Fimbriatus Difficulty Walking on Various Materials

[Fumbles]

I was going to add to a vivarium thread I had going but I decided this is a more general question.

I was going to buy a large piece of grapewood that is sufficient enough to supply all vertical and horizontal surfaces. However, I noticed the surface of it is rough. Fimbriatus have very strong satae and much more surface area on their feet than any other uroplatus, maybe even any other gecko. Mine get "hung up" on non-smooth surfaces as if all rough or woven surfaces were made of velcro. I can clearly see his difficulty - it's as if he has gum all over the bottom of his feet. He'll get caught on my shirt if he jumps and he'll also avoid the Exo Terra fake bendable vines, I assume, because of their very rough texture.

I'm wondering if:

-Grapewood is a good idea in the vivarium given its rough texture compared to driftwood or dracaena - would he have a tough time walking on it? Has anyone used it? He'll totally avoid it if he has any difficulty.

-Anyone has noticed the fimbriatus have extremely strong satae and surfaces such as carpet and cotton should be avoided?

 

[mcahal]

I have a home-made insert of vertically-mounted cherry and crabapple limbs. They're pretty smooth, and my fimbs use them for climbing, jumping and sleeping. I also have a lichen-covered oak branch that's s-shaped. I very rarely see them on there unless I put the feed bucket directly under it.

 

[Fumbles]

I have a home-made insert of vertically-mounted cherry and crabapple limbs. They're pretty smooth, and my fimbs use them for climbing, jumping and sleeping. I also have a lichen-covered oak branch that's s-shaped. I very rarely see them on there unless I put the feed bucket directly under it.

How do you prepare that wood before it goes into the cage? I find a lot of what I'd like to use in a terrarium is either too porous or too big to heat treat in an oven.

 

[mcahal]

I cut it green, washed it down with vinegar then sprayed it off. A few days later, we bored holes in an untreated 2x4, bolted the limbs inside them, then attached the whole thing to an untreated piece of 1"x12" lumber, about 18" long. The limbs are 47" tall. I can't just lean the limbs in my cage because they're so heavy. I'm using a screen cage ( 24x24x48 ).

 

[pakinjak]

I think it's their claws more than their setae that get hung up on things. I've noticed it on screen and soft materials.

 

[pakinjak]

Also, smooth texture is preferred by Uroplatus over rough. Always choose the smooth branches if you can.

 

[Fumbles]

Thanks Pakinjak. I've seen some pretty cool setups where people have nice thick branches in their tanks. I don't see anyone using grapewood in their uroplatus setup so I'm waiting until I find the appropriate wood. It looks like a lot of you find your own. Is there any tree species I should be looking out for in particular or can anyone recommend something? My tank is 48" tall so the regular driftwood sold at local reptile stores is way too short. Mcahal mentioned cherry and crabapple but I don't have that locally here in San Diego.

What I'd really like to avoid is adding a type of wood that will mold or introduce harmful foreign bacteria.

 

[Tamara]

Dont know wich you should pick, we used some we found ourselves but cant tell you the species. We usually put it in a bad with boiling water to kill everything in and on it. then we let it dry for a very long time. Mostly like a month or 2 and then we put it in the enclosures, if we see that it starts to mold we replace it but most of the branches we use just dont. You do have to make sure you dont use any sort of pinewood though...

Have you thought about bamboo? we keep our lineatus on bamboo and he really loves it, it never molds and you cant find smoother than that.

 

[Fumbles]

Dont know wich you should pick, we used some we found ourselves but cant tell you the species. We usually put it in a bad with boiling water to kill everything in and on it. then we let it dry for a very long time. Mostly like a month or 2 and then we put it in the enclosures, if we see that it starts to mold we replace it but most of the branches we use just dont. You do have to make sure you dont use any sort of pinewood though...

Have you thought about bamboo? we keep our lineatus on bamboo and he really loves it, it never molds and you cant find smoother than that.

