Henkeli or sikorae

[the moof]

hi,

i am quite certainly going to be getting a pair of either uroplatus henkeli or sikorae within the next few months, and i was wondering if someone would point me in the direction of a few good caresheets for them, and possibly have any advice for their care.

i notice that henkeli is not particularly common on this forum. is there a reason behind this?

regards,
*the moof*

 

[miguel camacho!]

CITES quotas for henkeli dropped to 200 for the past 2 years. that's possibly one reason fewer people have them these days, yet they are one of the easiest uroplatus to breed successfully.

care for both species is very similar, sikorae are obviously just a bit smaller. also, if you go for sikorae, check and make sure youre getting the same subspecies. U. s. sikorae have black in the back of their mouths, U. s. sameiti have pink in the back of their mouths and tend to have bright yellow eyes.

 

[the moof]

indeed, i think the features distinguishing the animals should be easy to identify. thankyou.

it does seem though, that there is more care knowledge for sikorae, which seems quite strage to me. :?

well, if it is indeed so low, i will definetly try my hardest to get a pair established effectively!

regards,
*the moof*

 

[miguel camacho!]

actually, there is just as much if not more care knowledge about henkeli, since they have been very hearty animals and bred well in the past. thing is, care for most of the common leaftails is similar, at least generally. adapt enclosure size requirements to the size of each species properly, and the husbandry otherwise can be strikingly similar....temperatures, relatively sized feeders, humidity, etc...

 

[the moof]

alright, so do i jsut use sikorae caresheets and follow them? consulting the wize people of the forum for querys of course :wink:

regards,
*the moof*

 

[Bowfinger]

There are actually different sub-species of henkeli as well, but not described as of now. They can cross, but there are some with very obvious differences, more so than even the mossy.

 

[miguel camacho!]

how do you come to this conclusion? what differences are we talking about here?

 

[Bowfinger]

There are mainland and island forms. The mainland can actually vary. I seen more of this years ago, not so sure on newer information. One of the mainland forms had traits originally used to differentiate the fimbriatus. They had pits under arm pit similar to fimbriatus, not seen in other henkeli and eye pattern was actually similar to both. Also size of some henkeli where actually larger than your average fimbriatus ( there is a "giant fimbriatus" as well, even larger).
Most of my information was not in text it was from conversations with zoo keepers and importers, plus experience with the individuals. I did take notes and pictures as well as give all dead to Bret at the San Diego Zoo, for future DNA testing but I think other interests never got that project going. I have lost most of my pictures and information since, sorry that pisses me off :x I will post the few I have in the next post with a little info if I can.

 

[Bowfinger]

This was an adult of a smaller Island form, or what was the general belief 6-7 years ago. She laid a bad egg, this was one of my first uroplatus.

These are of the "Giant henkeli" from the mainland. This is actually a male and female, not sure what one but do remember my girlfriend making a big deal how they loved each other...I did cross these with a much smaller island form similar to the one above, it was a male. They would not cross with fimbriatus though they had similar traits. I had seen others like these in coloration but never matched the size. I don't have my records but the ones in the picture if I remember corectly, 12" and close to 200g!

Anyways something to consider when getting into henkeli, there are different types, did not wan't to steal this post, sorry.

 

[the moof]

hmm, i really like the last pair's colouring. i must look into getting some of these ones! however, i would be happy simply to get hold of any uroplatus at the moment. they are WC, and should be brought over any month now. i am going to reserve a pair, and then see if they can ship to me. other than that, ill just drive the 2 hours there-and-back-again.

sorta off topic, i notice that the above gecko in the last picture is sort of missing its fringe... while i was at my lpd (local private dealer), i realized that one of her henkeli's had its fringe bent under its chin. is this a health problem, wound or just randomly natural?

regards,
*the moof*

 

[Bowfinger]

A lot of times it is health and something to look for, but these guys actually somehow tucked them back when active, or in this case not sure why. If you are getting w/c you might have to get one in need of some work, just try to get the better one or two by hand picking if possible.

 

[the moof]

unfortunately the shop is an hour away, but im sure i can do it if my dad concents to take me. i must try to hand select. what are factors to look for?

regards,
*the moof*

 

[Bowfinger]

Look at behavior, is it trying to escape or at least walk with head up. Look at base of tail, are bones showing, the tail should frill out not curl...but can curl sometimes with no problems. There is a lot to look for.

 

[the moof]

well, i will certainly look for those factors, among others in which i am personally interested.

regards,
*the moof*