Hi! We have welcomed an adorable little Anole named Moonstone from my son's fourth grade classroom. Now as much as we love to have this cutie, we are first timers and I am one stressed out momma where her habitat is concerned. I want to make sure she doesn't get too cold or stressed. I have read lots of stuff that seems to conflict, and could use some help! LIGHTING/HEATING: We have a 10 gallon terrarium. We initially tried to use the light that came with the kit. (It was a 50 Watt) And we couldn't get the temp guage to budge from 60 degrees. So the lady at the store told us that probably the most we could up it was to 75 watts. The temp gauge is sitting right around 68-70 at the moment, but from what I have read her daytime temp should be around 80? IS that correct???? We are already using the 75 watt bulb, and they told us that we shouldn't use two lamps, becuase she will get too hot. SO, I need help, what do we do, to make sure that the temp gets warm enough, and we can maintain a good range of heat for her? Should we change to a different lid? (currently it's a screen.) Should we partially cover it? How warm is TOO warm? I have read so many conflicting care sheets! HELP!!! And thanks in advance for any advice!!!!! Dina
Hello Dina, welcome to the boards = ) First - I invite you to read our anole caresheet. There is a lot of conflicting information on the internet, but our caresheet is pretty up-to-date and will make for a good reference point. http://reptileboards.com/threads/anole-care-guide.65275/ Second - What kind of thermometer are you using to measure the temperature? Make sure it is a digital thermometer with a probe or a tempgun. Some of the aquarium thermometers and "stick on" plastic anaolog thermometers can be very inaccurate and may not be properly presenting the actual temperatures. Third - What kind of lightbulb are you using? Do you have a UVB producing bulb? You want to create a what is called a thermogradient within the enclosure. Being cold-blooded ectotherms, lizards require external sources to maintain their appropriate body temperature. You want to set the light up on one end of the enclosure and the temperature immediately above the surface of the object the light is shining on should read abour 90 degrees F. Here is the section on temperature and lighting from the caresheet linked above: "The temperature directly below your lamp should be around 90°F, with an ambient temperature of about 75-80°F. At night, temperatures may be dropped to around 65-70°F. If you find the night time temperature is dropping lower than 65°, an under tank heater or ceramic heat emitter may be necessary for overnight use. In order to get accurate temperature readings, make sure you are using digital thermometers with probes or temp guns as opposed to stick on, mercury, or gauge type thermometers. For daytime light, you will also need a fluorescent UVB bulb. Anoles need UVB in order to produce Vitamin D3, which is required for the absorption of calcium. Make sure you are using a long tube fluorescent light that specifically states it produces UVB. Bulbs marketed as “day light” or “full spectrum” are not the same thing. Make sure you provide your anole with a regular day/night light schedule. You can pick up a timer at a hardware store for relatively cheap to turn your lights on and off, and you'll want to leave them on for about 12-14 hours a day. " I'll be better able to address your other questions once you answer a couple of mine ; ) The temperature dilemma may be thermometer related, or the type of bulb you are using may not be proper for providing heat. Once I know a little more about the setup we can make deductions and work toward a solution.
It is an analog thermometer. We will upgrade to a decent thermometer. THe room temp is probably around 70 degrees. We had a couple lights on it, and left for a bit, (couple hours...) by the time we got back the thermometer was reading about 70 degrees, but the humidity had dropped to 40% (from 75% when we walked out the door.) So I am assuming this is WAYYYYY too hot. Since I don't have a great thermometer....if the room temp is around 70 degrees F, and we have a 60 watt bulb (the 75 watt was not correct...sorry.) should we be ok? We were using lights that were not UVB. That I will correct tomorrow. So for tonight, it's a 50 watt "Zilla" bulb. Black light. I am totally panicked cause the little guy went from bright green when we brought her home to brown all over! In only four hours I feel like I totally stressed her out. Should I be really worried I am gonna kill her? Should she be ok till tomorrow? Thanks, Dina
Anole is happy and green as can be! We went down to one light. Switched back over to day time this morning. Crickets have dissappeared...she must have had a meal. Feelin good I think! We will switch to the good thermometer, and make sure to get the UVB lights. Thanks for all your advice. She survived through the night...so now I am not panicked anymore. Thanks!
