adapting for the weather

[chrisd]

Hi Everyone !

The weather has improved recently which has given me a chance to thoroughly check the cages. I had a look at the young exiguas I was worried about and moved them into a boxfull of compost and moss in a cold outhouse where I can keep a closer eye on them. They were originally in a small coldframe on concrete and have survived the extreme weather which was a nice suprise. They were even looking healthy and fat which I didn't expect. When I last saw them in August they were thin and underfed. How they have been feeding before hibernation I've no idea. A female Trillineata has been out when the sun has been out (for about an hour each afternoon)which I will move indoors if it starts to loose weight.

I was thinking, if I bring the young exiguas out of hibernation earlier than normal in early March for example, put them in a viv indoors and breed them, then raise the young outdoors. Will this produce larger young which may survive the winter better ? Any ideas/ suggestions ? For the last few years the summers have been poor and I still hold the idea that the lizards still survive up here in York rather than flourish as cold overcast days outnumber warm sunny ones considerably. I'm hopefully going to adapt the outside cages by giving them extra heat and UV to compensate for lack of sun. I believe that I have to adapt my methods of raising them and one of them may be breeding them indoors. What do you think ?

Chris

[barb1]

Nothing much happening on this site Chris?
I think anything is worth a try if your summers are so poor, or you could try moving down south!!
That's great they survived, well done. I haven't seen a sign of mine, they must be underground.

Why not move them into the viv in February? They will need some weeks to settle, taking them into say March. You will then have an early mating and early eggs, hopefully. Surely that would give your hatchlings better chance of surviving the winter? That's the way I got some young a while back. Just make sure the females are getting plenty of calcium and don't suffer vit.A deficiency after breeding.

[robv]

Hi Guys - I popped home at lunchtime as the weather is very sunny here. Saw baby trilins, bilins, sicula and a 2 year old agilis out enjoying the sun. All of them looked fat and bright eyed and in previous years this is perfectly normal behaviour for young lizards. Considering it got down to minus 11 here in December it was actually quite reassuring to see them all looking so good.

It might be worth considering that Europe has also had some pretty atrocious weather in recent winters. I had some pictures from a friend of mine near Florence (Italy) that showed deep snow and overnight lows of about -9c! I know the temptation is to think we have it much colder in winter - we don't, it just tends to be a bit drier in Europe! If an animal is fat and healthy I would always leave them be -

Rob

[chrisd]

Hi Rob,

Thanks, it's always good to get another point of view. Unless something extreme happens then I'm not going to disturb the main body of adult lizards that are outside. I've not had a lot of success in the last few years and I thought by giving some the chance to breed artifically indoors then it may lead to some young for a change. I'm not too worried about the winters here as I can always give them extra protection as needed, it's the summers or the lack of consistant sun/ heat during the rest of the year which affects them. They are kept mainly dry as they are usually covered with glass ( propped up at an angle on top of the cage to let the sun in but the rain out). I spray inside and water the plants frequently.

Does anyone know if there is a time limit to breed the lizards once they come out of hibernation ? If so, do the times differ for when the males and females can breed ? If I breed some early then will the male be still be able or have the inclination to breed again when other females wake up later on? Or do males tend to stay loyal to a certain female as you sometimes see pairs of Lacerta's together throughout the summer ?

Hi Barb, thanks for you advice too. It's a pity that it is a bit quiet at the moment as there are still plenty of questions and advice that can be given out. Hopefully the forum will get busier as the weather warms up.

Cheers,

Chris

[barb1]

We had a few milder days last week and was amazed to see my hatchling Vivpara out sunning themselves. They looked well and survived the freeze so I am well pleased. No sign of the greens though.