Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I am looking for information on the care of baby emeralds. I have five new babies running around the tank with their parents. The parents are very good and watch them closely. Is there a time when they should be removed from the tank into their own? They enjoy 1/8 gut loaded crickets and seem to like to be touched. Any other advise would be helpful.

Thank You
Stano40

photos of the babies and others:
http://stano40.tripod.com/lizardsandgeckos/

http://stano40.tripod.com/lizardsandgeckos/

A search on google proved that information on young Sceloporus Malachiticus was scares at best, however general care on Sceloporus Malachiticus was very abundant. I would tend to think that removing them from the parents as soon as possible would be the way to go. While I am not particularly familiar with Sceloporus Malachiticus I do know that some Sceloporus will tend to eat the young given the chance. I have observed adult or sub adult sceloporus occidentalis eating young as well as for no apparent reason killing young cage inhabitants. I don’t ever make a practice of keeping individuals in an enclosure that differ in size more than maybe a half inch
My reptile collection and research

Thanks jasonw,

I am planning to remove them the first of the month. They have been doing very well with the parents, however my thoughts of them getting larger may prove to be hazardous. The only other thing I found was that they can be prolific to the tune of 3 months. I don't know if this is the length births or the gestation period.

I too found very little on google in the way of taking car of new borns.

any other thoughts are greatly appreciated.

stano40

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I DID seperate them right after they were born, within a day. I noticed the parents, staring at them, (maybe they were proud of their children , heheheh, ) Maybe NOT.

Anyway it was interesting to watch, the newborns would actually head bob and do pushups at their parents.

Care, I have always heard it is hard to keep them alive.

I have found that misting them is a KEY factor, plenty of water they love it and drink alot, everytime they are misted.

Also I did not heat them, I put them in a 38 gallon screen reptarium, they use every inch. My reptile room stays a comfortable 80's even though it's winter, from all the other lights going. I turn everything off at night , room temp about 69

So the only light I use for them during the day, is the UVB strip on top, which they hang on the screen right under it at times, when they are not running around else where,

I feed them 3 times a day , started with tiny crickets/dusted and now I'm up to a larger size.

You will find they are eating machines, wow awesome appetites. Good little hunters.

Thats about it, I just keep them cooler, and well hydrated and fed.

I wish ya a ton of luck with your kids !

I have seen my adults Grinch and Suess already getting lovey dovey again so in about 7 months or so I guess I will be posting baby pics again

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PHEve / Eve

Thanks eve,

Your info is helpful. Sorry I haven't responded sooner but I noticed a couple of days age my two veiled chameleons had a disagreement. The bigger guy bit the smaller guy of the face and close both of his eyes. So I had to seperate them and am taking care of the little guy. So far he's responding to treatment. I keeping him well misted with warm water and a herp supplement to keep him hydrated, today is day two. I don't want to lose my baby boy.

The emerald babies are a ball of energy and come to the glass every time I come to see them. The parents so far are doing great with them but very soon here I will be serperating them to prevent any future arguments. Have you ever tried fresh copped up veggies for them??? I know they like insects but somewhere I read that sometime they will go for veggies.

Don't quite know what I'm going to do with them yet. I know the pet shop where I bought the parents from are dying to get the babies, but I don't think they want to pay for them, that's typical.

Hi Eve, I was wondering if you could tell me what kind of lizards you have in your picture. I live near Vancouver, BC, Canada and I work in a warehouse. I found a lizard on a pallet from Vista, CA and he/she was pretty close to death I think when I found it. The lizard I found looks very close to what you have. The best I can do is describe it for now.
He/she is very fast, a good jumper and has quite the appetite. The tail is spiny, though part of it was missing when it was found but has grown back now. There are blue spots on either side of the belly under the arms. On the neck is a dark almost diamond shape. 3 tiny traingular scales or spines protrude from the back of the jaw. When he/she is colder or frightened the scales under the mouth seem to go a little grey. The pattern of the scales on the back resemble the lizards that you have pictured. Perhaps from this description it is nothing like what you have but I'm looking for anything right now. I am looking for any info on the type and care of this little "guy". I read that males of the spiny lizards have the blue spots?? I would like to provide a good environment to keep him happy and healthy for as long as possible. Thanks for any input/help you can give me. Thanks, Joel.

If it came from Vista California it's most likely a Western Fence Lizard, Sceloporus occidentalis.

I'd recommend a 15-20 gallon tank, with UV lighting and a basking spot of 95-100 degrees F. All the native Scelops I've kept haven't been big on standing water so it works best to mist them once a day so that they can drink the droplets. Gut-loaded crickets dusted with a calcium supplement like rep-cal would make the best food. They seem to get obese if mealworms make up the majority of the diet.

-Alice

Thank you for the info. I have him in a 10 gallon tank right now but I would like to get a bigger one once I can afford to. I only feed him small crickets, no dust. I am feeding him before work and once I get home from work, about 15-20 crickets a day. Is this a healthy enough diet from your experiences? He's gotten a little bit chubby. It seems that he does not drink still water. I'll try misting. I have been hoping that the crickets that drink the water have been supplying him with enough hydration. He doesn't seem to be to worried about it.I've had him for about 2 months or so now and he's still ripping around catching his meals, and hard to catch too. Thanks again for the response.

Sounds like your guy is doing well. All the Scelops I've had have really enjoyed their daily misting.

The supplementation is important because feeders (crickets etc) are typically low in calcium. Overtime to compensate for this deficiency the lizard will start using calcium from its bones. This will cause the bones to become brittle and weak. It usually first manifests itself as weakness in the jaws. Rather than getting crunched the crickets will just slip out. Metabolic bone disease (MBD) is progressive and will eventually lead to skeletal deformities and death. If caught, it can be reversed but any resulting deformities are permanent. It's easy to prevent by getting the appropriate supplement.

To properly metabolize calcium reptiles need a 2:1 ratio of calcium to phospherus. Feeders typically have plenty of phospherus, but little calcium so you want to pick out a supplement that is phospherus free (I use Rep-cal). Supplements containing phospherus are meant for herbivores. These will not correct the imbalance and it's possible for an insect eating lizard to develop MBD in spite of supplementation if they are used.

Lack of proper lighting can also lead to MBD. Along with the correct calcium to phospherus ratio. Most diurnal insetivorous lizards need vitamin D3 (the sunshine vitamin)to metabolize calcium. This vitamin is synthesized by the lizard's body when it is exposed to UV light. There are a variety of flourescents on the market for this purpose.

You can also get multi vitamins. If you gutload, I think that these are not necessary. Gut loading consists of feeding the feeders before you feed them to your lizard. Half your lizard's nutrition comes from the stomach content of its feeders. For crickets, crushed high quality dog or cat food or fish flakes work well with a slice or orange, carrot or other fresh fruit or veggie for moisture. Let the crickets gorge for at least a few hours before offering them to your lizard.

Hope this helps,
Alice