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- Long-tailed Grass Lizard
Takydromus sexlineatus
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- Taxonomy
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- Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Subclass: Lepidosauria
Order: Squamata
Suborder: Sauria
Infraorder: Scincomorpha
Family: Lacertidae
Subfamily: Lacertinae
Genus: Takydromus
Species: sexlineatus
- Subspecies: ocellatus, sexlineatus
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I. Introduction
A small, curious
lizard, the long-tailed grass lizard is native to southeastern Asia, and is also known as the Asian long-tailed lizard or six-lined lizard. With about 3/4 of its total body length being its tail, the long-tailed grass lizard lives up to its name.
This lizard can reach a total length of about 36cm (14"), most of which is their long, slender tail. They are attractively coloured and patterned: Their head, tail and a large band down their back is a light brown, outlined on their back and head with two smaller, white bands (with thin, black stripes lining them). Their sides are a bit darker brown (some specimens have a greenish hue), which fades into creamy white on their undersides. They have a triangular head, and their ventral, dorsal and leg scales are keeled. Males have
hemipenile bulges at the base of their tail.
II. Behaviour
This lizard is
arboreal, spending a lot of time on bamboo and tall grasses in its natural
habitat. They are curious lizards; some specimens will allow themselves to be held, however this should be avoided because they are easily stressed.
These lizards can
autotomize their tail if they feel threatened. This defense mechanism, called
caudal
autotomy, occurs as a sort of "last ditch" effort for the lizard to escape a predator. Its tail breaks off, and the severed piece proceeds to twitch for several minutes afterwards (due to excited nerves left in the tail). This is supposed to distract the predator while the lizard escapes. The tail can regenerate after time, however the re-grown portion of the tail will not be the same colour or have the same texture as the original tail.
III. Diet
These lizards are primarily
insectivorous, feed a staple diet of several suitably sized gut-loaded crickets daily. Variety is healthy, so supplement this diet with mealworms, silkworms, waxworms and superworms (when the lizard is large enough, of course). Do not feed prey larger than half the lizard's head.
Provide a shallow water dish at the bottom of the enclosure, clean it whenever soiled. The lizards may drink from the dish, but mist the enclosure daily so that they can also lick water off of the leaves of the plants.
IV. Housing
A glass aquarium or Reptarium, 68-76L (18-20 gallons) for a couple lizards, is an adequate enclosure. A tall enclosure is better than a wide one, to allow their long tails room to hang when they climb. The lid of the tank should not be one that you would use for an aquarium yielding fish. Reptariums can be easily manipulated for more vertical room; if you are using an aquarium, you may have to let it stand on one of its sides for more vertical space. A lid, in this case, may have to be creatively designed. It should be partially screen to allow ventilation, but if you choose to use loose
substrate such as soil, you may need to add a hard substance such as fiberglass to keep the substrate from falling out off the front of the enclosure.
These lizards live in a sparse forest habitat; this can be duplicated in captivity. Start by putting about two inches of a mix of soil and peat moss in the bottom. Add a few live plants, such as spider or broad-leafed plants, and a few branches propped against the sides of the enclosure as climbing places. These lizards also like low-growing plants, such as vines that drape the ground, and ribbon plant (commonly sold as "lucky bamboo"). A hide spot, such as a half-log or overturned container, is necessary.
Of course, a simpler habitat would also suffice, although it may not be as aesthetically pleasing. Paper towel is a simple, cheap and very easy substrate to keep nearly any reptile on. Potted or silk-leaved plastic plants, branches and hide caves can still make up the cage furniture in this setup.
V. Heating, Lighting, and Humidity
Daytime temperatures should range from 22-27°C (75-80°F), and at night it should fall no lower than 20°C (68°F). During the day, an incandescent "white" bulb will suffice for heating, along with an under tank heating pad (preferably under the hide log if you choose to get a small one). The lizards'
basking spot should not exceed temperatures of 29°C (85°F). At night, turn off the white bulb, and if needed use either a ceramic heat emitter or a red coloured incandescent "night bulb" for the lizards. Red is the better colour since it is less harsh on the lizard's eyes.
During the day they require a wide-spectrum
ultraviolet light. The fluorescent Zoo Med's ReptiSun or Zoo Med's IguanaLight are good brands, along with VitaLite. All lighting fixtures should be placed on top of the screen portion of the lid as to prevent burns. Provide the lizards a
photoperiod of 12-14 hours.
Humidity in the tank should be about 70%, and can be achieved by misting.
Last modified: Monday, May 24, 2004
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