Hey, i just finished a bioactive set up for my 6 year old jungle 'Juno'.
Its super straightforward if you know the basics of bioactive tanks (drainage, substrates, etc).
I did film the entire process and was planning on making a youtube vid but that wont be posted for ages so ill just write a lowdown on what i did.
Hers is a converted cabinet so i had to do substantial waterproofing first but if you have a proper prefab tank you dont have to worry about that stuff. heres the general steps:
background
completely optional but i recon they look phenomenal and take a build from 10/10 to 100/10 real quick. I drilled a bunch of branches/vines into the tank itself and then built up around them with expanding foam (incorporated a couple smaller sticks and bits or bark etc during the process). the background of the cabinet i used was a mirror so i tried to let that shine through in places to give that added depth. Painted the foam with non toxic paint. Theres loads of alternative ways to make backgrounds tho, i recommended googling/youtubing it.
drainage
I used like 20kg of expanded clay balls to build up about 5cm worth of drainage. I then covered this with flyscreen to separate it from the substrate layer and added a PVC pipe that goes down into the drainage layer that I can cover up with a rock/bowl and use to drain the base of the tank with a siphon when/if it gets too full.
substrate
There are loads of recipes online, the most common you'll see is the classic ABG mix - this mix is near impossible to make in aus due to the scarcity of tree fern fibre so used a sort of trial and error spin off of the following:
- 2 parts organic compost
- 2 parts wood chips (i used orchid bark but it's pretty up to whatever you prefer just try to avoid cedar, eucalypt and pine as these may be toxic)
- 2 parts coco coir
- 1 part sand
- 1 part sphagnum moss.
I also threw in a bit of organic fertiliser with trace elements included to boost the plants.
clean up crew
the cleanup crew is crazy important, without them the whole set-up is pretty much void. I used a culture of springtails I ordered online as well as a bunch of isopods I collected from my garden. There's also a couple of mealworms and darkling beetles getting around in there as well.
plants
honestly, I wouldn't be too concerned about the type of plants you use with snakes, obviously with lizards and other species who will try to chomp down on the odd leaf you need to ensure you only use edible plants however since it is very unlikely your jungle will turn vego its really not a big deal. Obviously, avoid highly toxic plants, but the most important thing when choosing plants is to wash them thoroughly and get all the junk out of the roots to make sure there aren't any toxic fertilisers left on them.
With my set up it was really just a matter of trial and error to see what would grow, a couple plants died due to the low light conditions down on the floor of her tank, others due to the weight they had to handle as she climbed all over them (being a fairly heavy bodied species as far as snakes go a lot of plants in high traffic areas simply won't make it). I also struggled to find anything that would survive in an arboreal planter I installed close to her heat light. All this stuff dictates the kind of plants you may get and vary from set up to set up.
Through trial and error the plants i have in there that are currently thriving are the following:
- cascade palm (Chamaedorea cataractarum)
- rubber fig (Ficus elastica)
- some sort of bromeliad (not sure of the exact species pretty sure its an imperialis, my main concern with the bromeliad was to get something with smooth edges as opposed to those huge serrated spikes)
- spider plant (Chlorophytum comosum)
heating/lighting
I've got this tank on a T5 full spectrum UVB light (7%) and a basic ceramic heat emitter that i leave on 24/7 on a thermostat.
all up
This was a super awesome build for me, being a more tropical species the jungles are super fun to do a big bioactive build for. Since completing this build I've noticed Juno has been a lot more active and inquisitive with her environment - might just be my imagination but i recon she's coloured up slightly too. I think bioactive set ups are amazing and so enriching for the animals, i only hope they become more popular in the hobby.
I really recommend BeachesScalyBeasts and SerpaDesigns on youtube for some really good pointers and walkthroughs of various background builds and bioactive setups, they where invaluable resources during my start up days of bioactive tanks.
Sorry for the info dump, this subject is just super interesting to me and im so excited to see more people embracing it.
