New Pygmy Chams

[Dyesub Dave]

Well I got myself a couple of Pygmy Chams yesterday ... they're SOOO KOOL !!

I was told that they're Rhampholeon temporalis but I'm thinking that they look a little like Brevs. The LPS also couldn't tell if they were male and female or not. I'm defintely hoping that they are ... maybe somebody can tell by looking at the photos. I'm thinking that perhaps the one with the stripes is a male as it's a bit larger and the tail is a bit thicker and longer ... but not by much.

In the enclosure I've got a layer of small Hydroton pellets, a layer of charcoal and then some sphagnum moss and coconut fibre. I've thorwn in some small twigs and dead leaves but still want to get another plant or two and a nice piece of birtch bark.

So take a look and let me know what you think and if you can tell if they're male / female. I would love to hear any comments or suggestions that you have.

P.S. Just for size reference they're in a 20 gal.


I think that this may be the male!!

And perhaps this is a female if I'm lucky!

Their new enclosure that still needs a bit of work.

Thanks ... Dyesub Dave.

 

[Dyesub Dave]

I do have some questions on lighting for these guys as I've read varying things about it. I currently have a small 25W incandescent desk light about 3" above the enclosure. This keeps the temps at around 76-77 deg. F. throughout the day at one end of the enclosure.

I've read that they could use a small amount of UVB but not much. I've heard of people using the Repti-Glo 2.0 bulbs with them but have also read that a fluorescent bulb for tropical plants works well as it puts off a small amount of UVB plus it's good for the plants. I'm assuming that I shouldn't use the repti-glo compact fluorescent bulbs.

My plan is to get a small fluorescent desk lamp that takes the small tube bulbs and get the tropical plant bulb. Does anybody know the standard smallest size that you can get these in? I don't want to get a lamp that I'll have a difficult time finding bulbs for later on.

Again ... any thoughts or suggestions would be appreciated.

Thanks ... Dyesub Dave.

 

[tryme]

the second pic deff looks like a brev but i'm not an expert to me that looks like two different species of pygmy but i rekon it could also be male and female.

 

[FL Chams]

You have 2 Brevs

 

[Dyesub Dave]

I believe that the LPS got them both from the same supplier as they were supposed to get more but somehow that fell through. They had them labelled as Kenya Pygmy Chameleons and when I asked the exact species they told me they were the Temporalis species.

They did have them for at least a month before I purchased them so I believe that they are parasite free and eating well. I've only seen the one I think is female eat so far but I haven't been watching them constently. I'll be happy when I see the other eat so that I know they're both eating fine.

Dyesub Dave.

 

[Dyesub Dave]

You have 2 Brevs

Can you tell from the pics if they're male & female?? Also ... I paid $50 each for them. If they're Brevs is that far overpriced? Should I perhaps call the LPS and complain??

Thanks ... Dyesub Dave.

 

[tryme]

bloody hell 50 each i know its dollars but still

 

[Julirs]

Hey Dave-WC pygmies are $15 from just about everyone-heck CB are only $25! Oh-and looks like a pair to me-first one looks male, second one looks female-is her tail shorter?

How are your Veiled eggs coming along-should be hatching soon?

 

[Dyesub Dave]

Okay .... now I know for sure that they're both Brevs. I was reading on the FL Chams website on the care of Brevs and found this!

Brevicaudatus is the only species of African leaf chameleon that have a dermal lobe under their chin – this is basically several elongated scales.

On close inspection both of these chams have this. I still like them but hope that I didn't pay a fortune for something that wasn't as it was advertised.

Now just to figure out if they're male & female!! However after further reading of the caresheet I read about the dorsal crest!

The dorsal crest is more rigid / defined than with a female

The one with the stripes is definitely a male. The other more subdued brown one has bumps on it's back but they're slighly less defined. I'm hope the the colours indicate the male showing off to the female!

Dyesub Dave.

 

[Dyesub Dave]

Hey Dave-WC pygmies are $15 from just about everyone-heck CB are only $25! Oh-and looks like a pair to me-first one looks male, second one looks female-is her tail shorter?

How are your Veiled eggs coming along-should be hatching soon?

Hey Julie,

Remember I'm in Canada so these things are generally a bit more expensive here. I should price some out and see if I paid WAAAY too much. I'd hate to bring them back now ... especially if they're M/F. Maybe I could just get a slight credit back from the LPS.

