I have a Merauke, captive born. Easterns including Merauke are commonly sold wild caught, but some breeders are working on them. Merauke is the longest BTS within this family, with mine grown to about 20" more or less.

They are from parts of Indonesia and other parts of Asia where humidity is high. In light of this, an average humidity of 50-70% is fine, and bump it up for sheds. Eco earth works great, cypress is a good option too.

Large skinks like this means the more floor space you can provide, the better. A 40 gallon breeder will be quickly outgrown. Babies grow fast, so you will need to start looking for an upgrade at around 6 month of age. For my skink, I purchased a used frag tank (Deep Blue brand) for about $300 that is 4 feet long, 2 feet deep and about 20" high. These are not bearded dragons, so while height is not a concern, some height is recommended because of the safety distance between the lights and to add climbing decor. Width or depth is important because of how bulky their tail is (they like to make large U-turns). When he turns, his tail would hit the glass if the width is less than 18", which is common in aquarium 55 gallon tanks, thus I don't recommend these tanks for this species. Some keepers of this subspecies even recommends building your own enclosure or find something about 6 feet long. Again, the more space you offer, the more it will be used.

Glass tanks or tanks where visibility from the inside out is preferred. They are intelligent animals, constantly observing what is going on outside. They will explore and check things out, so adding and removing items for stimulation inside the enclosure is a plus. I use cardboard boxes that come with the canned cat food. Homer would fall asleep on top of it if the substrate is too wet after a cleaning, or sleeping under it when the substrate is to his liking. I also use river pebbles, fake grass, fake plants, extra large PVC pipes, etc. There is no limit to their curiosity.

Temps at around 95 is fine. I don't go higher than that.

UVB lighting is a hotly debated topic for BTS in general. I would recommend using them. A Reptisun 5.0 T5 HO if placed on top of a mesh lid, and Reptisun 10.0 T8 for inside the enclosure or wide gapped mesh lid (if making your own).

Supplement with D3 and multivitamin, how much depends on age. Feeding is easy. Babies should eat every other day. Adults only need to eat once or twice a week depending on size and health. They love to eat, so they will beg. You will know your lizard is not hungry by the way it picks at its meal, eating what it wants and spitting out the rest. I mix canned dog food with veggies, fruits and live worms. I like Merrick and Blue Buffalo Chicken and Garden for its ingredients.

In summary, if you have the space, and the funds, they are a great addition to have.

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