| general
|
| description |
It is a unique group of
desert skinks which have adapted to a burrowing lifestyle.
It spends most of its time buried in sand. It will even
bask just below the sand surface and ambush prey as it
goes by. If it does make an appearance and gets startled,
it can quickly dart back below to safety and "swim" down
into the sand. Hence the common name, Sandfish. |
| appearance |
The head is conical and
the snout is extended and chisel-like. Because they spend
so much of their time buried, the ear openings are almost
completely covered. The feet are one of the unusual things
about this lizard. It has 5 toes and the fingers are strongly
flat and wide, sort of shovel like. Coloration is usually
light tan with dark bands. Males have darker and more
delineated bands, otherwise it is very difficult to tell
the difference between males and females. |
| distribution |
Northern Africa and Middle
East |
| adult
size |
6" - 7" |
| housing |
| natural
habitats |
Terrestrial, fossorial;
sandy deserts |
| cage
|
It should be large instead
of tall. (e.g. Wooden
Terrarium, Glass
Terrarium) |
| substrate |
fine sand (e.g. Repti
sand, Calci-Sand),
gravel
Since it digs, the depth of substrate should be at least
2" - 4" |
| activity
period |
Daytime (diurnal);
12 - 14 hours each day with direct natural sunlight or
UV lamp (e.g. ReptiSun 5.0,
UV Heat Bulb) |
| temperature |
33 - 35 ¢XC -- basking
spot (e.g. Basking
Spot Lamp)
25 - 27 ¢XC -- cooler area (e.g. Daylight
Blue Bulb)
18 - 24 ¢XC -- at night (e.g. Nightlight
Red Bulb, Infrared
Heat Lamp, Ceramic
Heat Emitter) |
| humidity |
25% or lower |
| water
dish |
Optional. a small water
dish (e.g. Rock water
dish) can be left in the cage sometimes but not all
the time |
| hiding
place |
Optional. Possibllites
include caves (e.g. Habba
Hut, Heat Cave), etc |
| diet |
| diet |
Insectivorous (insects-eating);
various insects and worms |
| notes |
Remove all the remaining
insects because they will be harassing it at night, resulting
stress. |
| reproduction |
| reproduction |
Ovoviviparous; gives birth
to 2 - 10 youngs |
