That Reptile Blog – Reptile, Amphibian and Exotic Pet Care and Information

While working in a large tropical bird exhibit at the Bronx Zoo some years back, I was startled to come across tiny frogs hidden among the leaf litter.  I was able to identify them as Greenhouse frogs, Eleutherodactylus planirostris (an apt name, it turns out).  These 1.4 inch-long Cuban natives have been transported around the world, hidden among plants and soil.  Their eggs are laid on land, and the tadpole stage is passed within the egg, so the frogs readily establish themselves in greenhouses and other warm, humid habitats.  It always pays to (discretely) poke around in walk-through zoo exhibits and such places – you never know.

The greenhouse frog belongs to the family Eleutherodactylidea, which contains over 800 species.  Recent research at Pennsylvania State University revealed that all types currently found in Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean arrived there by rafting on vegetation over the open seas from South America, rather than across an ancient land bridge, as was previously assumed.  Apparently, individuals of a single species landed in Mexico, and others (again, 1 species) in Central America, and then each evolved into the large number of species found in these places today.

Another world traveler, the Flowerpot snake (or Brahminy blind snake), Ramphotphlops braminus, also utilizes a unique reproductive strategy to establish new populations in far-flung habitats.  All individuals of this species are female and reproduce via parthenogenesis, so only 1 animal is needed to start a colony.  I’ve had the good fortune of running into this odd creature, as well as “banana” spiders, rattlesnakes and others, in unexpected surroundings – more on that next time.

An informative article on this frog’s history in Florida, along with a photo, is posted at:

http://nis.gsmfc.org/nis_factsheet.php?toc_id=205

So it was with great interest that I began experimenting with the whole, canned invertebrates that have recently become available. Animals that normally consume non-living foods, such as box, musk, snapping, painted and spotted turtles, sharp-ribbed and fire-bellied newts and African clawed frogs, eagerly took most foods offered. I was also able to tong-feed the insects to several species of “live food only” amphibians, including horned frogs, green frogs, leopard frogs (see photo), American bullfrogs (see photo, albino frogs pictured here), gray treefrogs, barking treefrogs, spotted salamanders and fire salamanders (see picture.)

I’m very eager to try these products on several small, insectivorous snake species which do not thrive unless supplied with caterpillars, slugs, and grasshoppers. First among these would be North America’s gorgeous smooth and rough green snakes, Opheodrys vernalis and O. aestivus, followed by the ring-necked and red-bellied snakes, Diadophis punctatus and Storeria occipitomaculata (these last 2 favor slugs, for which snails might be a good substitute).

I was especially happy to see that snails were being offered by several companies. Since childhood, I have longed to successfully keep the striking Malayan snail-eating turtle, Malayemys subtrijuga. I have had moderate success in zoos, but only when large breeding colonies of apple snails were available to feed these beautiful food specialists. Supplying enough food is difficult for hobbyists and most zoological parks, and hence this turtle is rarely bred or even kept in captivity, despite being extremely rare in the wild and in need of our help. I look forward to trying again, using canned snails, supplemented with live ones, as a basis of the diet.

I have also written about the use of canned insects in bird diets – please see my article, Feeding Insects to Pet Birds.

I have tried most of the following, and recommend you to experiment as much as possible:

Exo Terra – grasshoppers, silkworms, snails
Zoo Med – grasshoppers, caterpillars, snails
Jurrasidiet – Snails, grasshoppers

Reptiles are often thought of as “unresponsive” by those who are unfamiliar with their ways. Reptile enthusiasts, of course, know better – anyone who has kept a turtle has no doubt been impressed by the speed at which they learn to make associations (especially where food is involved!). Of the turtles, the tortoises seem particularly quick to learn new behaviors.

Aldabra tortoises kept at the Bronx Zoo, to my surprise, adopted a unique strategy to avoid losing their dinners to exhibit mates. At feeding time, each tortoise would lie down on its food tray and slowly edge backwards, eating on the way and so exposing only a tiny bit of its meal to others at any one time!

At a record weight of 240 pounds, African spurred tortoises, the world’s third largest species, seem ill suited as pets. Yet they remain popular, due partly to their engaging ways (please research their needs carefully when deciding upon a pet tortoise – most people are better off with smaller species). Three kept by a friend in a large apartment in NYC would move from room to room throughout the day, following the sun. If a closed door blocked their way, they commenced pounding upon it with their carapaces (upper shells). The racket (and damage to the door) wrought by three frustrated 50 pound tortoises soon “taught” my friend to leave their basking path unimpeded!

You can get some idea of the rewards and difficulties of life with a giant tortoise at:
http://www.tortoise.org/archives/sulcata1.html

Females of many animal species are polyandrous, meaning that they mate with several males. Often, we are learning, the sperm survives for some time inside the female, and competes with the sperm of other males. In this way, only the “fittest” sperm will prevail and fertilize the eggs, assuring vigorous offspring. Females choose mates based on a wide variety of factors, and the criterion used by Australia’s painted dragon lizards turn out to be quite unique.

In contrast to most lizards, male painted dragons have either red or yellow heads, and are chosen by females based on their head color. Research published this week (Wollongong University) has revealed that female dragons do not choose 1 color over another, but rather seek to mate with 1 male having a red head and 1 with a yellow head.It is theorized that by choosing males of both colors, the female is assuring that she is mating with more than 1 male, and not with the same male twice.

Polyandry among reptiles can result in amazing spectacles – I shall never forget the sight of a huge “breeding ball” – 9 males and 1 female- of green anacondas, Eunectes murinus, on the Venezuelan llanos. In many different animals, sperm can remain alive and able to fertilize eggs for years to come. Queen termites mate once and somehow produce fertilized eggs for up to 20 years after!

Further information concerning research with this species at Wollongong University is available at:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16254915