# Thorny Devils



## reptileKev81 (Nov 15, 2009)

Hi guys,
I'm new to the forum and also new to the reptile scene.
I stumbled onto this forum while looking for info on the thorny devil.

I saw one in the wild and was amazed. Mrs wanted to catch it and keep it although I wasn't sure on how legal that was.

I'm wndering if it is legal to own these creatures and if so, where I can get one.

FYI, I live in NSW and appreciate any info you guys can give me, haven't had much luck with google.

Cheers and thanks in advance!


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## jinin (Nov 15, 2009)

I believe that they cannot be kept in NSW, glad you chose not to catch him 8]. They require a large amount of ants each day, they only eat one type of ant and they eat thousands each day.


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## ryanharvey1993 (Nov 15, 2009)

cant keep them in nsw.


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## ryanharvey1993 (Nov 15, 2009)

jinin said:


> I believe that they cannot be kept in NSW, glad you chose not to catch him 8]. They require a large amount of ants each day, they only eat one type of ant and they eat thousands each day.


 
they actually eat a lot more then 1 species of ants.


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## Oedura (Nov 15, 2009)

A few zoos have tried to keep these guys but know one can keep them alive for any long period of time, let alone breeding them
Even if u see one of these illegally for sale it has been recently caught and will die
They eat only a few species of ant and even when the zoos collected these ants to feed them they still deteriorated and died


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## ryanharvey1993 (Nov 15, 2009)

Oedura said:


> A few zoos have tried to keep these guys but know one can keep them alive for any long period of time, let alone breeding them
> Even if u see one of these illegally for sale it has been recently caught and will die
> They eat only a few species of ant and even when the zoos collected these ants to feed them they still deteriorated and died


 
alice springs reptile centre was succesfully keeping them years ago, I remember getting to hold them there when I was little, an someone shed some light on this


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## Oedura (Nov 15, 2009)

The ones they kept still eventually died due to lack of appropriate care after a year or two


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## Radar (Nov 15, 2009)

Nope, they are still there and breeding, pics to prove it if you want.


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## Radar (Nov 15, 2009)

Comp is lagging something chronic, sorry bout the double post.







Cheers.


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## Sel (Nov 15, 2009)

Where did the ones at castle hill come from ? Cant remember....


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## Hooglabah (Nov 15, 2009)

you cant keep them in captivity it is impossible due to thier diet of ants they eat thousands of them a day anybody whos says otherwise if full of it


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## Hooglabah (Nov 15, 2009)

sorry i'll refraise you cant keep them indefinantly and breeding them is a ridiculous concept if you cant keep them alive to begin with. 

also magik 81 its illegal to take *ANY* native flora or fauna from the will without a permit.


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## Oedura (Nov 15, 2009)

rednut said:


> Nope, they are still there and breeding, pics to prove it if you want.


Yes i would like proof
the info i read has said otherwise, but it could be out of date


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## Radar (Nov 15, 2009)

One of the animals on display. The others (edited into an earlier post) were 2 of about 5 adults and a couple (3 from memory) of juveniles in the 'holding' area.


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## Oedura (Nov 15, 2009)

That is hardly proof that they keep them alive long term and they r breeding
They could be WC that cant be returned for whatever reason, it does not mean they are breeding them


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## Oedura (Nov 15, 2009)

when they find poached animals and dont know locality they end up in zoos


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## Radar (Nov 15, 2009)

There are actually pics of them mating, and the young produced beside a 50c piece on another forum. They were taken by a friend of mine, but I won't post them here, and as she's on the road atm I can't reach her for permission. Inside their natural range, they are not nearly as difficult to keep alive, it's actually quite amazingly simple in outdoors enclosures. The whole desert cycle revolves around water, you provide a little bit of water, the ants come, the ants come, devils are happy. Seems far too easy, sure, but also seems to be working a treat in practice (if I hadn't seen it for myself I wouldnt have thought it either to be honest....)


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## Radar (Nov 15, 2009)

Interesting aside, there was apparently one turn up in Townsville recently, silly lady was trying to keep it alive, I doubt that one lasted too long.


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## Radar (Nov 15, 2009)

Link Pm'd


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## geckos_are_great (Nov 15, 2009)

they are soo cool i would love to find one


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## Tiliqua (Nov 15, 2009)

These can be kept in NSW on a class 2 licence, I do not think there are in NSW collections at present. There are however a handful of private keepers with them in QLD that keep and breed them in outdoor enclosures. They are not restricted to any one particular ant species, in fact the common sugar ants around Sydney are sufficient. You also have to supply them with extreme heat duing the day, then greatly drop their night time temps to replicate the desert's temp cycle, if you don't live in their natural range. There were some up on herptrader.com a few years back for about $4000 from memory. The ones from Castle Hill show 2008 were from Alice Springs Desert Park.
Hope this helps.


