Fire Bellied Skinks

[Stimpy]

I have seen these guys and I have an empty 55 gallon tank sitting in my room. They're only 8.99$ at my local private petshop. I was wondering what all I would need for them. I will be getting two. I looked online and didn't find much info, if you have them/have ever kept them or something similair please help me out. Thanks

 

[M_surinamensis]

Fire skinks?

Best to just get one. They can be pretty territorial, many wild caught animals or those which have been housed together for whatever reason are covered in scars from fights and dominance displays. Males are, as usual, worse than females but the girls will get into it too with even a little provocation and sexing can be tricky.

They're terrestrial, so any climbing or raised basking areas should have a fairly shallow angle to them. They also dig, for food and to hide from predators, you want to use a loosely packed substrate that will help maintain humidity (without being really wet). Soil, cocoafiber, orchid litter or bark substrates are generally used, filled to a minimum depth of about three-four inches, six or more is ideal. Ground cover and partially buried hides are excellent additions.

Ambient temperatures in the low-mid eighties, basking spot/warm end around ninety, cool end in the mid seventies. Humidity of about 75%, give or take, keeping a small area of the substrate a bit moister will function like a humid hide, usually best to do so underneath a piece of cork bark, slate or a shallow hide. They do require UVB for D3 synthesis, so you'll need appropriate lighting. Heat can be maintained using UTHs, heat tape, CHEs or lighting; the gradient is the most important aspect of it, as the species will often thermoregulate while buried. If you're using a UTH or heat tape, be sure to place some thermometer probes down directly above the heating element, as the skinks will sometimes dig straight to the bottom of the enclosure until they hit glass (or plastic, as the case may be).

Primarily insectivores, they will sometimes opportunistically display omnivorous behaviors, but a steady diet of meal/giantmeal/super worms, crickets, appropriately sized roaches and whatever other pet store fare you may want to mix in there is appropriate. They do not normally swim, so a shallow water dish that they can easily climb out of is ideal. Some of them will drink more readily from droplets, so adding a few plants (fake, they tunnel under and tend to uproot live ones) that can be misted doesn't hurt.

They mostly shed in pieces, but if you notice any flakes not falling off easily, shallow baths in warm water can help. They rarely have issues though, unless seriously dehydrated or being kept in an arid enclosure.

You can do some spot cleaning, but since they will often defecate underneath the substrate the entire thing needs to be hauled out and replaced on a regular basis.

Generally handle alright, though they will bite if provoked (and relative to the size of their heads, all skinks have strong, muscular jaws) and they should not be restrained from the back- if you grip them around the hips they usually whip back and forth and can injure themselves. Some of them can be a bit spazzy, but a proper enclosure makes them feel much more secure, lowers stress and settles them down.

And... lots of them are wild caught, so it's extra important to get a veterinary checkup and a fecal done as soon as you acquire one. Good idea for all animals under all circumstances anyway, but really necessary when dealing with a species that's about 90% imported.

 

[Stimpy]

above and beyond like usual, thanks man. Im gonna set up the tank this weekend and get one sometime next week.

 

[acpart]

I have to say that the most frustrating thing about my fire skink is that I rarely see it, kind of a shame for such a beautiful animal. Here's one picture I got (that I've posted before) when it popped up out of the substrate:

Aliza