Too much water in vermiculite?

[karebear41486]

Hey everyone,

Just had a few questions that I couldn't find the answers to from previous threads. First of all, is it possible (I'm sure it is) to have too much water in the vermiculite while incubating eggs? My first clutch is 5 months old and have been growing nicely so far. I have them in a homemade incubator that I've used before for bearded dragons--it's simply a cooler with an inch or two of water in the bottom with a fish tank heater warming the water. The eggs are then elevated so that the container they are in is not touching the water and they stay at about 75-76 degrees. They were diapaused with the first 2 months staying at low to mid 60's and I have seen veins in them. The only thing that worries me is that the first time I candled them, they all were pretty white on the inside, with only a few appearing very yellow inside. I assumed that these were just duds, as there were not very many of them--but now as I re-candled them today, more of them seem yellow inside. Does this mean that they have died? Could they be getting too moist--what would overly moist vermiculite do to eggs--can it actually drowned the embryo? Of course I wouldn't throw them out just because of this, I'll just wait and see what happens. I also have her second clutch that is still in the "cool" stage that will be needing warmer temps soon, so I would like to correct any problems that may be apparent with my current set up before I warm them up.

If anyone has any advice, suggestions, etc...please let me know! Thanks so much!

 

[karebear41486]

any thoughts?

 

[pssh]

I believe they indeed can get too wet and could drown, but dont trust me on that.

 

[ChrisnLisa]

Another issue that can arise with too much water is that it can cause the shell to turn rubbery. The neonates are unable to get out of the shell if this happens. Are you using coarse or fine grain vermiculite? I lost my very first clutch of veileds this way using coarse grain with too much water. What type of container are you using? Is the container open on the top and then in the incubator...or does it have a lid on?

 

[sandrachameleon]

Too wet can cause the egg to expand too much (split) or become rubbery (trap the cham) or if really wet drown it.

 

[karebear41486]

Thanks for the thoughts! I think I'm using course grade, but I'm not sure. There is a lid on the container--it's just a rubbermaid sandwich type container with a few small holes poked in the top for ventilation/air exchange. I've decided to crank up the heat a little more so that I can leave the lid of the cooler propped open to hopefully eliminate a little bit of the humidity that is allowed to accumulate in the containers. THanks again!

 

[ChrisnLisa]

Another issue that can arise with too much water is that it can cause the shell to turn rubbery. The neonates are unable to get out of the shell if this happens. Are you using coarse or fine grain vermiculite? I lost my very first clutch of veileds this way using coarse grain with too much water. What type of container are you using? Is the container open on the top and then in the incubator...or does it have a lid on?

Eek! I meant to say fine grain vermiculite. Since that first mishap, I switched to coarse grain. It is much easier to tell how much moisture is in the substrate when it is coarse grain.