Mangrove monitors and enclosure idea!!

[sweetangel]

Hi every one,
well i am totally obsessed with my 2 ackies, and was browsing herp trader and saw mangrove monitors for sale. now i had never even though twice about them before i had seen pics of those babies.... now i am obsessed.
They look stunning. i have done searches on this site but most is from very old posts.

So i just want to find out a bit of info about them. Cage requirements, temperament, feeding??

any info at all... if they are easy to keep like ackies.

I know they need lots of water to swim in and they eat fish and crabs as well as the usual monitor food. that seems easy enough.

Also one important question, what temps do they need to be kept at??

the reason this is so important is because i am planning to keep them outside if temps permit, well not quite outside, but in an atrium that we have in the middle of our house.

Here are some pics, i am planning to fill up most of the space thats under floor level, but leave some sunk down for a pool/ water.

What do u guys think, are they as active and interesting to watch as ackies

this is a big plan, and i cant get them for at least a year because of liscencing.

so yeah any info and pics or names of breeders would be brilliant

Cheers

 

[tattoolizzie]

wow, that is going to make one awesome enclosure!! I am so jealous.

 

[sweetangel]

lol yeah i can believe i have convinced mum and dad to do it it was going to be diamond pythons other wise, but i though a pretty monitor that will run around all day will be far more interesting as all my diamond does is hide lol.
but it will take a bit of work to make it reptile friendly, but i totally cant wait

 

[cris]

I think they would be ok if you provde enough heating, heating the water and providing a basking spot should do. It will chew up a bit of power, but on hot summer days you probably wouldnt need to heat while there is good sunlight to bask in. A water temp in the high 20's and a basking spot of 50C or more should do.

 

[Australis]

I love your house.

 

[JJS.]

One word: Awesome!

 

[imported_Varanus]

Hi there,

Have you considered local Lacies? Crocdoc breeds some brilliant animals in both looks and temperment.

Just a thought.

 

[redbellybite]

i think it would be great what ever you put in there ....

 

[herptrader]

This subject has come up a few times... I have even asked it myself :lol:

http://www.aussiepythons.com/forum/...eps-them-and-what-are-their-setups-like-76536
http://www.aussiepythons.com/forum/general-herps/varanus-indicus-mangrove-monitor-86213

Good looking Mangroves along with good looking bells form lacies are I think some of the best looking herps around

I love your set up but I don't think it would be practical to heat for mangrove monitors.

If it was mine I would put a cage on top, so the monitors can get up into direct sunlight for most of the day, and put a big climbing tree up the middle and put some lacies in there. (and not supply additional heating).

As for the mangroves I would be building a purpose build well insulated enclosure with a large swimming tub which can be easily drained etc.

 

[herptrader]

These were the best care sheets I found:

http://webhome.idirect.com/~varanus/mangrovef2.html
http://varanidae.org/Varanews/VN3_6.pdf

 

[dougie210]

Yeh i agree with herptrader, put lacies in there! But OMG! That will make such an awsome enclosure!!! Plus your neighbours will be thinking why are there these big lizards on there roof?

 

[spongebob]

My brother when he lived in Portugal had a similar open part in the centre of the house. Inside were cacti etc. Occasionally a local scops owl would get entrapped-trying the fly out horizontally rather than vertically!
I totally agree with the previous comments-best suited for a lace goanna. You will need to do a lot of adapting for a mangrove monitor.

 

[sweetangel]

well thinking about it.... it would be hard to maintain humidity in there.... as well as heat....

so what can people tell me about laccie's??

would it be big enough for them.... i think its 2.5m by 4m...

i know they grow big and they are very pretty...

but what about temperament? are the very vicious or can they be placid/ taken out an handled....

cos bear in mind the only monitors i have kept are akies.... and it still will be a year before i would get one anyway.

so yeah any other advice would be brilliant

cheers everyone

 

[imported_Varanus]

Hi again,

No large Monitors (any Monitor species for that matter) are particularly amenable to handling and even the "tamest" animals can mistake your actions for a feeding response. Needless to say, a bite from a large Monitor can require surgery and months of rehab, so handling should be kept to a minimum.

Having said that, I and may others , have had Lacies that were very calm and confident in most situations and accepted minimal handling (ie; removing from their enclosure to wander about the house or to be placed in an outdoor enclosure when weather permitted). They are the most enjoyable captives IMO if you have the patience to allow them to adjust to their surroundings. A great experience all-round and a pleasure to keep.

Hopefully others can add to this as well to help you make an informed decision.

Cheers,

I.V.

 

[imported_Varanus]

P.S; I kept a pair in an enclosure of 3.6x 1.2x 2.4 without any problems, however, they were given the run of the basement (a 10 metre squared area) on occasion.

 

[Aslan]

Sweetangel - I think it is doable for Mangroves - in order to maintain humidity cover the roof space with a clear plastic sheet (it works with hot houses for plants). Heat the water and provide a good basking spot and I reckon it would work...

It would be a shame not to utilise that space for one of the larger Monitor species - Mertens could be kept in a similar setup to the Mangroves, Lacies would work well too as described by others earlier...

 

[fishead]

What about a couple of heath monitors varanus rosenbergi, I think that spot would be ideal for them with a bit of tweeking. They are only roughly half the size of lacies and if you haven't seen a juvenile before you are in for a real treat for the eyes!

 

[herptrader]

What about a couple of heath monitors varanus rosenbergi, I think that spot would be ideal for them with a bit of tweeking. They are only roughly half the size of lacies and if you haven't seen a juvenile before you are in for a real treat for the eyes!

As juveniles I think Rosenbergi are beautiful. One of my goanna books includes quite a bit of research on them. Alas I know little about their captive husbandry.

 

[herptrader]

Our guys are quite shy still but they seem to be doing ok.

This one is what I anticipate is the female.

She has quite a serious look on her face :lol:

 

[sweetangel]

wow they are amazing looking

was just in melbourne a few days ago and was talking to someone in a pet shop (sorry i cant remember your name dan or dave maybe) but yeah i was looking for good books on monitors so i can have a really good read to decide what i get.... there are just so many different ones that are awesome!!

So yeah if any one has any good books on aussie monitors if u could give me the names that would be sweet!! and where to get them... cant find them any where!

cheers all.

cant wait to change that area into a monitor enclosure!!