, especially if you live in a cold area, the downside is that incubators can some times dry out the vermiculite or perlite so you have to be a lot more careful about watching out for the eggs.

i know several people that incubate eggs at room temperature, on a shelf, on a desk, on a book case, wherever. Houses don't tend to get too hot or too cold because most of us try to keep ourselves comfortable year around. I have heard people incubating as low as 62 to as high as 78-80, now i am not saying either way is right or wrong, i am just telling you what i have read in the past.

from what i have read eggs incubated at lower temperatures take longer to hatch out then ones with a more constant warmer temperature.

you are right that temps do fluctuate in the wild, but they don't fluctuate that much, most animals know when the appropriate time to mate and lay eggs is.

Crested eggs would definitely vary in the wild, but they're buried in soil, so they're not exposed to the extreme highs (90's) and lows (50's) of New Caledonia.

They definitely don't have to be incubated at the same temperatures, though. Anywhere from 68-82 is safe from what I know. I'm sure a degree or two lower or higher than 68-82 would be find, but I've heard that it will start to affect your hatch rates if it happens a lot.
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Anthony Caponetto
www.ACreptiles.com