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## reptileKev81 (Nov 15, 2009)

Wow. Thanks for the quick replies. Its a pity that its not legal or easy to keep these wonderful animals as pets. I will continue to admire these animals but will unfortunately have to look for another pet. Who knows, maybe one day things will change and I will be able to get one some day.

Can anyone reccomend another small lizard for a beginner like me?


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## jinin (Nov 15, 2009)

Pygmy Bearded Dragon? Central Netted Dragon?


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## Oedura (Nov 15, 2009)

Tiliqua said:


> These can be kept in NSW on a class 2 licence, I do not think there are in NSW collections at present. There are however a handful of private keepers with them in QLD that keep and breed them in outdoor enclosures. They are not restricted to any one particular ant species, in fact the common sugar ants around Sydney are sufficient. You also have to supply them with extreme heat duing the day, then greatly drop their night time temps to replicate the desert's temp cycle, if you don't live in their natural range. There were some up on herptrader.com a few years back for about $4000 from memory. The ones from Castle Hill show 2008 were from Alice Springs Desert Park.
> Hope this helps.


Are u sure your not thinking of a tawny dragon?
They do not have thornys on my species list?


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## levis04 (Nov 15, 2009)

I know of two keepers who breed them and do really well with them, they are endorsed to keep them. Thornys are found around these keepers local area so all they needed to do was attract the ants, this was easy bit, and they have been thriving ever since, the biggest problem i see with them is the ants kinda take over the yard and all other cages lol. They actually become a real pian in the **** (ants that is).


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## Tiliqua (Nov 15, 2009)

Yeah mate, I'm sure its not Tawny's :lol:
The reason they're not listed on the most recent list is because no-one held any at the time of the species code revision form earlier this year. The species name and code were on the 2005 edition of the species list.


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## Oedura (Nov 15, 2009)

ok thanks
I read a number or texts saying that they die in captivty, but after just reading up on it, it would seem that is incorrect
Just goes to show people can publish any who ha these days


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## masejak3 (Nov 15, 2009)

With the right amount of care anything can be kept.
If a person has enough time and patients nothing will die..........
....
Are we able to keep them in vic as i would love one, i have the time to look after it


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## reptileKev81 (Nov 16, 2009)

By the sounds of it, a thorny would not be ideal for me if it needs that much care.
Looking at getting a bearded dragon or something along those lines.


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## Fuscus (Nov 16, 2009)

Welcoming baby thorny devils - 11/01/2008


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## Hooglabah (Nov 16, 2009)

good ol beardies


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## JasonL (Nov 16, 2009)

It's one thing to "keep" them outdoors in or in similar natural habitat, it's another to have them indoors on the coast....


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## Herc (Nov 16, 2009)

thorny devils CAN be kept in NSW, provided you can aquire them from a legal source, anything Not on our licence system at current can be added, they will allocate a fauna code for the animal. This is information provide from DEC sometime back.


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## mouse_has_faith (Nov 16, 2009)

Hi magick81,

You're definently on the right track by asking questions BEFORE getting your animal- so many people do it the other way 'round!  Because of this, I'm sure you're going to have many years of enjoyment out of your new reptile/s when you get them.

As for small lizards around the thorny devil size, there are always geckoes. However if you don't mind something a bit bigger, may I suggest a bluetongue or a bearded dragon? (Or even both; they can be kept together.) They're easy and perfect for beginners.

Take a look at the DECC website, which has a list of animals that may be kept under the Class 1 Licence. From there you can pick out the ones that interest you and do a bit of research on them, as well as ask questions- everyone here is always happy to help.  Let us know how you go.


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## jordo (Nov 16, 2009)

Hooglabah said:


> you cant keep them in captivity it is impossible due to thier diet of ants they eat thousands of them a day anybody whos says otherwise if full of it



Haha, goodwork mate! Going by the length of the thread I'm guessing you've been corrected by now? There's a moloch at the museum, kept happily in a melamine enclosure and they have a few ant colonies to feed it. Contrary to what most people think they're very easy to keep in captivity and do very well.


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## pttom1 (Nov 16, 2009)

Yes they keep them at the museum but they have entomologists keeping and breeding the ants for their food. It also took a bit of trial and error before they found the right formula.


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## jordo (Nov 16, 2009)

Breeding the ants is actually very easy as well, they're heated, sprayed once a day and fed honey and dead insects, not much to it really.


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## JasonL (Nov 16, 2009)

How long have they had it? Lots of others have tried, and tried really hard and the animals loose colour and end up dieing after 12 plus months....


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