Nymox

Should be a good move, Wasting my education up here there is no work what so ever, well I could take orders at B.K. drive through but I still feel that might not be the best use of my bachelor lol. At least down there I have work, might only be population statistics but at least I get to look under rocks rather then live under them.

Haha at least its out at the end of the day I more or less escaped!

Hehe I wish I could, I don't know how I am going to cope without my Yindi! I don't like Mammals, so probably have to get my permits and keep some natives. I need something to make me feel needed, and the nieces just give me colds and headaches.

http://www.duffiescottage.co.nz/about.htm Nice place I can't wait! No power = no fishies or reptiles though

Will be my last meeting, moving down south. I like Pinon gris or Gewürztraminer for a still white, or brute cuvee for a sparkling. Reds Penon Nior or a robust merlot. Or a G'n T goes down just as easy !drool:

There is a massive ongoing argument in the scientific community about the collection and captive breeding of any species of animal in order to study and save them. It really is a more or less 50/50 split, some like myself believe captive breeding and study is the only real way to completely understand an animal, as the complexity of studying everything in the field and the costs related is just not viable. Others believe they are best left alone and studied from a distance, and all studies done in captivity are invalid as they restrict the animals ability to exhibit natural behaviour. Breeding also has equally as many arguments, for example, in the wild the animals that are stronger then their rivals are going to go on to reproduce more often, where the weaker ones either don't make it to adulthood, or lack the characteristics to find a mate. Captive breeding has no natural selection process, so on release even animals with weaker genetic traits are strong and fit enough to compete with the better adapted, effectively messing with the gene pool in wild populations. I agree with both sides :nilly:

I wouldn't want to begin to even imagine why, I leave that up to them. Best thing I know is to provide them with everything I can think of to enrich their lives and let them do the rest. Yes its all from tubes, I replace them every 6 months or so when I notice they have stopped basking. I love my lil leo's and couldn't imagine anything but the best for them, So I try everything and if they take to it then it stays. Early morning feeds are usually much more accepted on a fussy leo then evening/night feedings for example, its just observation. I have pulled a few out of trouble now, letting them decide what is best has always been the most successful approach.

All my leo's bask in the early morning and late evening. I provide the lighting and they use it. I believe that they know their requirements far more then we do. I offer calcium with d3 and without it. as well as other vitamins with and without d3. They very very rarely eat from the d3 dishes. I try to keep the diet as varied as possible, including insects that are active during the day and night. At night I provide reptile one moonlight tubes, the uvb is next to nothing but still present as verified by repti-one australia. They use it most nights so it must have some effect. I love watching that tail whip from side to side as a cricket or cockroach is about to loose its life. :gigl:

Maybe I should apologise at this point, as it is one of my bts young, Yindi is part of the family, she has a place she eats, a place she basks and warms ups, a place she goes to use the bathroom and a place she is supposed to sleep in. When I need to find her because people are coming over, or shes late for dinner calling her works about 70% of the time, tricking her by saying snail works all the time except when shes close to giving birth or going into brumation. Her son Stew is the same, except being young much more adventurous, his restricted freedom gives him more chance to learn to live with us rather then us keeping him. We have learnt a great deal too about how they communicate, and still get blown away by their intelligence. Many mornings I wake up with the 2 bts and the cat in bed with me, usually the lizards have a mammal sandwich arrangement and the added benefit of a cat cleaning service. The cat gains companionship, and the lizards get warmth. I stay single. Quite an effort for the bts to climb onto, so they must get something out of it, there are plenty of other places that a warm around the room for them, I'm past the point of trying to stop them doing it, a cat is bad enough., They have a lovely big enclosure, but not once have they been happy in there. Sit like lumps till the next meal arrives, bask a bit, sleep, maybe rest some where else. I like to see those heads up, tongues darting in and out, bright eyes. They're active, intelligent and inquisitive creatures, and very easy animals to live with. I would never recommend this to any one, I put a lot of time in to my animals to learn how they communicate and try to understand them a bit to make their lives easier, I believe they need stimulus in what ever way they can get it, an animal might be solitary but it has all kinds of relationships with the other creatures around it. One of the things my skinks love is a steep tall ramp, I have bird grit on it and it helps keep their nails trimmed and their legs strong as they don't drag so much. Yindi goes up and down a few times a day, there is an old blanket up top to burrow into. Stew being young goes up and down 10's of times a day. But this is coming from a person who taught the cat all the regular dog tricks and makes toys for his fish :roll: Different strokes :sage:

