Brevi eggs

[jleahl]

I'm sure some people read my story on ks..but here's a synopsis: the "male" brevicaudata I'd had less than a week laid an egg. Showed no signs of laying another after four days, so I moved her to a drier tank (the one she was in was being misted a bit too much). She ate fine, drank, seemed OK, but suddenly died two weeks later. I did a post-mortem and discovered she was eggbound.

I put the original egg in a gladware box w/vermiculite when I moved "Leafy" to her new home. After I removed the unlaid egg from her body, I put it in there also. So, now, a month after the first egg started incubating, it looks bigger(?), but the second egg looks the same size or smaller. The first egg is white but with brown spots (I think from the leaf litter it was laid in); the second egg is very yellow and waxy looking. Neither has mold on it. Of course, no one knows if either of them is fertile. Does this sound like either of them is OK? Should I give up on the second egg? And was it partly my fault she died, since I didn't provide a laying area in the temp tank I had her in?

 

[Heika]

Hi...

I keep r. brevs. In my limited experience, the waxy, yellow eggs don't develop. I leave the few that I get until they mold, because I don't trust myself to know the difference yet. It sounds like the other one is probably fertile.

I don't know what your setup is like.. it sounds like you had leaf litter in the tank. I don't read over at KS. I am a little surprised about an r. brev being egg bound, although I suppose I shouldn't be. Mine lay all the time with no problems. Did you have soil/leaf litter in both of the tanks?

Heika

 

[FL Chams]

I'd leave them alone unless they mold I've seen chameleons hatch out of eggs you would have never thought would have hatched. I just took a photo of 98 GOOD eggs and a few bad so you could see the difference. The bottom left corner is a bad Spectrum Egg and the third row over from the right is a bad yellow egg. I removed them this morning. Unless it molds I'd just keep it in there. I've also seen dehydrated eggs bounce back as well.

Good Luck!

 

[jleahl]

Thanks for helping! Yes, I had leaf litter in the tank. I had her in a five gal aquarium w/screen top to start, with some coconut husk fiber and crunched up leaves, a few rocks, some sticks and branches and one live plant. I was in the process of setting up a 10g for her permanant home. The second temp container was actually a large critter keeper with the same contents, but I didn't let my son mist it quite as much, so it wasn't as wet. I didn't have any particularly damp spots for her to lay...I didn't think she'd be ready with another egg so soon!

I guess I'll leave both eggs until they mold/hatch and see what happens!

 

[jleahl]

After checking on the eggs yesterday, the yellow one is almost black now...it almost looks like it's shrinking, although there's as much moisture in the container as there was. The other egg is still pretty white and big and fat. I found a nasty little cave cricket (tiny baby) in the container yesterday...I guess the egg was in the vermiculite, which I had in the garage. I think I'll check more often for several days to make sure there aren't any more little crix. I'm tempted to get rid of the black egg, although I can't see any mold.

 

[roo_71]

That egg sounds pretty gone. I would toss it. Also, if eggs grow in size then they are most likely fertile.

I haven’t really run into any egg binding problems, females will lay eggs wherever. I’ve had them lay eggs during shipping and I’ve heard of others having this happen too. Older females can just drop fertile eggs right on the ground.

So I wouldn’t necessarily blame yourself for not having suitable substrate for egg laying. However that could have been the problem but I doubt it.

Good luck.

-roo

 

[jleahl]

Thanks, Roo! That does make me feel a little better. The guy at the store feels bad about the cham, and he's trying to find me another one. He gave the breeder down the road, too, and mis-sexing her. I think I'll pitch the black egg and see what happens with the other...