Varanus99
11-27-2008, 07:59 PM
Thought I would talk a little (Ha, who believes that?) about some lizards I have kept in the past.
Most people have seen the Green Basilisks also called the Plumed Basilisk or Jesus Christ Lizard and classified as Basiliscus plumifrons.
For those who dont know these lizards have the ability to run across the surface of water for short distances. Thus the Jesus moniker. They accomplish this by using flaps of skin on their hind feet which unfold when they hit the water. These flaps increase their surface area and as long as they run like the maniacs they are they can go about 15-20' before gravity takes over and they sink. Which is not a problem since they are excellent swimmers as well.
Males are stunning animals. They have rather large crests on their head, back and tail as well as a vibrant green color sometimes with beautiful blue spots. The females lack the crests but are equally colorful. Ive seen a few specimens who seem to be leaning more towards blue than green overall body color. Mine were green with blue spots.
I wanted to try my hand with these guys as, like a lot of folks, I was really impressed by the male's appearance. Of course back in the day the only basilisks available were wild caught so I settled on a pair of WC sub adults. Babies did not come around very often.
Cut to the chase I didnt do too well with them. I do not consider these an easy species to keep. And back then I didnt have the experience that I have now. But I did my best for them. They are different than a lot of other lizards I have worked with. Unlike a monitor or skink when disturbed their instinct is not to hide. Their instinct is to take off running. They were blessed with incredible speed and thats their defense at least based on my observation. Since they are arboreal (I hate that word, lets just say they like to climb) I gave them plenty of branches with artifical foilage to provide some cover. As well as actual hiding places. Cork bark tubes mounted to the walls and some on the ground. They rarely used them. They were out a lot. And whenever I entered the room ZOOOM BAM! Right into the side of the cage. So I went ahead and covered 3 sides of the cage with paper to make them feel more secure. It helped a little but still..anything that bothered them BAM! right into the side. They just want to run and dont seem to understand why they cant just keep going.
I had them in a 4'L x 18" wide cage and this is waaaaay too small for them. Even though they arent really big lizards they need as much space as you can give them. And they are nervous, very flighty. Maybe CBB babies are better, I dont know never had any. But mine were psycho.
They fed well. I gave them insects, small rodents, sweet fruits and they even took some greens. No problems there. And they got along they never bothered each other.
My biggest problem was they kept injuring themselves as they frantically thrashed around the cage whenever I did anything. I TRIED so hard not to bother them but even something as simple as changing their water would set them off. Sometimes even if they were hiding and I crept in there BAM! there they go. Especially the male. So they damaged their faces and got mouth rot which I had to treat. Oooooh boy did they love having their mouths cleaned. The female also got a leg injury which for badly infected and she had to see a vet. The vet did his best and I worked very hard to save her. I even moved her to a "hospital cage" for a while designed very carefully to prevent further injury. But alas, she went downhill and I lost her.
I had the male for a while longer but since my goal was to breed them I needed a female. As luck would have it a reptile buddy of mine had two females. He had bought a trio and lost his male. So I happily tradded him my male for a kingsnake I wanted at the time. To be honest I had lost my patience with these guys and my buddy had a very small collection so I felt he could devout more time to them. He also had more space and a larger cage.
I highly doubt I would have them again since Im trying very hard to stick to varanids, geckos, skinks and MAYBE a couple snakes down the road. And in MHO a pair would need a cage something like 6x3x6. In that amount of space Id rather have tree monitors so my basilisk days are probably over.
They are gorgeous animals. But I would rank them as intermediate level or even advanced. Not for the novice hobbyist. Again, these are just my observations your mileage may vary.
Most people have seen the Green Basilisks also called the Plumed Basilisk or Jesus Christ Lizard and classified as Basiliscus plumifrons.
For those who dont know these lizards have the ability to run across the surface of water for short distances. Thus the Jesus moniker. They accomplish this by using flaps of skin on their hind feet which unfold when they hit the water. These flaps increase their surface area and as long as they run like the maniacs they are they can go about 15-20' before gravity takes over and they sink. Which is not a problem since they are excellent swimmers as well.
Males are stunning animals. They have rather large crests on their head, back and tail as well as a vibrant green color sometimes with beautiful blue spots. The females lack the crests but are equally colorful. Ive seen a few specimens who seem to be leaning more towards blue than green overall body color. Mine were green with blue spots.
I wanted to try my hand with these guys as, like a lot of folks, I was really impressed by the male's appearance. Of course back in the day the only basilisks available were wild caught so I settled on a pair of WC sub adults. Babies did not come around very often.
Cut to the chase I didnt do too well with them. I do not consider these an easy species to keep. And back then I didnt have the experience that I have now. But I did my best for them. They are different than a lot of other lizards I have worked with. Unlike a monitor or skink when disturbed their instinct is not to hide. Their instinct is to take off running. They were blessed with incredible speed and thats their defense at least based on my observation. Since they are arboreal (I hate that word, lets just say they like to climb) I gave them plenty of branches with artifical foilage to provide some cover. As well as actual hiding places. Cork bark tubes mounted to the walls and some on the ground. They rarely used them. They were out a lot. And whenever I entered the room ZOOOM BAM! Right into the side of the cage. So I went ahead and covered 3 sides of the cage with paper to make them feel more secure. It helped a little but still..anything that bothered them BAM! right into the side. They just want to run and dont seem to understand why they cant just keep going.
I had them in a 4'L x 18" wide cage and this is waaaaay too small for them. Even though they arent really big lizards they need as much space as you can give them. And they are nervous, very flighty. Maybe CBB babies are better, I dont know never had any. But mine were psycho.
They fed well. I gave them insects, small rodents, sweet fruits and they even took some greens. No problems there. And they got along they never bothered each other.
My biggest problem was they kept injuring themselves as they frantically thrashed around the cage whenever I did anything. I TRIED so hard not to bother them but even something as simple as changing their water would set them off. Sometimes even if they were hiding and I crept in there BAM! there they go. Especially the male. So they damaged their faces and got mouth rot which I had to treat. Oooooh boy did they love having their mouths cleaned. The female also got a leg injury which for badly infected and she had to see a vet. The vet did his best and I worked very hard to save her. I even moved her to a "hospital cage" for a while designed very carefully to prevent further injury. But alas, she went downhill and I lost her.
I had the male for a while longer but since my goal was to breed them I needed a female. As luck would have it a reptile buddy of mine had two females. He had bought a trio and lost his male. So I happily tradded him my male for a kingsnake I wanted at the time. To be honest I had lost my patience with these guys and my buddy had a very small collection so I felt he could devout more time to them. He also had more space and a larger cage.
I highly doubt I would have them again since Im trying very hard to stick to varanids, geckos, skinks and MAYBE a couple snakes down the road. And in MHO a pair would need a cage something like 6x3x6. In that amount of space Id rather have tree monitors so my basilisk days are probably over.
They are gorgeous animals. But I would rank them as intermediate level or even advanced. Not for the novice hobbyist. Again, these are just my observations your mileage may vary.