If there was a large enough market for herps then we would have more. Other species get in because breeders can pool resources in order to get all the necessary paper work and cheques signed still knowing they will make a steady profit for a few years before the market is flooded. Herps are always going to be even more difficult as there is a real lack of dedicated researches in the field, many species live in small population groups undiscovered until bulldozed over. Leopard gecko like our other exotic reptiles have been here long before such standards were put into practice, once again lack of funding meant it was easier to just allow people to keep and breed the populations in private hands rather then try to get rid of them. As varanophile mentioned anything that poses great risk of disease or otherwise will be dealt with more seriously, such as the poor iggies. The only way we would get the health standards done would be if we could pool resources together and do it purely for the hobby with no monetary reasoning. But it will never be a sure thing, more likely a no then a yes. They'll still take the money for all their researching so. That was the long answer. I prefer the short answer, much easier to type. Start doing field work, population counts and area diversity. Submit reports and gain a reputation in the field, then when you have some sway and the background to back that up things might change. We need more research in this country on the herps we have before there is any chance of that, as I said whites could still be in there, has anyone seriously looked? Even our icon the Kiwi still needs decades of research done in order to understand it well enough to try protect it long term. I know of two population groups that I wouldn't dream of telling DOC about, last 5 birds that we reported we're all moved, all but 1 died on the journey back to their original location, and the other shortly after, its not the first time that has happened.

Id go the 800 classic always for something that size. All the reviews I have read are nothing short of exceptional. But I don't have the exp to really compare.

Bascially within DOC there is no standards set up to deal with requests for importation of new reptile or amphibian species, and ones that are currently here (eg leopard gecko). The ground work has not been done, unlike cats and dogs where it is more or less adding the different names to a form and bingo. There has been a recent request for european domesticated fox and it looks like that might go through by 2015, perfectly adapted to destroy every here, and domestication is only 50 years deep with the fox so it is a very stupid idea. But it shows what the system is like within DOC. I have been working hard with them trying to set up the standards for leopard gecko, but the short answer is its not going to happen. You could always set up a containment facility.

He has made a good point though! Thanks for everything over the years, gems of the bay, tauranga is lucky to have you both here. L.A. for TGA Mayor.! :thup:

I have to say I don't see this as hiding behind a keyboard what so ever. And as for flushing out the person responsible for looking after this tank it is a perfectly reasonable use of the forums and internet. No slander against the company or its staff so far Putt is purely trying to find the person responsible in order to guide them and give advice. I see it as a loyal customer trying to help a business they frequent improve an area. Not having a go at you smidey, as I can see your points. All I am saying is I see it in a different light. I myself would have had to do something, as seeing the fish and other life in poor conditions would have broken my heart as it always does.

Sorry for the video quality but still quite interesting.

Congrats! :nfs: blue/brown snakeskin? Mine spawn in a community tank once a week like clockwork, never managed to get them past free swimming. I'm happy their happy enough to spawn.

Mantis Shrimp, squilla armata. Found in shallow waters around New Zealand and Australia. Mantis shrimp are known to have the fastest strikes in natures, squilla armata are spearers not knockers. Squilla Amarta can reach sizes up to 2.5 - 3 inches no record captive sizes. Fine dense sand must be used as a substrate as they must be able to borrow to be able to exhibit natural behaviour. In the wild they consume small fish and crustacea, but can be fed raw fish and prawn in captivity. Both sexes show little dimorphism, males are far more aggressive toward other males and usually fights will result in death. Little is known about the breeding of these creatures, it is thought that the female will go looking for a male at about a year old, where she will be allowed access to the males burrow in order for them to mate in privacy, even less is known about the development of the young but they probably drift around with the rest of the zooplankton. I will add more information as I learn more

Very lucky to have been given this wee fellow today, I have wanted one for many a year! Have to get some softer sand for it but its otherwise happy, had a feed of prawn.

have a ride there, subi on the way back! :bounce:

I missed the wedding, thought it was today turns out it was yesterday If anyone is coming past would they be able to come and collect a bogan?

I wish, its my cousins wedding.

I have a wedding to attend :bounce: Have an awesome meeting though and I'll see you all at the April meeting.

:nfs: Name him: Pablo Diego José Francisco de Paula Juan Nepomuceno María de los Remedios Cipriano de la Santísima Trinidad Ruiz y Picasso, or Pablo for short.

The best place to get driftwood near here is either the Kaituna cut near Maketu, or Thornton beach. I only soak long enough for it to sink, never worry about salt or anything else really. Another place you can try is Naumuahine river, saves having to wait for it to soak enough to sink, some yummy insect larvae living inside them usually too. I salt my fresh water tank if any fish are showing white spot or anything, lower doses for scaless fish, never had a problem with salt.