Green tree python and Tokay gecko

Superleo98

New member
So today I went to Busch Gardens and went into the Xcursions(?) store. They have some terrariums set up.
And I was shocked to find this
image.jpgimage.jpg

I know they are both known to both be aggressive species, so you can imagine why I'm surprised. They both seem to be putting up with eachother well since they are not keeping their distance.

Thought this would be a unique to share~
 

billewicz

New member
These two species both come from Indonesia so the combination is not unrealistic. FAIR WARNING, most Indonesian snakes eat lizards for lunch, breakfast and dinner any chance they get.

I have seen this first hand with a medium snake taking down a huge Tokay, both fresh Indonesian imports that got loose in the importer's unpacking room.

Tokay are generally stressed by the presence of a snake. Raising the two together obviously can work, especially if the Green Tree is captive breed/farmed and brought up on rodents instead of a their typical wild caught fodder. I just can't suggest it.
 

Ingo

New member
Many big snakes completely ignore lizards. The San Diego Zoo kept (or still keeps?) green anacondas together with basilisks with no issues. However, with the GTP it is different. A german zoo tried the same combination a while ago and all the tokays finally got eaten.
 

billewicz

New member
An adult Anaconda is looking for large pray. I'd be like us looking for a full meal from a raisin. A young one would eat lizards for sure.

A lot of zoos use Tokay for insect control in their enclosures. They just replace them when they become food for something else.
 

Gaffeycore182

New member
Seems pretty irresponsible to me. Housing any species together (unless proven to do well together) is generally not a good thing to do. Especially when one is large enough to prey on the other. I was in a pet shop once and they were temporarily housing a baby savannah monitor with a large female ball python. The ball python started to stalk the monitor and if I hadn't noticed, I'm guessing would have eaten it. I notified a manager and he immediately took the monitor out, but didn't seem too upset about it. Outrageous.
 

billewicz

New member
Most people associate rodents as the only prey most snake will eat. The truth is many snakes eat a lot more lizards in the wild than they do rodents.
 

Tongue Flicker

New member
I feel bad for the tokay. My 5-foot vinesnake can tackle an 11-inch tokay without much struggle. Imagine that with a GTP lol
 
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