Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I used them for about a year and yes they did make a difference in the color intensity of the chucks. I noticed it in less than a month under those lights. I do think that there is some benefit to using these although I am not sure if it is nec. I have bred chucks down to the third generation in captivity as I know Brian Jones has also and neither of us ever used those lights. We both use halogen floods. I stopped using the expensive lights. Just to expensive for the amount of animals I keep and they really do not seem nec. I do think however if you cannot give animals such as crotaphytus and petrosaurus access to natural sunlight these bulbs are a neccesity.

The chuck at Cal Poly had an old UV flourescent and a hot rock for the 10 or so years he was there before I took over the room. His food was always supplemented, and his body weight / physique were just what they should be. So, I agree that they probably don't "need" the MV lights. If I had 50 chucks, they would be prohibitively expensive, but since I only have two... Plus I felt a bit guilty about taking Gracie from the wild, she was bigger than what I had been hoping to find, and I wanted to make really sure that I "did right" by her.

I think the color change you were talking about in the red-backs is interesting. I've never observed any "blackening" in the male Mojave chucks. Here's a pic of one:
Just out of curiosity, how old would you say he is?

Here's a shot of his very gravid girl:
I hope Gracie grows up to look like her

Here's a pic of the two in a large critter keeper

Do you do anything to increase humidity in you cages?

-Alice

, and to keep track of humidity, humidity gauges are fairly cheep, like 5 bucks for an o.k. one that works. Like i did with leopard geckos, you could also try a humdidty area... like, a small plastic box in their cage with dried moss and spritz it or something... dunno with chucks though, but i did notice in the areas ive been before that was chuck type landscaping was that deeper into the rock crevaces they were moist, like tom said about it absorbing moisture from the ground.
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re-edited
1.1 Western redback chuckwallas(philbert & unnamed)
5 green sunfish
Striped raphale catfish
Common Plecaustomouse
3 coyfish
0.1.1-sandiego gopher snakes
1.3-coturnix quail
0.1-cockatiel( R.I.P)ironic she was named casper...
1.1(fixed) cats-eddie/buzz
Where the heck would a cali. kingsnake run off to?!?!?!

If I were to try to up the humidity with a water dish, the humidity would be up in the whole cage. In the wild, chucks don't live in humid environments 24-7, I'd be worried about respiratory problems.

As long as they're fat and happy I can deal with "dull" colors. If there is a proven option, or an easy fix, I'd be willing to give it a go. But, I don't want to do anything drastic in the cage for the next year or so and risk having Gracie go off feed.

-Alice

I never see them drink but I will put a small plastic yogurt container with a tiny piny sized hole in the bottom over a basking rock. Add about 1/2 cup of water and it will drip for several minutes, then dry from the lights.

Believe or not, I keep a pair in an outside pen from May until September in central Illinois. They get a few soaking rains but seem to tolerate it well..

John E.

I keep several succulent potted plant in with my girls. The humidity increases each time water the plants about every one to two weeks. Plants: desert rose, several Aloe plants, and a large jade plant. The soil that the plants grow inholds some of the moisture and slowly releases it over time.

I like the yogurt cup idea as well.

i don't know really much about chucks (but i like to read your forum) so this may not work. anyway i make microclimates for my collareds that don't drink water. i dampen the sand on one half of the place that they sleep and more often than not they dig into it and sleep in the moist sand all night. i have never noticed it raising the overall humidity in the cage.
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vonnie
***There is no pleasure in having nothing to do; the fun is in having lots to do and not doing it. Mary Wilson Little ***