i got a western fence lizard!

[mr~python]

FENCE LIZARDS ROCK!!!!

i caught a western fence lizard today and i have it all set up in vanessa's old enclosure. i even have a cricket set up. i think it will be a good lizard to start off before i get an ackie.

they're awesome... i finally stepped into the world of lizards, lol, but i cant post pics because my camera is broken. i will definitley post pics when i get it fixed though. just thought i'd tell you guys.

thanks
-marshall

[daniel1983]

Male or female?? How do you have it setup? I have been researching the captive care of easterns so I might catch a few and keep them for the summer....and I want to be 100% certain that I am supplying the proper care. I have learned alot so far.....fence lizards are really popular in life-history variation studies since they are so widespread.


Also, I am thinking of catching a few gravid eastern fence lizards later in the spring, letting them lay eggs in captivity, then incubate the eggs, and release the babies. I think it would be great egg care practice and I would enjoy hatching out some fence lizards and plumping them up for their first winter.

Fence lizards are one of my favorite herps to watch in the wild. When males are defending their territory....they could care less that you are watching. Today, I sat around for about an hour just watching the dominant male chase around the smaller males. Wicked cool stuff!

[mr~python]

its a female and her temps at the basking spot is 90-95 and the cool area is 75-80. for water i picked some grass/leaves and sprayed them with water to create droplets for her to drink. shes only about 4 inches and her head is pretty small so i give her 4-5 crickets (2-3 weeks old).

i found her burried in her substrate twice already so they might like something that they can burry into.

cool stuff about that male chasin around the smaller ones. one time i was sick while i was field herpin so i made a "pillow" out of moss and layed down on a rock to look at the scenery and all of a sudden a couple fence lizards popped up that must have scared into the rocks when i walked by. i was really suprised. gotta be stealthy when you're herpin... you see more stuff.

[daniel1983]

Thats about what I have gotten on temp setup. Are you cutting the light off at night? Do you have a UVB bulb on her or just a regular lamp?

Buried in the substrate....do you have any other hiding spots?

I like having someone to talk 'fence lizards' with About how big do female westerns get?

[mr~python]

yep i do have a UV light. i do have a hollow half log and a rock with a curve in it for her to get under. i also have a piece of wood for her to climb on and bask. this is cool to talk fence lizards, lol.

[daniel1983]

From what I have been reading you could keep 1.2 in a 10 gallon aquarium....but I would think more of 1.2 in a 20 gallon....these guys love to run around. How big is vanessa's old enclosure??

I keep trying to figure out why so many people keep anoles and not fence lizards.....they are each really common....but fence lizards are cool....headbobbing maniacs!

[mr~python]

its actually huge. its 3 feet by 2 feet by a foot and a half, and mine LOVES to run around. i caught when it was cold out but i put her in the cage and she warmed up right away. next thing i know shes zoomin around the enclosure everytime i stick my hand in there to do something, lol. how do you keep your fence lizards?

[daniel1983]

When I was keeping them last summer, I had 0.2 in a 10 gallon tank. They were not adults....just about 2.5 in long or so. Those little ones would run around like crazy(don't ever let them out in the house and watch up they will run right up your arm and out of the enclosure!!) I had several branches, a regular light, fed them dusted crickets, had paper towels as substrate.....but for this year, I was thinking of doing a really naturalistic setup.....Fence lizards would make great display animals.

[mr~python]

yeah, im going with naturalistic. i didnt get anything to dust the crix because i thought it would just be a lil project but now im going to get some gut load bites and some multivitamin/calcium dust since im going to keep her permanently.

[mr~python]

Are you cutting the light off at night? ... About how big do female westerns get?

i do cut off the light at night but my room stays at about 75 because i have the small room heater for my snakes. im not sure how big female westerns get but i know that the average adult size is about 6-8 inches.

EDIT: what do you do for water? i misted some leaves a grass for her to drink droplets off of but i haven't seen her do it yet.