Reptile & Amphibian Forums

This is quite possibly a first in the US. One of our CB Pyxis arachnoides oblonga laid an egg last night. IF it hatches, it could be the first second generation captive bred P a oblonga!!

Definitely the first shot at an F2 oblonga in the US.

Best of luck Tim!!!

WOW!! Great JOB!! Such a RARE animal indeed!! I will buy any and all babies that you will let go!! No JOKE!

Tim, You are on your way to DEFYING DESTINY of this species. Even if it doesnt hatch the first time it will happen the next or even later but the important fact is second generation offspring is all people in the near futher will have to work with and your moving forward. You will get great information in terms of stats (size, weight, fitness and servival rates) that future herpers will need. You are proof of the value of the PRIVATE SECTOR'S rights to own wildlife. A job well done my friend. Vic Morgan

Thanks Vic!!! It really is exciting to see the beginning of a new phase for these amazing animals. I am not aware of any producing P a oblonga founder animals. A very sad observation!! I am among a few that are VERY committed to keeping these amazing tortoises alive and reproducing in captivity, and in the PRIVATE SECTOR!

Hi Tim. Please allow me to add my own heartfelt congratulations to that of the others who have posted theirs here. This is a really fantastic achievement on your part, and I commend you for all the perseverance and hard work it takes to reach such a level of success.

That being said, we must not forget those people who produced the F1 CB generation, either. Will Ahrens and a few others have done a superb job keeping their WC adults alive and conditioning them into great breeders (I believe Will to be the most successful, so mentioned him by name).

Thanks Bill!! Most, if not all, of my CB P a oblonga were produced by Will Ahrens! I have learned much of my husdandry from him. We owe him the biggest congratulations!! He conquered the nearly impossible task of transitioning animals from the wild to producing in captivity. A feat much more difficult than raising the CB babies he produced! He was the first to hear of the egg!

Thanks very much for the kind words, both of you.

I think that there are 2 real challenges right now. The first is trying to get what ever founder adults that are in this country into successful breeding groups. I'm surprised/disappointed when I speak to people who have one or 2 tortoises which they have not had success with (in terms of getting offspring) who will not give them up to others who are working with larger groups. I guess I understand being attached to a "pet" but there are larger issues here.

The second challenge obviously is working with F1 Pyxis tortoises to get F2. It is FANTASTIC to see Tim's update, especially with oblonga as it restores hope for me.

Hopefully I will have similar updates soon!

A late response but... I know the feeling of trying to track down spiders. I recently acquired a nice group of founder adults and have been trying to add to the colony with no success. I hatched over 150 P.a.a from 2002 to 2008 and they ended up around the country. When I inquired with some of the owners none wanted to part with their "pets". The good news is that almost all of the cb spiders were still alive and doing well. Like Will, I parted with my breeding group in 2009 and have found that trying to start up again is very difficult. The group I have now will very likely become a dead end. Of course, with Madagascar in its current state and the fact that most biologists see CB animals as unfit for wild conditions, pyxis will probably end up relics in private collections.

They're like they're from pixie land...so tiny and precious. LOL