Crested gecko large paludarium tankmates

[ahouseofscales]

Hi all,
I posted another thread about housing a crested gecko with eurydactylodes, and that was mostly an offshoot of my thinking surrounding the topic of this post. I am building a large custom enclosure for my crested gecko. It will be 6 ft tall, 2 ft wide, and 2 ft deep. It will be bioactive, have heat on a thermostat, uvb, led lighting, humidity control with a fogger and fans on a humidistat, live plants, and a small water feature. It will be a paludarium but the water will not be deeper than a couple inches and will be sloped for easy climb out. The total water volume will be around 11 gallons. I want this enclosure to be as close to nature as possible and I am exploring options to put in the enclosure with her. My gecko is very calm and is not interested in anything to eat other than her pangea. I am looking for something that would ideally occupy the lower levels and water area of the tank while my gecko mostly occupies the top portion. Here are some options I was thinking of:

Frogs (darts, other semi-aquatic frogs)
Small lizards/geckos
Crustaceans (crabs)
Insects (Stick insects, mantids, beetles, butterflies, etc.)(I am aware that she may try to eat them but knowing her I don't think she will and I'm willing to take that risk)

I am mainly looking for ideas, and if you don't think anything would work at all that's fine! I just want to see the discussion. The health and well being of my gecko comes first for me so I want to make sure I consider all options and any risks associated. Thanks!

 

[acpart]

I think it's a pretty cool idea. I still think that small creatures that spend time on land could possibly end up being eaten, even if she hasn't shown interest to date. You could always do it and take your chances! It may make sense to go with something aquatic even if it means making the water a bit deeper. How about those cherry red little lobster looking creatures?

Aliza

 

[ahouseofscales]

Do you mean these? I've had them before. They're fun and they are an option. The only reason I would rule them out (and the reason I had moved away from anything full aquatic in general) is that reptile feces can mess with pH pretty heavily. It would make anything full aquatic very difficult and time consuming to keep. Semi-aquatic animals can still be affected but not nearly as much as a full aquatic species.

 

[acpart]

Yes, I did mean those. Actually if you're willing to try other species and take the risk that they will be eaten, you could also try the aquatic species and see if the crested gecko poops in the water because that may not happen unless your water part fills the whole ground area.

Aliza

 

[ahouseofscales]

I guess another reason is that I'd prefer to have an animal that uses the entire bottom, with both the land and water portion. But I will think about crays and fish too. Would stick insects/mantids be okay with a gecko (with the understanding that they might become snacks)?

 

[acpart]

Mantids is worth a try. I have a lot of house spiders in my enclosures and they do quite well.

Aliza

 

[ahouseofscales]

Okay! What about stick insects? Would frogs/amphibians pose any danger to a gecko?

 

[acpart]

I think the issue is more whether the gecko will pose any danger to the frogs and amphibians (I don't know a whole lot about frogs, but I would imagine that those large pacman frogs or tomato frogs that basically sit in a corner and gobble up anything that comes their way wouldn't be a good idea to go along with geckos).

Aliza

 

[ahouseofscales]

Hmm, I don't know. I feel like it really depends on the individual gecko. It may just be one of those 'try it and see' sort of things. I am 95% sure mine would completely ignore them (she doesn't even go for waxworms most of the time) but there is still the five percent of uncertainty.

I was reading this thread where they were discussing red eyed tree frogs and dart frogs. A lot of the discussion is similar to my thinking, especially transmission of disease between species. I assume with CBB animals the risk would be limited, especially if I got them vet checked, but it's my main concern with mixing species right now.