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Points of inportance
Before you purchase spidergeckos it is important to
know the following things.
A. persica are solitairy animals. They accept each others
presence, but there is one exception.
Keeping multiple males together in one vivarium is impossible. The
geckos willl fight with each other and eventually the weakest gecko will
die.
Keeping multiple females together in one vivarium isn't a problem. If
you choose to keep multiple females with a male, then make sure the
females are old enough.
Females are old enough to breed with, when they're at least 18 to 24
months. The male won't pay attention to the females age and will try to
mate with every female in the vivarium. Mating is very stressfull for
the females and laying eggs costs a lot of energy. Young females can
therefore die because of the combination of stress and exhausture. An
other thing is, that the clutch layed by a female that's too young
consists of only one egg. And the egg will probably be a little smaller,
narrower and longer then the eggs of an adult female.
:: Housing
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You can keep a couple of
A. persica in a vivarium of 60 x 30 x 30 cm (W x D x H).
But this is the minimum size and personally I think it is a little small.
Therefore I keep my couple of A. persica in a 80 x 50 x 50 cm.
vivarium.
Do make sure that for this gecko species you purchase a vivarium that's
longer (wider) then high.
A. persica are good climbers and will use provided
climbingfacilities. But most of the time, the geckos will bask on a rock
under the heatsource.
Think, when you purchase a vivarium, about how you're going to reach in
when that's necessary (i.e. when you need to remove eggs, or when you
need to spray the animals). I prefer a vivarium that you can open at the
front. This causes the least stress and is the easiest way to work in
the vivarium. Approaching the animals from above is always discouraged.
As substrate I use yellow terrariumsand. But before you put te sand in
the vivarium, you put the rocks in their place. When you don't do
that and you place the rocks on top of the sand, the rocks can crush the
gecko when it digs underneath the rocks.
Create some hiding places and differences in height with rocks and / or
driftwood. The Agamura can then hide when it feels threatened
and search for a spot with the most comfortable temperature..
Fill the vivarium with 4 - 5 cm. of sand after you've put the rocks in
place. This depth is neccesary for the female when she needs to lay her
eggs.
Most plants won't survive in the vivarium because of the high
temperature and. You can therefore put a silk-screen plant in the
vivarium. They supply a surface for water to collect
for the geckos to drink.
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Temperature
Because A. persica live in desertlike areas
you'll have to heat the enclosure. Roomtemperature is to cold for the
animals. (N.B. With roomtemperature I mean 20°
Celsius).
You can heat the enclosure with a basking spot. During daytime the
temperature should be 40° - 45°
Celsius at the hot side of the vivarium. At the cold side(s) of the
enclosure the temperature shouldn't drop below 25°
Celsius during daytime.
At night, the temperature is allowed to drop to 30°
Celsius at the hot side of the vivarium and to even 20°
Celsius at the cold side(s).
To guarantee a night temperature that high without a basking spot as
heatsource, there are multiple options. You can use a heatmat, heating
cable or a ceramic heater.
I myself use a ceramic heater switched to a thermostat. In that way I
can guarantee that the desired temperature is reached and maintained.
When you want to use a heatmat or heating cable, don't place it inside
the vivarium. The geckos can burn themselves when they dig too deep and
reach the mat or cable and eggs that are layed will dry. Always place
the heatsource where the animals can't reach it.
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UV-lighting
Because A. persica are nocturnal you would
say providing them with UV-lighting is unnecessary.
But in nature, the animals bask in the sun all day long. And because of
that they're automaticly exposed to UV-lighting.
The use of UV-lighting for this gecko species hasn't been proved at the
moment, but providing it won't harm the animals.
Just don't forget to change the lamp every 6 - 12 months (depending on
the lifespan of the lamp), if you're going to use UV-lighting for your
Agamura persica.

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