Egg Eaters

[colinmelsom]

I am beginning to wonder whether one of my group of 1.2 klemmeri are eating eggs.I can see the eggs developing in the females but never find any eggs in the vivarium.

The eggs are fertile I am sure.I have been wondering if anyone else has encountered this,Phelsuma eating good eggs?

 

[hexentanz]

I am beginning to wonder whether one of my group of 1.2 klemmeri are eating eggs.I can see the eggs developing in the females but never find any eggs in the vivarium.

The eggs are fertile I am sure.I have been wondering if anyone else has encountered this,Phelsuma eating good eggs?

Try bumping up their calcium. I find geckos will eat perfectly good eggs if their calcium levels are too low. The other possibility is that you have two jealous females and they are eating each others eggs.

 

[daggekko]

Try bumping up their calcium. I find geckos will eat perfectly good eggs if their calcium levels are too low. The other possibility is that you have two jealous females and they are eating each others eggs.

I agree!

 

[colinmelsom]

I have a feeling that it is the second as the females have good calcium sacs,but I have never heard of this before.

 

[lodewijk]

Klemmi's are known to eat their eggs,I am sure females do, I am not sure about he males and secondly I have never found Klemmi's eggs in my terra (well planted with lots of hiding space) only from time to time I found juvi's crawling around never found the eggshels either!

 

[hexentanz]

I have a feeling that it is the second as the females have good calcium sacs,but I have never heard of this before.

A very wise person on this board once told me calcium sacs mean f**k all. The geckos health can go south either way.
It is rare they will eat each others eggs, but it does happen and not just in Phelsuma.

Which brand of calcium are you using and how often do your females lay? How old are they?

 

[colinmelsom]

I would agree that calcium sacs dont reflect the general health of a Day Gecko but they do have an effect on egg laying. You can see how they diminish through the laying season and these must either be absorbed by the female or used for egg development.

My klemmeri lay every for or five weeks ( well thats the best I can assume fro looking at the females bellies).The females are two years old and are fed banded crickets two or three times per week and fruit once a week dusted with either Repton or Calcium Plus.

 

[hexentanz]

I would agree that calcium sacs dont reflect the general health of a Day Gecko but they do have an effect on egg laying. You can see how they diminish through the laying season and these must either be absorbed by the female or used for egg development.

My klemmeri lay every for or five weeks ( well thats the best I can assume fro looking at the females bellies).The females are two years old and are fed banded crickets two or three times per week and fruit once a week dusted with either Repton or Calcium Plus.

They need a better variety of food. The fact that they are eating the eggs would suggest they are nutritionally drained. I had the same problem with a Phelsuma nigristriata, the calcium sacs looked great, but she failed to produce any good eggs for awhile and all she was doing was eating them. I put her on Supervite + Supercal HyD and added in some Soldier Fly larvae to her diet as well as two more feeders, bumping up the total of rotated feeders to 8. Not only has her activity level perked back up, but her color is now excellent!

 

[colinmelsom]

in some Soldier Fly larvae to her diet as well as two more feeders, bumping up the total of rotated feeders to 8. Not only has her activity level perked back up, but her color is now excellent!

Thats interesting I have found that none of my animals(not just Phelsuma) eat Soldier Fly larvae they just take a crunch on them and spit them out.I am not so sure that its nutrition as I have had good numbers of eggs from my other Phelsuma this year,and they are fed on the same food.

Its worth a go and I am now breeding ****roaches in good numbers so along with the odd waxworm and butterworm it will give them a more varied diet.Next Year I think I will try field sweepings as I have noticed with my Lacertids that they grow quicker on these.There is little risk from dangerous insects here in England and there are few native lizards that I dont think pararsites will be a problem.

 

[hexentanz]

Thats interesting I have found that none of my animals(not just Phelsuma) eat Soldier Fly larvae they just take a crunch on them and spit them out.I am not so sure that its nutrition as I have had good numbers of eggs from my other Phelsuma this year,and they are fed on the same food.

Its worth a go and I am now breeding ****roaches in good numbers so along with the odd waxworm and butterworm it will give them a more varied diet.Next Year I think I will try field sweepings as I have noticed with my Lacertids that they grow quicker on these.There is little risk from dangerous insects here in England and there are few native lizards that I dont think pararsites will be a problem.

Like humans, not all Phelsuma have the same dietary requirements, some need more than others and some can survive on very little (though I would not recommend this long term, if you want a long lived gecko). Like you I have other Phelsuma and the nigristriata happens to be one that really needs a strongly varied diet.