fischer chameleon enclosure

[Vincentuanluu]

Did I do this right and I just got my Ficsher chameleon 6 days ago so he's still exploring but do you guys think he will enjoy this or something needs to be changed?
He's in a large size reptibreeze. Using 3 bulbs and other one just for light produce no heat.
Zoo med basking spot light 150W , 13W natural light exo terra, and 26W reptile uvb 100.

 

[ChameleonUES]

Looks good! I don't think you need to change anything. However if you feel that it might be to warm, you could switch to an LED bulb instead of 13w.
But if it ain't broke, don't fix it!!

Good luck

 

[Andee]

I thought fischer's were a montane species. 150 watts sounds ridiculously hot... what are your basking temps?

 

[Vincentuanluu]

I thought fischer's were a montane species. 150 watts sounds ridiculously hot... what are your basking temps?

Hi thanks for replying guys, my basking spot temp is 90-105

 

[ChameleonUES]

That is too high for a montane. I would make sure that it doesn't reach over 90. You could raise the heat lamp a few inches to achieve that.

 

[Vincentuanluu]

That is too high for a montane. I would make sure that it doesn't reach over 90. You could raise the heat lamp a few inches to achieve that.

Would lowering the watts help? It's 150W right now, should I use 100watts to achieve it ?

 

[ChameleonUES]

You could do either. Just depends on if you have a lower wattage. I personally like to keep a higher wattage. Raise the fixture in summer and lower it in winter. So you opulent have to switch bulbs all the time. At the end of the day, as long as you have an appropriate basking temp it's fine.

 

[Andee]

Basking Temps for montanes should be no higher than 85. 90 degrees is more in the range of panthers. I only use a 60 watt on my Jackson which has the same temperature range. You will burn your chameleon very quickly at the Temps you are at.

 

[jpowell86]

Hi thanks for replying guys, my basking spot temp is 90-105

I keep my multi's in ambient temps around 68-72 degrees with the bottom of the enclosure being more in the mid 60's. I have a very weak basking spot of 80 degrees. That don't utilize the basking lamp much. I have seen them using it in the morning for about ten minutes and then that is it.

They really like cool temps. In fact, I kept them outside when the temps were getting into the 60's during the day and the nights were dropping down into the 50's. They really enjoyed that weather. They were much more active in hunting and put on good weight when introduced to those temps. That made things very clear for me as far as what they prefer.

IUCN Red List describes this species inhabiting areas ranging from 1200 feet in elevation to 2500 feet in elevation. I have read studies done in the West Usambara Mountains. They were not pertaining to this species, they were actually in regards to indigenous plants. Regardless, they were very good at documenting temps as they progressed up the mountain side. The shade temp at 1200 feet of elevation can reach 90F. So, you can use that to gauge what full sun exposure temps could be. The documented shade temps at 2500 feet of elevation were as low as 45F and the overall ambient temp not getting out of the 60's for much of the year. I also found it interesting that during their summer, the average rain temp was 52F at point of impact.

The area has two major rainy seasons as well. The first being from March-May and the second being from October-December. The mountains are overall described as moderately cool and wet. So, that is the environment I have simulated for them. In doing this, I was able to get a successful breeding and now have eggs incubating!! Glad to see another person keeping this awesome and underrated species. I hope this information helped!