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The Cold Blooded NewsThe Newsletter of the Colorado Herpetological SocietyVolume 28, Number 2; February, 2001 |
Often considered to be one of the most spectacular lizard species, sometimes called the "Jesus lizard", the green basilisk is a striking addition to any reptile collection. They are however a fairly difficult species to care for to most people.
Nearly all lizard species can be described as nervous, and these are in the top section of that list. Most do not respond well to handling, stressing badly. They require space, larger amounts of water for their size, and lots of hiding and climbing places in their habitat.
They may be found wild in the tropical areas of Mexico and Central and South America. The males grow to lengths of up to 3 feet, mostly tail, and upon attaining maturity sport raised dorsal and caudal fins. Males are also highly territorial. Females are smaller, and lack the ornamental fins of the males.
They are arboreal (tree dwelling) and are always found near ready supplies of water. They will often drop from the branches when frightened, into the pools and scurry off to safety. Specialized scales on the bottoms of their feet allow them to run across a fair distance of water before actually breaking the surface tension of the water, at which point they swim hurriedly away. Green basilisks are excellent swimmers and have been known to remain submerged for up to 30 minutes. They are also swift runners, capable of attaining speeds of nearly 7 miles per hour.
While large glass aquariums can be used, these animals tend to do much better when housed in taller and wider habitats. Built in water fall/pool systems are very effective, also, as are fake rock walls and large sturdy branches for climbing, and fake or safe live plants which may be hung and or planted in "trough" areas where the animals may hide or climb among them. A number of people keep three females to one male per habitat with great success. However a note of caution here, while it seems to be ok to keep brown females with green males, they will not breed, and it is strongly advised NOT to keep both brown and green females with a green male, because this seems to encourage the male to kill the brown females, even if he may have gotten along with them fine before green females came into the picture.
Living plants recommended for use with this species include: Pothos, Dracena, and Philodendron.
Their habitat's temperature should be maintained in the mid 70's to the 80's, with a humidity of 60-70%. Daily misting, automated mist systems, water falls, and heated pools are all good sources of humidity.
UVB lighting is required in order for them to synthesize vitamin D3 to utilize their calcium. A basking site is recommended as well, a ceramic heating bulb is recommended, though care should be taken to insure that the lizards can not actually get against the element. Placing this above a shelf type area where the animals can lie under it is good.
These are carnivorous (meat eating) lizards, and normally eat a variety of insects: crickets, mealworms, zoophobia, wax worms, grasshoppers (be sure they can not have gotten into poisonous sprays), spiders (preferably more harmless types), and an occasional pinkie mouse. Note that some basilisks, as a matter of personal feelings may not accept the pinkie mice.
Dusting their food with a finely powdered calcium supplement once a week is also advised.
Successful breeding of this species can be a bit tricky. Both animals must be in good health, with ample fat stores in their tails. The photo period should be 12 hours of light and 12 hours of dark, temperatures should be maintained in the upper 80's, and the humidity should be slightly lower than normal.
For best results in breeding it is recommended that the males and females be separated prior to breeding time for a couple of weeks, and then with the other environmental factors being ready for both of them, that the females slowly be reintroduced to the males and housed together until breeding time. At this point, if the male shows interest in her by head bobbing and inching closer to her, and the female lowers her head and raises her tail, they are ready. The male's next step will be to seize her by the flap of skin on the back of her head. Copulation lasts from 10-20 minutes.
Multiple successful copulations increase the chances of fertile eggs being lain by the female. Gravid females become plump 1-2 weeks after breeding, and during the 3rd week normally begin looking for a site to lay the eggs. Ahead of this time you should prepare a mixture of moist peat moss, soil, and sand, and place it in a secluded spot in the habitat. The female will burrow to lay her eggs, and lay between 15-17 eggs. The size of the clutch depends mostly upon the age, size, and health of the female. Many times they will lay multiple clutches during a breeding season; 4-5 clutches per season have been seen.
Once all the eggs have been laid, they should be carefully removed from the habitat, and the upper sides carefully marked with pencil in order to insure that their original orientation is kept, then they should be transferred to a circulated air incubator and placed in a mixture of water and vermiculite (1;1 by weight). They should be buried approximately 2/3 deep, with their tops partially visible. A thin layer of sphagnum moss may be added over their tops to increase humidity, and the temperature should be maintained at around 84°F with a high humidity, particularly for the first month.
They should hatch at around 8-10 weeks over a 1-2 day period. The hatchlings should be left in the incubator until they have fully absorbed their yolk sac, at which point they may be moved to a separate tank similar in set up to that of their parents, and they should be fed 1-2 week old crickets and wax worms.
They will reach sexual maturity in 18-24 months. At 4½ - 5 weeks the males should all be separated, however, in order to prevent them from damaging each other fighting. The growing juveniles require more calcium than the adults, and their food should be dusted with the calcium powder 3 times a week. They must ALWAYS have a clean fresh water supply as well.
Because basilisks have trouble seeing glass and wire barriers, younger and wild caught specimens are more prone to damaging themselves by running into them. Using strips of masking tape on glass, or ribbon woven through the wire at different levels can help prevent this problem.
This species may live 10-15 years in captivity, IF their stress level is not too high.
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