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Description:
The green or Thai waterdragon belongs to the agamids-a group
of lizards endemic to the old world. The are medium to large
with the males growing to three feet in length and females
about two feet but two thirds of that is tail. They are
leaf-green above with light colored chevrons and a white or
pale ventral surface.The males sport a well developed nuchal
crest and coloful throats.The head is triangular with well
developed yaws and in a male will be much larger than the
female. The tails are laterally compressed and aid in
swimming and diving. The limbs end in strong fingers and
toes and dragons can climb very well and at top speed run on
the ground in a bi-pedal motion, upright with their arms
just used for balance. They hunt using a sticky,fleshy
tongue and will eat anytthing that is small enough to fit
into their mouths : insects, arthropods, worms, snails and
even small birds and other lizards. Occasionally fruit will
round out the menu. |
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Sex:
Males are larger over-all with large heads and yowls and a
large crest running along the back,most pronounced in the
neck area. They also have femoral pores and a colored
throat. In older males the hemipenal bulges are visible.
Females are more slender with small, stream-lined heads. |
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Distribution:
Waterdragons are found along the streams and rivers all over
South-East Asia, from Thailand to Vietnam. They live in the
trees and brush close to the watere to drop into it whenever
they feel threatened. Temperatures are moderate to high and
humidity is high. Most of their areas have pronounced
rainy-and dry seasons. |
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Habitat:
Tropical with high humidity and temperatures around 82 to 92
degrees during the day and dropping to the low seventies at
night. |
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Housing: Large
glass enclosures are a must because of the humidity but some
people build their own. Dragons need foliage-artificial or
non-toxic and branches to climb and bask and a large water
container to swim and soak. They will soil the water so it
needs to be changed frequently. Lighting needs to be for
heat and a strong UV-full spectrum source for the health of
the dragon. Substrate should be coconut bedding or other
moisture retaining substance but it needs to be changed
often to prevent the build-up of bacteria and fungal growth. |
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Feeding:
Waterdragons in captivity will start with small crickets and
mealworms and as it grows will take larger
insects,grass-hoppers,hissing
cock-roaches,nightcrawlers,snails and pinky-mice. They need
calcium supplements,twice per week for youngsters and
breeding females and once per week for males. |
Breeding:
Males will try to breed all year around. Females develope
eggs even without males. She will become rounder in the
abdomen but eat less. Supplemetation is extremely important
during that time. Females can lay several clutches per
season of four to twelve eggs. She should be seperated from
the male and the tank set up in a quiet area and maybe even
a towel draped over it to give her a sense of security.
Females need enough substrate to dig the tunnel to deposit
the eggs. If the situation is not inducive for egg
deposition, females will hold the eggs until complication
can occur so the keeper has to make sure that all her needs
are met. Once she has laid the eggs, carefully remove the
eggs and set them up in substrate like vermiculite or
coconut bedding in an incubator. Temperatures should be
around 82 to 86 degrees and humidity in the 80 to 90
percent. Incubation takes about two-and a half to three
months, depending on temperature. The babies will take a
day or two to hatch but the whole clutch should hatch within
fourty-eight hours.
Set-up for the babies is like for the adults but with more
foliage to make them feel safe. Hatchlings are fragile and
should not be handled. |
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SABINE BRADLEY-PHILLIPS |
