Basic Care Bulletpoints:
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Some things I've stumbled upon in my research of their natural habitat, it also helps to keep the New Caledonia weather on your phone for guidance on yearly changes of their natural habitat.
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- Diet: Omnivore, mainly a fruit diet with insects. Ideally a ready made CGD like Repashy, Pangea, Lugarti, Gecko Foody, Leaping Leachies, Black Panther (BPZ), Big Fat Geckos. Fed on a rotation of feed a day skip a day, with dusted gut loaded insects once a week (twice a week if juvenile/hatchling). Some crested geckos will prefer cgd or a mashed fresh fruit treat over insects and some will be insect crazy.
(The list below shows some other things they may eat in the wild.) - Temperature: 18°c-30°c (64°f-85°f). Their ideal temperature fluctuates lower at night and 22°c-25°c (71°f-77°f) during the day time, you don't want them to stay at the lowest 18c or highest 30c for long periods of time as too much cold or heat can effect their health.
- Humidity: Can fluctuate between 50%-80%.
- Habitat: Arboreal species. Ideal enclosure will have vines and branches/cork, and have somewhere enclosed and high up to sleep like a coconut or cave, plants & wall plants (real or artificial) will also make them feel for secure and hidden. The minimum recommended size enclosure is 30cm x 30cm x 45cm high, a 45cm cube with be more roomy, and an ideal enclosure for a full grown adult is a tank that's 45cm x 45cm x 60cm high, which a good choice for a spacious enclosure.
- Breeding Weight: It is recommended that they at least be 35g for males and 40g for females. Females must also have their calcium sacs checked before breeding to make sure they have enough calcium stored to handle egg shell production, you'll notice is a female is running low on calcium is an egg has a missing thinner layer of the area on the shells surface that she has laid. Usally when bred the female will lay 2 eggs every 40 days, but it can be irregular as they seem to do things in their own time, on occation some have been seen to only lay 1 egg in a clutch, even when not bred they will lay unfertile eggs, females should be provided with a lay box which is usually a container filled with moist spagnum moss or coco fibre, keep the lay box moist by misting and mixing nightly with a little water, but be careful not to leave it soaking wet. Unbred females can sometimes lay a rare fertile egg called a Partho Egg, it's always worth incubating an egg that has a ring in it and looks fertile as you never know if it coukd develop and hatch, if the egg starts to look discoloured, very moldy or sunken in, the chances are the embryo has stopped developing and it is no longer viable. Incubation is best done between 20°c-22°c giving the embruo inside longer to develope and becone stronger, at this tempurature they will usually hatch at between 80-90 days of incubation, sometimes longer, sometime shorter. Higher temperatures will mean a shorter incubation time, which can also mean smaller sized hatchlings or ones with under developed crests.
(Note: While I try to provide the latest accurate information available, please do some research and double check things before buying if you are new to crested geckos and their care! They are relatively easy to care for if you get their needs right. What works for some people may work differently for others, you'll come across different challenges. )
(Photo Credit: Exotic Direct)
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Places to follow the weather: