Beliefs about Humidity

[nick barta]

Humidity is a topic that is quite detailed when you consider the environments of different chameleon species. This thread is to encourage discussion and the sharing of experiences.

To get the ball rolling, here are some thought-provoking questions:

1. How can a Veiled Chameleon need high humidity when much of their natural environment is dry desert scrub brush land?

2. Do all Panthers need a set humidity level, or do locations they are collected from vary? If so, does it profit to duplicate the location humidity?

3. Montane species as Jacksons, Mellers, Quads, Montiums, Fishers, and many others are considered high-humidity need species; are there humidity variance needs in this classification of Montane?

4. I would guess that many chameleon keepers have kept different species with very low humidity levels to live long healthy lives, and to successfully breed continuing generations, if so, what were the humidity levels kept?

5. When we report humidity levels, are we averaging when a misting takes place, and the other 95% of the normal room humidity?

6. Have any keepers found a correlation between low humidity levels and difficult molts.

7. Can we come up with a list of recommended humidity levels by species?

CHEERS!

Nick

 

[nick barta]

Any responses?

 

[jajeanpierre]

Humidity is a topic that is quite detailed when you consider the environments of different chameleon species. This thread is to encourage discussion and the sharing of experiences.

To get the ball rolling, here are some thought-provoking questions:

1. How can a Veiled Chameleon need high humidity when much of their natural environment is dry desert scrub brush land?

2. Do all Panthers need a set humidity level, or do locations they are collected from vary? If so, does it profit to duplicate the location humidity?

3. Montane species as Jacksons, Mellers, Quads, Montiums, Fishers, and many others are considered high-humidity need species; are there humidity variance needs in this classification of Montane?

4. I would guess that many chameleon keepers have kept different species with very low humidity levels to live long healthy lives, and to successfully breed continuing generations, if so, what were the humidity levels kept?

5. When we report humidity levels, are we averaging when a misting takes place, and the other 95% of the normal room humidity?

6. Have any keepers found a correlation between low humidity levels and difficult molts.

7. Can we come up with a list of recommended humidity levels by species?

CHEERS!

Nick

I can't respond to the aspects of chameleon husbandry because I have not owned chameleons very long, but I have traveled extensively and lived in the tropics for over two decades.

In and around the tropics, seasons are generally divided into a wet season or a dry season. Using average yearly, even monthly, rainfall for an area doesn't tell you the whole story.

I lived for 11 years a few hundred miles from the northern range of veileds. I've traveled through much of southern Saudi Arabia. I've seen videos of wild veileds posted on YouTube and was surprised to find videos of them sitting on acacia trees along the roadside going up the escarpments. That area is quite hot and dry while being humid at the same time. The coastal plain will never get very cool at night. Except at very high altitudes, in the mountains around Abha near the Yemen border, temps never get very cold at night, certainly not as cold as most people think a desert gets at night. There might be rainfall once a year. I also saw videos of veileds in more lush surroundings, in the wadis (dried river beds). Some of those "rivers" and marshlands on the Arabian Peninsula are man made, basically run off from sewage plants.

I don't know whether they live in small little niches in their range or whether those videos of them on the barren sides of the escarpments are typical of where they will be found. Some of those videos showed some pretty impressive animals in areas I can't imagine they could survive in.

I've also lived in the Caribbean on a tiny island 27 miles long and about 5 miles wide. There is a wet season (hurricane season) and a dry season. If the forest is cut down, most islands in the Caribbean turn into a desert in no time. I think Madagascar is quickly becoming a desert due to deforestation.

I know in East Africa, the dry season is in our Northern Hemisphere winter. The beginnings of Atlantic hurricanes start off/over West Africa from June to October. I don't know when the wet/dry seasons are for other parts of Africa.

I hope others will contribute to this thread.

 

[OldChamKeeper]

I have noticed if the humidity gets below 25% my Quads have a dry shed that takes a few days to get rid of. Same with my amazon tree boas.


That said, a few little extra mistings by hand does the trick for chameleons and an over night soak works for the boas. Once a week I'll let each cham have a soak in the shower for 15 mins but thats not for a shed, that is just for some rain

While some would argue the humidity has a direct effect on their kidneys I would have to say I have not see that in my animals. I've had tree boas live in my care for over 20 years. Also with at least one Cham that has been on meds for a year next month (which is rough on their kidneys) he's still chugging along.

In the late 80's and early 90's, my Parsons were not being kept in any special humidity rooms or such. They simply had as much water as they could drink twice a day. I had to hand mist them back then so it was not much and never put them in the shower.

Overall they seem to adapt to periods of low humidity. It is the one area I tend to ignore as a primary requirement when setting one up. To me, high humidity simple means make sure they have more to drink.

 

[Carlton]

While some would argue the humidity has a direct effect on their kidneys I would have to say I have not see that in my animals. I've had tree boas live in my care for over 20 years. Also with at least one Cham that has been on meds for a year next month (which is rough on their kidneys) he's still chugging along.

In the late 80's and early 90's, my Parsons were not being kept in any special humidity rooms or such. They simply had as much water as they could drink twice a day. I had to hand mist them back then so it was not much and never put them in the shower.

Overall they seem to adapt to periods of low humidity. It is the one area I tend to ignore as a primary requirement when setting one up. To me, high humidity simple means make sure they have more to drink.

I'd agree with the ideas above. While humidity itself isn't going to affect the cham's kidneys directly, the cham's overall body hydration will. It has to make up the proper balance somehow. What gets confusing for many less experienced keepers is how "general cage humidity" and the amount the cham actually drinks combine to keep the animal hydrated. All cham species experience dry periods in the wild, but they are short...depending on which species we are talking about. Veileds and Oustaleti may be at the drier end of the spectrum but quads, deremensis may at the other. Wild chams also have the chance to seek out more humid patches, while our caged animals don't.

From what I've read, animals from naturally humid areas with lots of opportunities to get water are less efficient at conserving body moisture. They don't need to be. Their respiratory tract, digestive tract, kidneys, nasal membranes, and skin don't trap and reabsorb moisture as efficiently as those of arid climate animals (think about the heavier more protective skins of desert herps, the complex nasal passages and super kidneys of desert mammals). If your cage setup tends to be dry at some seasons the cham will need to drink more to maintain its moisture balance in some way. So, if you provide humidity the cham won't necessarily need to drink more, because it loses less moisture to dry conditions. If your chams can drink all they need to when they need to, your cage setup can get away with being drier...but you would see harder sheds, etc.