|
I have had very good luck keeping these guys in the low 80Fs (higher
temps kill them) on a sand (30%) and spaghnum peat moss (70%) mix. I
keep mine in shoeboxes with small holes drilled in the sides for
ventilation. They really like to hide in small leaves, so make sure you
have some curling small leaves in there. During the day they will sleep in there.
Put in a few taller spots so they can get up and do their "tail wave" display
at night when they are active..they also do this to their cricket "victims". I
currently have 1.3 in one shoebox.
Food for adults: they like 2 week old crickets. I mist the sides of the
shoebox at feeding time (3x weekly). They will lay quite a large # of
delicate hard-shelled eggs. You will need to, on a regular basis, gently
go through and dig them out. If you don't the young will hatch out and
frequently get their tails snapped off by the parents. Incubate them in
moist vermiculite, positioning the eggs close to the surface of the
incubation medium. When the babies hatch you will find a shell broken on
the top. Otherwise, they blend in and you may miss them. I incubate at
80F and have produced mostly males. I do not know if they are TDSD
(temperature dependent sex-determined).
The only problems I have had with their young have been that if they are
left too long without food or moisture, let's say in the case of hatching out
with the adults, they don't last too long. I can't remember a single
hatchling that did not thrive if I got to it right away. The hatchlings will readily
take pinhead crickets 2-3 days after hatching. I keep mine in small deli cups
where it is easy to keep them hydrated (always the problem of the small
hatchling), see how much they are eating, and also to keep things clean
(throw it away when it gets dirty). To transfer a hatchling, get a
short strip of paper towel and scoop them up. They will cling to it and
you can move them before they make other plans! ;-)
They grow like little weeds! They reach adult size in about six months.
For more information or starter cultures, contact:
|
