First vivarium build for Phelsuma

[rednafla]

Hi all,

as the title says I'm in the process of "building" my first vivarium for Phelsuma and was hoping to get some comments on it.
There is an expo coming up in mid-November where I hope to get the rest of stuff needed as well as my geckos.

First things first: I bought an Exo Terra 18x18x24 and put in a cork bark background and siliconed some tree fern panels on the sides. Then I siliconed some cork pieces to the backround and sides. The bottom layers are pretty standard: drainage, screen seperator and ABG mix. The last step was putting in the plants and springtails. Since then I've been running a ~12h light cycle and misting twice a day and keeping track of temperature and humidity readings.



So here are some of my thoughts/concerns:

Design: The most obvious part is probably the missing climbing spots. I couldn't find any good driftwood online and the pet shops around here don't have anything so I am really hoping on finding something on that expo. I have a fake vine lying around which doesn't look too bad but I wouldn't know where to put in right now. I also want to put in more plants, escpecially some trailing like wandering jew or oak leaf creeping fig. And I guess I will a little bit more substrate for the plants to dig into. I wish I had had more tree fern panels to get more area for the sides of the terrarium but I decided to just make do with what I have.

Animals: This is probably something worth going into detail a bit more. I asked earlier for what kind of geckos to put in that size of a vivarium and 'Aimless' suggested Ph. mad. mad. I really like the idea however I read on several sites that they're not much smaller than Ph. mad. grandis and I don't think the vivarium is big enough for that. If they have them at the expo I will look at their size and see but right now I'm more tending towards smaller species like Ph. laticauda.

Light: Right now I'm using a 13W and 26W generic "plant growth" fluorescent bulbs. In about a week I want to switch the 13W with a 26W Reptile UVB100. It looks okay bright to me right now, althought there isn't that much light on the bottom. I'll just monitor my plants and see what happens.

Temperature: Now we're getting to the interesting part. My room is at 80F during the day and 75 at night. In the higher part of the vivarium, close to the glass I get 85F and 75F, respectively. In the lower part, in the corner of the background the max is around 80F and the low also around 75F. I'm wondering if I should add a basking light to get a spot with 90F and also to add some overall heat during the winter. Do those come invisible so they can run during the night? What wattage would you guys suggest/are there adjustable ones? And should I get a dome or a second compact top (with 2 mountings)? I guess a dome would allow me more freedom in positioning and direction. A top would probably help contain the heat and humidity but also limit airflow. And of course then I had one more slot for additional light.

Humidity: Again, towards the top near the glass: After spraying and during the night it's between 70 and 80% but during the day it goes down to 50%. However, in the lower corner it didn't go below 75% and stayed even over 90% for a good while. I think that's a good spread, and once there's more plant growth it should be even easier to keep the humidity. I might have been spraying a bit too much though, because the top layer of my substrate never dried out, and the sphagnum is also pretty good at staying moist. So I will play around a bit with spraying durations and see what happens.

So, that's it for now. The text got a lot longer than I intended so thank you for reading. Critics and comments very welcome!

 

[rednafla]

I put in the UVB100 bulb and it seems a bit darker than before.
I'm thinking of getting a basking light to add some light, a basking spot and maybe get a light temperature increase in the terrarium as a whole. I've been looking at Exo Terra and Zoomed, because those are basically the only 2 brands I know. So other input is very welcome.
My impression is that Zoomed is overall suggested over Exo Terra and Halogen lamps are "better" (more efficient and longer lifetime) than normal ones. However, Zoomed's Repti Halogen comes with at least 50W, which I fell might be a bit much for my small terrarium and the only review on Amazon says the bulb went up in flames.
Also, Exo Terra sells a special fixture for their Halogen Basking Spot (which comes also at 25W), so I am confused now if all Halogen lamps necessarily need a special fixture or if the normal ones work, too.

 

[CrestedRick]

I have a Flukers spring loaded bamboo branch going across my tank that I'm training a pothos to grow around, I'm keeping cresteds btw.

 

[rednafla]

I have a Flukers spring loaded bamboo branch going across my tank that I'm training a pothos to grow around, I'm keeping cresteds btw.

I don't really like the look of bamboo and am trying to keep it more natural/realistic. But I can see how that makes for a convenient way to place basking spots and once the plant has grown around it the plastic might no be that obvious anymore. Do you have pictures?
Also what size is your vivarium? It seems to me pothos have very big leaves and would quickly take up all the space in mine.

 

[BryanF]

Hey OP - you've got a good eye, and that's a nice-looking setup. You've already noticed many of the things that could use some improvement, and I'll try to come up with some suggestions.

Design: Aesthetically, it looks great, but you're right - you need to provide more climbing opportunities. Right now you've got a habitat that's well suited for a small terrestrial lizard, but with a lot of unused space near the top. Try to create at the top the same amount of climbing surfaces that you've got at the bottom, and you'll be set.

I agree that bamboo is difficult to work with in a natural setup (usually looks fake), but keep in mind that Phelsuma really like bamboo. Unlike other lizards that have toepads + toe nails, Phelsuma only have the former, which means that the ideal climbing and hiding surfaces for them are smooth and free of debris/dust. You can provide lots of broad-leaved plants like the Sansevieria you already got, but that's not a bamboo-substitute. I've attached a photo of a natural bamboo stand / Phelsuma heaven, which you might try to emulate. You can find kiln-fired bamboo pieces at Michael's or other hobby/craft stores, or look in the classifieds here for the fresh green stuff.

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In addition to Sansevieria, I really like Schefflera plants growing among the bamboo. The leaves provide places for the geckos to climb and also shaded areas that allow more differences in light/temp/humidity for the geckos to choose from. Many nurseries carry both small- and large-leaved species.

Animals: I agree that P. lauticauda or a similarly sized species would be best, but admit I kinda enjoy doing the where's-waldo and having to work a little to see the animals in their cage.

Light: You're probably gonna need more. The UV bulbs produce very little light, and neither that or the plant CFL puts off much heat (which you may need more of, depending on the temps in the room). I've got a similarly sized planted enclosure that has three 23-watt daylight CFLs and either a fourth one of those (summer) or a 40-watt incandescent (winter heat). Both plants and animals are happy.

I like those mini-combo dome fixtures that Zoo-Med puts out for CFLs and incandescents, though you might wanna get a regular fluorescent fixture for the UV bulb because that'll leave you more choices in manufacturers. Also be aware that you can pick up many supplies at home depot or whatever (e.g., plant bulbs, basking bulbs, fixtures) and they'll often be of higher quality or less expensive than those that are "made for reptiles."

Temp: Yep - you want to provide a daytime temp gradient that varies from a basking spot in the low 90s to other parts of the cage in the high 70s or low 80s. Use a timer to set the photo period (12/12 is fine, though you can adjust a little to match the seasons), and don't worry about nighttime temps unless it gets cooler than the high 60s. If it does, look into getting an under-cage heat mat AND a thermostat. Also, many of us love our infrared temp guns - they make temperature monitoring much easier and precise. Amazon has plenty to choose from.

Humidity: Sounds fine - you've got a nice gradient - just keep monitoring (with a digital gauge and not one of those crappy analog things).

Hope this helps and have fun!


Edit: accidentally a word.
Also, pothos plants are good because they provide areas near the bottom for the geckos to hunt from (they wanna keep their toe-pads clean and off the substrate), and are super hardy.