N. amyae...colony keeping??

[Stickytoe]

Hi everyone,

does anyone have experience keeping Rough Knobtails in colonies (multiple pairs)?

I have only kept pairs together, but I'd like to set-up some large, naturalistic vivariums.

Is it possible to keep multiple pairs in a large vivarium, or is it best to keep them in harem groups (one male with several females)?

Is male to male aggression a big problem in this species in large enclosures?

Thanks,

Nicole Chaney

 

[Strophurus]

hello, well i would not prefer that, i think you can not create such a big vivarium ( or tell us how big ) to make sure that they can live together in harmony, the bigger problems would be the males. i just can say keep better pairs or some females togehter, but never 2 males, i do keep them all seperate also the males from the females, just put them together only for breeding, i also raise up the youngs in single tanks, so you can make sure everything is going good ( feeding and health condition, you have a better control ).
of course the character of some males could be ok for living together, but you are not all the time there to seperate them, also some problems of the stress they will have, can make problems for their normal life circle, and the less stronger animal will get some problems ( not feeding, losing weight, mostly hiding and so on ).

the only reason i would keep two males together for a short time ( but only with observating them all the time ) is, when one of the males is not interested in a female so two males can make that reason better sometimes, but after that i take the 2nd male out again.

of course a keeping in natural vivs is to prefer ( more to their nature of course ), and the most who keep Amyae don´t keep them like that, and there is no reason for you, not keeping them in natural vivs, if you have the possibility, but the secure way is not to keep two males in the same enclosure.
maybe some members here have other thinking about it, but i think seperate the males from each other.
regards stefan

 

[jgjulander]

As long as you are willing to lose animals to fights, competition, stress, and other factors, then you should have no problem. The bigger the groups, the more complecated it gets. On the other hand, it would be really interesting to see what happens. I remember an article in a past Vivarium that talked about a self sustaining leopard gecko set up where they could breed, lay eggs, the eggs could hatch, etc. I thought it sounded really cool, and an amyae colony like that would be awesome. I would think if you started out with juveniles, you would have a good chance of having them get along. I would definately steer clear of putting a bunch of adults together in a tank, though. If you do decide to do it, make sure you post plenty of pictures and observations.
Justin

 

[Derek]

I wouldn't house amyae in groups or in too large of an enclosure. They seem to be very solitary animals that are easily aggravated. In my opinion, it would make it difficult to monitor individual animals, create an unnecessary amount of stress, and it would be a pain to look for eggs. I think you would definately see a decline in egg production if they were housed in groups. I thought Justin's quote was pretty funny but accurate:

"As long as you are willing to lose animals to fights, competition, stress, and other factors, then you should have no problem."

Derek

 

[Stickytoe]

Yeah, that's what I figured...just wondering if anyone had attempted it before. It's always nice to hear about alternatives to the norm...

Right now my N. amyae are all housed singly, and during the breeding season I keep pairs together in larger enclosures.