BTW, you should read smartass' (miguel camacho!'s) caresheet on the subject, its about ten times longer than what I just wrote and ya might learn something...:fight:
:coverlaugh:
well, i gotta admit...i was a bit short with my reply, though these used to be the forums where calling someone a smartass definitely wouldnt fly...at least when i was moderating it.
but im gonna step back from my ego for a second.
here it is put in the plain-and-simple truth.
at 16 years old, as much as you may admire uroplatus, you
most likely arent ready for them. if you dont even know how much you might need for uroplatus, it says to me you havent been looking around for long. true, they arent all over the classifieds like they used to be, but there are many threads that cover the topic, though if memory serves me right, they are biased towards phantasticus prices (my former specialty).
but as someone already suggested...you get what you pay for. for captive bred, you're looking at spending $200+ these days...and they arent very easy to find. low supply, high demand.
for what i know (i havent been on top of my uroplatus game as much as i used to in the past year), heres the breakdown of what you could expect for prices, CB:
(all in USD, per animal)
fimbriatus: $150-200
henkeli: ~$200
phantasticus: $200-300
ebenaui: $150-200
guentheri: $200-400
lineatus: $150-200
pietschmanni: good luck :rofl:
sikorae (regardless of subspecies): $150-200
other species: dont get your hopes up of even finding them WC
in all likelihood, if you're adamant about buying your first as CB, henkeli and guentheri are your likeliest finds here in the US. havent seen guentheri offered in a while, but i havent been looking at the market for quite some time. they are both very hardy. i strongly recommend avoiding the smaller species until you have experience.
another thing, and believe me, im being realistic, im not picking on you for your age, but 16 is a bit early to get started in this genus. most species do not tolerate any level of neglect and end up being a big mistake for most first-timers. you cant throw in crickets and leave them to fend for themselves for a week of vacation. in roughly 2 years, you might be looking forward to college (hopefully you are if you really consider yourself a herpetologist), in which case you should know that 99% of dorms do not allow any pets other than fish. and excuse me if you plan to live off-campus your first years of college.
i just hate it when people decide one day they want the geckos and either kill them off fairly shortly and give up on them, or decide to sell them off a few months after getting them. i hope this doesnt sound hypocritical from my standpoint, since i did have to get rid of a fairly big collection of uroplatus a little over a year ago, but that was a decision i didnt want to make, that was absolutely necessary.
but anyway...i do apologize for my first reply to your query. but i honestly look at newcomers asking for outlets for uroplatus as people making nubile mistakes. if you want to find them for sale, look at the various classifieds on the internet. and to be honest, if money is an issue, perhaps uroplatus arent your best bet (believe me, i started with a pair of satanics when they were $50-$75 a pop, and ended up dumping thousands into them and others over the years as my interest blossomed). they are costly, require a lot of maintenance, and i personally believe that CB uroplatus deserve to fall into the right hands rather the well-meaning newcomer who may not even have interest in breeding them. i admit, it's a self-centered point-of-view believing that the good animals should fall into the hands of a few, but as you gain experience with uroplatus you'll see the number that come in and die, those with a real passion for the genus, and the ongoing frustration with suppliers and the market in general.
just my $13.02.
oh...and i definitely know the 16 year old smartass attitude...i used to manage a 16 year old that was smart as hell when it came to herps, but he often let his big head get in the way of things. patience, grasshopper.
