Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have got to say that it comes to me a no surprise to see people try and make an outrageous buck off these wonderful geckos. Heck, I don't even sell my hatchling ebenaui's for $100. Yet someone wants to sell their wc animals for $200 each. Since when did males become more valuable than females? Any male will breed, its not rocketscience.

This is the type of scam that makes reptile people look bad. I know of atleast two other importers that are going down the same road. I'm embarrassed once again to be a reptile collector because of greedy people. The new legislation has even been put into effect has it? I can't find anything more on them being "Appendix II" in the CITES database.

Does anyone else have some info to share? I'm all ears for those who want to help educate a little.

Cheers,
Boy

p.s. sorry for the agravation in my tone, it seriously bothers me to see this happen.

I explained in another post what exactly CITES Appendix II was and how it would affect further shipments of Uroplatus -

Yes, it is in effect now. What does this mean? Not a darn thing right now. CITES was made to monitor the trade of threatened animals, but there are different appendices that monitor on different levels. Appendix II merely means that quotas can be put on the number of animals exported, rather than a free for all. THis is absolutely necessary, in my mind. However, as of right now, there are no quotas, even though they have been put in that Appendix. This is why its so much more obvious to people who know what CITES does, that those using this as a marketing tool are out to make money. There is no shortage of Uroplatus, and there wont be unless minimal quotas are put on these animals. (Like U.allaudi, their quota is usually in the range of 10 animals per year to the US).

Honestly, I think it is great to have such an easy way to see who not to buy from.

-Leah
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www.wildeyereptiles.com

Chameleons, geckos & invertebrates

i agree that these prices are ridiculous. especially as leah said, there are no real quotas on most uroplatus species right now in the US. these people are likely just taking advantage of the shortage, because as all of us know and anyone else who has been watching for these geckos knows, they just havent been readily available the last few months. now, as leah stated in an earlier post, the shipments should be coming back in. i wouldnt doubt that a few importers have a good lookout for anything that is on the verge of becoming rarer, that way they can snatch some up while theyre still cheap(er) and sell at outrageous prices. while it makes it tougher to buy for us collectors with less money in our pockets, at least it kinda narrows down the people who would actually still consider buying some. however, i have wanted to have 1 or maybe 2 or 3 satanic colonies in the future, and that requires buying quite a few pairs. theres no way you can convince me to pay $400 a pair though. steven was selling his CB phants, which we all know are so hard to find, for less than what these people are selling their WC's for. but its all up to the seller. good luck trying to sell them at that price. most buyers, as you can see, are smarter than to get tricked like this. i guess the worst part is that it just makes it harder for them to find their way to good homes. we'll just have to wait and see, but remember it was just a week ago i got some phants at normal price (granted one died but this was all worked out with the seller). im sure you guys can keep looking at other online reptile providers, as kingsnake offers ads for many: xtremereptiles, reptile depot, lllreptile, etc. these guys have great prices and as far as i have heard, have great reputations. also, some offer mailing lists where they'll update you on their availability. so dont be discouraged by the extreme prices some people might be putting out there!

Umop_apisdn check your email. I sent you something slightly important.

I understand how the CITES system works, my main question is if it has been put on the quota yet. When I check the database on their site for Uroplatus on their CITES animals links, I just find the articles not the actual statement that they are appendix II monitored.

cheers,
boy

No quotas have been put in place, they havent even discussed it as far as I know.

-Leah
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www.wildeyereptiles.com

Chameleons, geckos & invertebrates

Last time I checked, this is a free market economy. If you can get them cheaper elsewhere, do it. If you can't, it's a fair price. I suspect you can't find them cheaper elsewhere or you wouldn't be worried about this guy.

well they can be found elsewhere, and the whole point i think he was making that its said that the free market leads to dramatic overpricing.

I have been comtemplating getting a U. phantasticus, and was wondering about prices.
As has been pointed out, Uroplatus seem hard to find right now. A pet store near me has a (presumably WC) phantasticus for $139. That seems a bit high to me, and as I'm a bit leery of this particular store's animals I don't think I'll be getting this one. Can anyone give me an idea of what phantasticus have sold for recently, i.e. before they were listed Appendix II?
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Chris

1.0.1 Coleonyx variegatus
1.0.0 Gekko vittatus
1.0.0 Eublepharis macularius
0.0.2 Rhacodactylus ciliatus

Terrestrial? Who you calling terrestrial?!!

$139 is high. The CITES resriction has not effected the price so far but some people like to use it to their advantage, most of the sellers have made no price change in the uroplatus they sell. Xtreme reptiles had Uroplatus phantasticus just a few weeks ago for $59 and Reptile Depot for slightly higher. I have no idea if they still have any available. But my advice to you is if the Phantasticus in the store you mentioned looks in good condition and healthy buy it. Paying a slight premium for an animal you can hand select and not have to ship it 3 quarters of the way across the country is worth it.
-Matt

yea, i agree. if the phantasticus in the store looks good, it might be worth buying. many times i pay around $80 for each phantasticus, and when shipping is involved that adds another $35 at least. granted you CAN get them cheaper, but if you dont have to worry about the shipping, and you can get a good look at it before you buy, it might be worth the extra $$$.

Thank you both for the advice. This particular animal has been in the store for a couple of months now. His enclosure has always been quite dry every time I've been there, despite my efforts to educate the staff there about the required humidity. Superficially the gecko looks to be in reasonable health. I guess it's pretty much a crap shoot when dealing with imported WC no matter who the seller is, but I'm not too sanguine about this one.

If I can talk them into more than their standard one week survival guarantee, I may go for it.
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Chris

1.0.1 Coleonyx variegatus
1.0.0 Gekko vittatus
1.0.0 Eublepharis macularius
0.0.2 Rhacodactylus ciliatus

Terrestrial? Who you calling terrestrial?!!

If he has been at the store for a couple of months then they must be doing something right. Most WC's die if they are not in good health in the first few weeks after they are imported. Also a week long guarantee is great. You won't find any better guarantee than that. Most places offer only a 24 guarantee.
-Matt

someone is offering CB ebenauis and phantasticus from canada at lower prices than people are offering the WC individuals. unfortunately, it only guarantees they are at least 6 months old and at that point mine were still very tiny and fragile. it would also be difficult to tell sex for sure, besides pointing out male phantasticus by the notches in their tails. one of my personal CB's made me believe it was female for about the first 6 months, then suddenly developed its hemipene. nonetheless the deal looks good for the dramatic overpricings we've all noticed recently. be sure to share with us if anyone goes after this offer!