[Jr.Entomologist]

I just had two of my 35 mourning gecko eggs hatch, the hatch-lings were really cute and shed their skin 1 minute after hatching, i have a vivarium and every thing set up for them my only question is what food will they eat thier mouths are sooooo small?

[Elizabeth Freer]

Mourning gecko hatchlings thrive on dusted vestigial-winged Drosophila. They will also eat 1-2 wo crickets, MRP, and banana baby food.

35 eggs...wow! Are you ready for their population explosion? If not, you can always crack the eggs. The yolks and whites make very nutritious smoothies for the moms .

[Will3]

Nymphs of small roach species would also work, like Shellfordela lateralis and Nauphoeta cinerea, very easy to breed.

[Jr.Entomologist]

Thanks a lot guys!!!

[GeckoX]

In my experience with hatchling l. lugubris I find they will readily take small mealworms right from your hand. It's very fun watching them eat and interact with each other. Great species!

[MauricesExoticPets]

Another couple options are confused flour beetle larva, fruit fly larva, and spring tails.

The spring tails can and should be introduced into a planted vivarium well in advance of hatchlings being born, they will be picked off at regular intervals by the hatchlings.

The larva of fruit flies is a well recieved feeder for hatchling and adult mourning geckos alike, offer them dusted or directly from tiny cultures made out of 2oz portion cups.

Confused flour beetle larva are very tiny and are taken by adults as well as hatchlings, offer them in 1oz portion cups dusted with 10:1 calcium to vitamin and mineral powder.

Hatchlings do wery well when provided lots of available food on a twice daily basis, they are not well equipped to compete with adults for feeders so providing an excess is always my recomendation. Feeding up to three times a day will ensure optimal growth of your hatchlings and reduce or eliminate the potential for adults assaulting the young and causing tail loss or worse (mourning geckos will eat their young if no other food is available).

Adults should recover quickly from laying eggs if the feeding schedule I reccomended above is used, smaller feeders provide a larger surface area for a given volume of food intake, and when the feeders are dusted with calcium this allows a higher level of calcium intake and fast recovery of calcium reserves.

A little late I know, but your adventure with mourning geckos will be a long one should youn decide to stick with them.

Maurice Pudlo