OK! You're not going to believe this!!!

[JaxyGirl]

For those of you who have been following my thread about my surprise baby Jackson https://www.chameleonforums.com/omg-look-what-i-found-help-dont-know-what-do-53781/ You won't believe this!! So I finally get home after running all over the place looking for some kind of food to feed my new baby Jackson's that I found yesterday. I'm running around trying to get everybody fed and I get to my female beardie's cage and she's laid eggs!!! Was I really expecting this??? No!!! There were only 5 eggs. 3 kinda look normal..2 of them are undeveloped. How did this happen you might ask??? Well when I purchased her I also purchased another female..they were about 8 weeks old when I got them both and I was told they were females. I've always kept them in their own separate tanks. Well 2 years later, now that they were adults, I decided maybe they could live together in a huge 50"x25" plastic bin.

I set them up and they seemed to be happy until I got home and found one of my females mounting the other So I separated them again..but I still wasn't sure that my female was now a male because I heard that sometimes two females that live together can get confused..so to speak.

Anyhow I did put in a laying bin just in case but my real female didn't seem interested so I figured I was mistaken about my other female being a male. This was a month ago! Well today..I guess she decided that she didn't like the laying bin and pretty much laid eggs where ever they ended up.

So I now have 3 eggs that look alright, but since I wasn't expecting them..I have no idea what to do with them, how to incubate them or even if they're fertile??? Anyone know about beardie eggs??? I would love it if you chimed in. Right now I have them in a deli container in a damp mixture of soil, pearlite and coco fiber..until I can get some vermiculite tomorrow and figure out what to do with them. It's been a strange couple of days...a lot of very strange unexpected surprises!

 

[laurie]

Your "family" is just growing by leaps and bounds. Beardie eggs are a piece of cake. If you do move them to the vermiculite put a tiny soft pencil mark on top of each egg and do not change which part is up. I always put mine on a shelf in the closet until time for them to hatch. It will take about 2 to 2 1/2 months.

Baby beardies will eat any kind of small prey from crickets to small silk worms, small horn worms etc. You don't need to worry about that yet. This time we can get ready ahead.

BTW you don't have any dogs or cats for me to worry about do you? That is just me trying for a light touch.

 

[jojackson]

Yes indeed, congrats. Any moist media at roughly 82f they will hatch in around 55-60 days give or take. Rather hardy, if they are not yellowed or sunken, they are likely good.
How big is the beardy though? 5 seems a very small clutch, are you sure you havent missed any?

 

[ataraxia]

the sunken ones have about a 50/50 chance. vermic 1:1 ratio!! weigh the container, tare it on the scales, weigh your vermic then use a spray bottle and add the same amount of water. put your eggs in and weigh again. write it down on the container. then every week check the weight and if it is a little low just spray water on just the vermic (not the eggs). wipe the lid off while your at it. CONGRATS!! hope everything goes well for you. btw i know you were not expecting but in the future when your female looks plump put her in a large tote with about 50lbs of moist play sand either pushed to one side or form a volcano in the center. when you see that it is flat shes laid!! with moist sand the eggs will take a while before they dry out. depends on if you want male or females for incubation temps. jojacksons recommendation is a good safe temp. GOOD LUCK!

 

[jojackson]

I find 82f give or take a smidgen produces a relatively even sex ratio.

 

[JaxyGirl]

Thanks everyone for your input and great advice! Well it turned out that I now have 22 eggs sitting in vermiculite at approx 82 degrees in a home made incubator. I'm not even sure they're fertile..I guess I'll find out soon enough if they start to mold or collapse. It will be interesting to see what happens??? The parents are just beautiful..pure Citrus dragons from a very reputable breeder..I just didn't realize I had a male and female...until I put them together...A Very Big Duuuhhhhh moment for me Wish me luck and I'll keep everyone posted