I like the idea of bamboo for a lineatus - it's a perfect match. For the fimbriatus though it may not work out as great but it wouldn't hurt to have a piece in there and see how he takes to it.

I've seen various types of dracaena but it's tough to find the right kind. Some have spiny leaves and others are too bushy. I'll probably have to start hitting the nurseries to see if I can find anything, or go for a few hikes.

 

[Tamara]

Yeah, we know what you mean whit it not fitting in the fimbs habitat.
We just posted a few pics of our vivs and how they look, maybe you could take a look and get some ideas.
We think the henkelis enclosure might come a bit closer to what fimbriatus natural biotope might look like.

Greetings.

 

[pakinjak]

Sansieveria are awesome for uroplatus tanks, they give them a lot of usable climbing surface for the amount of room they take up in the tank. They're nigh well indestructible, and the animals use them just like they use branches.

As far as mold goes, anything will develop it if the conditions are right, and I mean anything. Something is staying too wet for too long if you're having a big mold problem. Personally, when I go gecko-wood hunting I look for maple, cherry, birch, beech, any smooth barked trees really. Cherry isn't really all that smooth, but I like the looks. As Tamara said, don't pick any evergreen trees because they will leak sap everywhere and make a mess.

 

[Fumbles]

Thanks for the ideas. There is a species of bush that grows outside my place that stands about 6 feet tall. Branches of that would be good but the HOA pays to spray the area with pesticide so I'll have to find it on a hike somewhere.

Does all the bark need to be removed from natural tree/bush limbs before laid out to dry?

By the way, I caught him moving around yesterday jumping from tree to tree then all the way up the glass. I've never seen this much activity out of him. I'm very pleased with the new setup even if it's bare so far.

 

[Fumbles]

Yeah, we know what you mean whit it not fitting in the fimbs habitat.
We just posted a few pics of our vivs and how they look, maybe you could take a look and get some ideas.
We think the henkelis enclosure might come a bit closer to what fimbriatus natural biotope might look like.

Greetings.

Thank you for posting those pics I saw them in the new thread you made. Yes, the Henkeli is precisely what I was going for. I may keep it backgroundless however. Do you find the Henkeli more on the background, limbs or glass? Mine has always preferred the glass but that may change with the new setup.

 

[pakinjak]

I don't do anything at all to my branches. Just expect to see weird insects if you choose that route. You certainly don't need to remove the bark.

My philosophy is this, when it comes to cage furnishing density- if I have a 24x24x48 enclosure, I am seeking to mimic 24x24x48 worth of space from their natural habitat, not necessarily see how many branches I can fit in there. This typically ends up being more bare than a lot of other keepers, but I really don't think it matters one way or the other. My way is just more functional since you can see what's going on in the tank more readily.

 

[Fumbles]

I don't do anything at all to my branches. Just expect to see weird insects if you choose that route. You certainly don't need to remove the bark.

My philosophy is this, when it comes to cage furnishing density- if I have a 24x24x48 enclosure, I am seeking to mimic 24x24x48 worth of space from their natural habitat, not necessarily see how many branches I can fit in there. This typically ends up being more bare than a lot of other keepers, but I really don't think it matters one way or the other. My way is just more functional since you can see what's going on in the tank more readily.

This is where I'm at with it. I basically trashed everything from the old tank and started completely fresh from tank to plants to substrate.

(Blinds are generally open just a bit - they're wide open for the picture)

So you don't do any kind of heat treatment to the wood? Just cut and toss it in?

 

[pakinjak]

Eh, it depends. Most of the time the branches I'm cutting are several feet long and as big around as my arm. You can't really bake that, and nothing else really will kill things inside the bark.

I'd still add a couple branches, just to maximize usable space. But the general idea is fine the way you have it, I think. I do have one male henkeli that keeps jumping into the glass front of his tank, so maybe it wouldn't hurt to cover the sides and back to keep them from doing the same. This poor guy is going to scramble his brain before it's all over.