Bandy Bandy's

[moosenoose]

THANKS INSTAR, YOU ARE A STAR! LOL

 

[instar]

Sorry moosenoose, i cant find bugger all useful info about bandys in captivity, not even a basic caresheet. Matbe someone who owns one could post an info sheet.

 

[BROWNS]

Sorry to go off topic, i was told thorny devils actually get a lot of their dietry requirements from what the ants are carrying as well as the ants themselves...does anyone know if this is correct?

Bandy Bandys are stunning animals....

 

[Greebo]

I have heard that too Browns.It sounds logical.
They are fanastic looking lizards and it is human nature to want what you can't have.

 

[craig]

at melbourne zoo they find an ant trail and put the little devils on it!!
and at the reptile park they put a banana etc. on an ants net and the ants get on it to eat it then they put the banana in the devils cage!!!!!

hard work!!

 

[instar]

bit extra devil stuff

Food and Feeding Biology

Thorny devils are obligate ant specialists, eating virtually nothing else. They will consume several species of ants, but are especially partial to very small Iridomyrmex ants, especially Iridomyrmex flavipes. Feeding rates have been estimated at from 24 to 45 ants per minute. Occasional objects such as small stones, sticks, tiny flowers and small insect eggs are also ingested -- these are probably objects being carried by ants and are eaten only accidentally. Large numbers of ants are eaten per meal by an individual thorny devil (estimates range from 675 to 1000-1500 to 2500)

Fecal pellets of thorny devils are very distinctive: black, glossy, perfect prolate spheroids. These are often found in neat piles either in the open or amongst sparse vegetation. Individuals have specific defecation sites, separate from their basking and feeding sites. Tracks and accumulations of fecal matter indicate that thorny devils often return to such spots several days in succession.

Water Uptake

Thorny devils have a hygroscopic system of grooves in their skin that lead to the corners of their mouth. Bentley and Blumer (1962) showed that thorny devils take up water by means of capillary action via these grooves. Thorny devils use a gulping oral mechanism to move water along the grooves and into their mouths. Thorny devils can actually drink water from dew that falls on their backs and they can gain as much as a gram of water in a rainstorm.

from
http://uts.cc.utexas.edu/~varanus/moloch.html

 

[brunzwik]

moosenoose,
the 1's that i have had have been really friendly never seen one try and bite. not to sure how poisonous they are they. i never raised mine from hatchling so i dont know how it would affect them in the long run. i had them 4 bout 8 months and they were adult when i got them and what i feed them seemed to have no problems. they are mad critters hard work to feed definatley not for begginers.

 

[instar]

I read that bandys are not considered dangerous to people. must be real mild venom ?

 

[Paddy]

hey moosenoose,
on a loosely connected thread to this topic, yes - the kingsnakes main diet in the wild is other reptiles (even rattlesnakes) but in captivity they are easily fed on the usual selection of appropriately sized rodents.
i used to have a californinan kingsnake and a sinaloan milksnake and both would feed on large mice or small rats without any problems!
wish i could get them over here. australia has some awesome reptiles, but availablility in europe and america is too die for. you only have to see kevyn's posts and pictures to see that!
back on topic, yes those bandy's are a pretty amazing looking animal.

 

[Hickson]

Just a thought - if Bandy Bandy's eat nothing but Blind Snakes, maybe they might go for some of stockeh's rabbit sausages, the small ones?

Hix

 

[Hickson]

at melbourne zoo they find an ant trail and put the little devils on it!!
and at the reptile park they put a banana etc. on an ants net and the ants get on it to eat it then they put the banana in the devils cage!!!!!

hard work!!

I wasn't aware that Melbourne and ARP have Devils. I thought that only three facilties in and around Alice Springs werre the only public fauna parks with them, mainly because the species of ants they eat aren't found anywhere else where there is a zoo or park.

Hix

 

[Guest]

I know a aprivate keeper who has some, totally awesome animals

 

[Hickson]

Would he be in the Centre?

 

[Guest]

No, he is in Darwin, he feeds them on normal ants you find around the place i believe....

 

[Hickson]

Lucky bugger. They are the greatest little things. Picked some up off the roads about a year ago when I was up there. I was absolutely stoked. Gorgeous patterning on the bellies.

Hix

 

[moosenoose]

Thanks Paddy & Brunzwik for the replies. I didn't think we had these sorts of snakes here. They look almost identical to the Califoria Kingsnake, and it's blown me away. I recalled the name when it was posted (Bandy Bandy), but forgot all about the little guys, and what they looked like, let alone even thinking you could keep them as well. Sounds like they are tricky to keep for what I've read over this post. Ahh well, maybe in a few years time I may have the experience to go down a path like this.....

p.s I like the way they flatten out & bend around when annoyed...cool!

 

[ackie]

i used to know a guy who kept bandy bandys. The southern variety. mad snakes. He fed em rat tails and i am almost positive that both species of bandy bandys hav very mild venom like a lot of other small elapids.

 

[Hickson]

According to Wilson and Swan's latest field guide, there are now 5 species of Bandy Bandys. They do have a mild venom but are very reluctant to bite.

Hix

 

[brunzwik]

what was his name

 

[matricks]

They get hard to keep after a while and lose condition quickly. Another alternative is Californian King snakes, they look the same but much better and feed readily on anything, I could put you onto someone if youre interested. $1300 for breeding pair Guaranteed