The cham eggs are getting large but no sweating from them yet. I'm hoping to see something within the next month. All 26 still seem fine however some are still white and some are kind of an amber-clearish colour. I'm not sure what that means. My other female also laid 59 eggs of which 2 were crused and fungused shortly afterwards. They new eggs seem so small compared to the ones that are about to hatch.

Didn't you have some cham eggs around the same time too? If so how are yours doing?

Dyesub Dave.

 

[Julirs]

I remembered the Canada part after I wrote that!
I just now checked my Veiled eggs which will be 6 months in incubation April 19th! They look great-nearly all 70 of them that are left-actually only one looks strangely solid-the others you can see veining -- causing them to be somewhat pinkish when you shine the flashlight on them.

 

[Dyesub Dave]

Yeah I held one of the amber-clearish ones up to the window and could definitely see something inside. I wonder if the white ones are just taking a bit longer to develop as they're growing as large as the others.

Do you have pygmy chams Julie? And if so can you tell if mine are male & female from the photos??

Dyesub Dave.

 

[Dyesub Dave]

WOW ... I just found an online reptile place here in Ontario, Canada that's selling Brev. Pygmy Chams for $89 each!! Maybe my price wasn't so bad after all !! LOL

Dyesub Dave.

 

[Julirs]

Hey Dave-WC pygmies are $15 from just about everyone-heck CB are only $25! Oh-and looks like a pair to me-first one looks male, second one looks female-is her tail shorter?

How are your Veiled eggs coming along-should be hatching soon?

I think I added the part about male and female after you read it! I have been keeping Pygmies (Brevs) for about 10 months now. My first clutch of eggs was weak and none of the babies came out of the eggs. I have 2 new females that I am hoping my male will start working on! Here is a pic that shows the difference between males and females...the one on my husbands thumb is a male and the other one is female.

 

[Will Hayward]

Both are Brevicadautus. Can't sex from those photos though.
$50 is within the Average retail price of them in Canada.

They look good.

 

[Dyesub Dave]

Hey Thanks Julie. Well the brown one's tail is slightly shorter but not by much. So I guess either I have a male / female or 2 males. They may perhaps have a bit of maturing to do as well. Time will tell.

Every time I saw them in the LPS they were both brown. Not until this morning in their new home did I see one have the stripes. Also the one with the stripes is a bit larger than the other. If they're both males I hope I can find someone nearby to trade with or buy some females from.

Dyesub Dave.

 

[Dyesub Dave]

Both are Brevicadautus. Can't sex from those photos though.
$50 is within the Average retail price of them in Canada.

They look good.

Thanks Will. At least I know I didn't get ripped off. That's why I like buying from breeders instead of LPS. However I don't see many types of chams for sale here in London, ON. I've wanted to get some of these for quite some time now and have never found them locally.

I'll try and get some more pics later on that may be able to identify the sexes better. Do the females usually display the patterns/colours as in the first photo?

Dyesub Dave.

 

[Dyesub Dave]

I do have some questions on lighting for these guys as I've read varying things about it. I currently have a small 25W incandescent desk light about 3" above the enclosure. This keeps the temps at around 76-77 deg. F. throughout the day at one end of the enclosure.

I've read that they could use a small amount of UVB but not much. I've heard of people using the Repti-Glo 2.0 bulbs with them but have also read that a fluorescent bulb for tropical plants works well as it puts off a small amount of UVB plus it's good for the plants. I'm assuming that I shouldn't use the repti-glo compact fluorescent bulbs.

My plan is to get a small fluorescent desk lamp that takes the small tube bulbs and get the tropical plant bulb. Does anybody know the standard smallest size that you can get these in? I don't want to get a lamp that I'll have a difficult time finding bulbs for later on.

Again ... any thoughts or suggestions would be appreciated.

Does anybody have any suggestions on the lighting?

Thanks ... Dyesub Dave.

 

[Julirs]

I use a Zoomed reptisun 2.0. You can see my enclosure and how I put it together on my website listed in my signature here!

 

[Dyesub Dave]

Hey Julie,

I like your website. Very clean and easy to navigate. Nice pics too!!

Here's some better pics of the brown Brev. Maybe somebody can sex it from these!!

Dyesub Dave.