Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hello. I was babysitting two N. Uro's for a friend. Two males living together. I keep many other reptiles but had never had Uro's before. Anyways he decided I could keep both the Uro's for good. I asked him to find one of them a home, and I would keep one since I wasn't comfortable housing them together or getting another set up. lol.

So now I have just the orange male for good. Currently he is in a 40 gallon tank, but will be moving to a 90 gallon in a few weeks.

What is the best substrate and amount of substrate for this size aquarium and Uro? Right now he has a few inches of play sand. Id' like to stick with this just deeper.

Secondly, I have been doing lots of reading since getting them, but haven't found much on Nigerian Uros specifically. Any good reading you can give?

thanks!

their might be something on douglas dix's page specifically on nigerians, as i think he has some info on each specie (deerfernfarms.com, there is a link to it on the uro main page)
substrate is a debatable thing with uros. alot of people use sand, others use a dirt mix that is talked about on pro-exotics others use millet seed. i use paper towels, only because helga has problems with her feet
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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 ***

Wow, the substrate question again! Better to ask than mess it up, right?

There's not really a "best" substrate as some work better for some, and not for others. I've tried a few different kinds, and found that the playsand (see note at bottom) works the best for my uros as they like it, it's easy to clean and replace, and it's cheap. Since it's loose, there's not going to be any burrowing so depth is only a couple of inches. Just stay away from the crushed walnut, calci-sand, and anything with sunflower seeds/shells.

As for reading up, Doug's pages are great. I've also put together some info that I acquired through experinece and research and it's at my site in my sig.

About the playsand, I get mine at Home Depot, but there's another sand that they have, usually right next to it, that's just labeled "sand". It's also washed and kiln dried as the play-sand, but I found that it's a bit bigger pieces, therefore, not having as much dust and is cleaner. You may want to try it if available.

hope this helps.
-Jim
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2.1 - Rocky, Runako, and RoxyIII (my care sheets)