SGVReptiles

Ailuronyx Care

History:

 

Ailuronyx seychellensis are large robust geckos that reach a total length of 200 mm.  They come from 13 Islands in the Seychelles, which are north of Madagascar. They have very delicate skin, thus their common name is Giant Sloughing Gecko. They are endangered in the wild, but populations are not declining. They seem to be adapting to the deterioration of natural habitat.

 

Natural Habitat:

 

These geckos are commonly found on trees, houses, and even on farming lands. They are found in both tropical dry habitats, and tropical moist habitats. These geckos are easily spotted during the day basking, but are active at night.

 

Captive Care

 

-Caging:

 

Ailuronyx seychellensis should be given a well-planted cage that measures at least 30" tall X 12" wide X 17" deep for a pair, or a cage that is at least 20" tall X 10" wide X 17’" deep. It should have many pieces of hallow bamboo poles, both vertical and horizontal. They like plants that can withstand their weight; a good plant to use is a snake plant (Sansevieria). Eco earth or some type of dirt soil should be used as substrate, with 1-2 inches of substrate being used to hold moisture.We also like to use some  leaves as ground cover as they do spend some time on the ground and will occasionally hide in them.

 

-Lighting/Heating/Humidity:

 

I provide both heat lamps during the day, and UTH at night. A basking spot of 90+ degrees should be provided threw out the day. The temps in the cage must not go below 75 degrees for any extended period of time. If they are left at low temps for too long, they could die. So the best thing I’ve found to do, is to place a heat pad under the bottom of the tank, and a heat pad on the side of the glass for them to sit on. I have found this to work very well with them.

 A daily misting is good to give to the geckos, but there is no real humidity level that they need, they are so adaptable to live in dry and in moist climates that they can handle dry and moist living conditions. I have found it best to spray them daily, but they can handle a couple days of dry weather.

 

-Feeding:

 

Ailuronyx seychellensis eat a variety of foods. They will eat crickets, roaches, wax worms and fruit mix. I offer my geckos crickets, roaches and fruit mix on a weekly basis. They seem to like Clarks Diet, which is a diet that you buy in powder form, and mix it with water and serve to the geckos.

 

Breeding:

We will add breeding information once we successfully breed and hatch our Ailuronyx seychellensis.