Simply place a layer of incubation substrate at the bottom of the appropriately sized container (don’t forget to ensure that the container has holes to allow airflow), saturate the substrate with water, and place the disc-held up by four legs-right over the substrate. Using The New Trays For all of their advantages, egg trays are extremely simple to use. Even a relatively small quantity of consumed vermiculite or perlite can prove fatal for a newborn lizard. During the first new shed the gecko will eat it, along with any stuck pieces of substrate. With the gecko wet from recently hatching, substrate easily sticks to their scales. Crested geckos, which shed within hours of hatching, are a good example. Some reptiles are at risk of impaction when hatching directly on substrate. However, there’s the additional benefit in that the fewer times you need to open up the container to access the substrate, the fewer times you are disrupting the egg. This might seem like a minor convenience, especially if you aren’t incubating many eggs. Instead, the incubation substrate can be saturated with water at no risk to the eggs. So why not completely remove it from the equation? Egg trays separate the eggs from the media entirely, bypassing the need to maintain properly moistened substrate. It can be both difficult and time-consuming to not only obtain, but also maintain that perfect ratio of water to substrate. Too much water in the substrate, and your eggs are at risk of mold growth or bloating from excessive water absorption, and too little water will lead eggs to desiccation any of these can fatally damage a developing embryo. Improving on Traditional Techniques If you nestle eggs directly onto the incubation substrate, maintaining the correct moisture level is key. The trays are also conveniently sized: the smaller size fits perfectly into a standard 8-ounce round container, and the larger size fits into a 128-ounce round container. The entire disc is also covered with small holes which allow the free movement of air. The grooves are lined with small bumps which secure the egg and keep it from being displaced from its original position. Innovation In Incubation So what exactly are egg trays? These plastic discs contain numerous narrow grooves into which eggs are placed. While it might seem like an unnecessary extra step and cost, we’ll explain how their use can provide a huge benefit to you and your hatchling crested geckos, leopard geckos, bearded dragons, or other reptiles. Separating the eggs from the substrate by using egg trays can help save you time and prevent a number of risks. Male or female sterility could cause infertility, but improper diet is a far more common reason.Incubating soft-shelled eggs often involves placing the egg directly on a substrate that holds moisture well, such as vermiculite or perlite. If your Gecko is laying infertile eggs, it usually means that her diet isn’t proper for egg-laying. Over the next few days, they should quickly harden and develop a leathery, chalk-white membrane around them. When first laid, the eggs will be soft and sticky to the touch. Doing so helps replace the excess calcium lost during the creation of eggs. You’ll want to give your females a high calcium diet during the gestation cycle. This is normal, and you need not worry if you can see the eggs while she is carrying them. A female can lay roughly five clutches of eggs during a regular breeding season and produce 80–100 eggs in her lifetime if bred only during the natural breeding season.ĭuring the gestation cycle, the eggs will be visible beneath the skin of the female. Once the eggs have gestated, the females will lay a clutch of one to two eggs. The Leopard Gecko gestation cycle lasts between 18–22 days. This area should have a soft, moist substrate that the Geckos can bury the eggs in. Lastly, you’ll want to designate an area in their enclosure for ovipositioning. You’ll also want to decrease the optimal temperature of their tank to 70–75 degrees Fahrenheit. To help them understand that it’s time to oviposition, you’ll want to shorten their “day” cycle by shielding their enclosure from bright light for more hours. How Do I Encourage My Leopard Geckos to Breed?īreeding your Leopard Geckos is encouraged if one male and at least two females are in their colony.
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