Nephrurus enclosure

[Lemons]

Hi all,

Another new build for me (figure I can also make this at the same time as the Bredli cage). New to keeping any type of knob-tails (going for Nephururs Levis Levis) so the design below is based on my readings. I'd like to eventually get 2 or 3 in there (2 females 1 male, or just 2 females)

Any feedback on the setup would be super appreciated. Specifically:
1) I read that if the enclosure is high enough, you don't need a lid - I'm ok with that, but will a lid (w ventilation) help maintain a better temperature?
2) Will a heatpad sandwiched between two tiles be enough heat? - it would sit at the bottom of ~10cm of sand. I didn't want them burrowing and directly hit the heat pad, so I thought using tiles would protect it while still allowing heat transfer.
3) Do I need a heat lamp as well? I thought they come out after sunset, so need for one of those if the heatpad is enough?
4) The LED (or another type?) is for daytime cycle, but if I get a colour changing one, I could try and turn it to just blue or red at night so I can watch then perhaps?
5) The humid hide - placed at the cool end, right?
6) Any significant differences with the pulse vs on/off type of thermostat/timers? Not sure which one to get
7) Is the size of the enclosure sufficient for 2 or 3 geckos? Are 1 warm and 1 cool/humid hide sufficient for this number of geckos?

Thanks again for having a look, and if there is anything else that I did not cover in my questions, please let me know!

 

[Sdaji]

1) Depends how you set it up. Probably. I've always used lids, if nothing else, to keep the insects in.

2) Yes. I've only ever used heat mats or cord (under the tub). Ensure it's high enough Wattage.

3) No.

4) I've never used lights, it's entirely for your viewing enjoyment. They don't need it unless you're keeping them in a room without windows. As you've mentioned, they're nocturnal.

5) I've never used a humidity gradient, I've generally put a hide at the warm end. If anything, that's the end I keep most moist.

6) Pulse is better. Dimming is equally good but for heat mats isn't any better.

7) I used to keep hundreds of them and have never kept them in an enclosure that large. Having said that, I generally kept them individually rather than in groups, and only put them together for mating.

I spent years keeping hundreds of these things, they thrived and bred like flies, I used to get a clutch every 3-4 weeks year 'round from some of the females, my first one laid her first clutch at under six months of age, and I put less total thought into enclosure design than you have into making your diagram. I never even once used a water bowl with any Nephrurus, they went for consecutive generations without seeing standing water and were fully hydrated just from hanging out in moist sand (and if the sand dried out for a while it didn't matter - you can easily visually see if they are dehydrated and it was never an issue with mine). I kept the furnishings absolutely minimal - sand and one very basic hide - I started out using terracotta pot saucers with an entrance hole knocked out and later converted to plastic jar lids.. The simple design was partly because it was easier to set up and partly because it meant the feed insects didn't have anywhere to hide, which was better for everyone other than the insects, whose welfare I wasn't much concerned with anyway.

Cool lizards, they're one of the old projects I miss.

My preference would be for enclosures half the size of yours with one lizard per enclosure. I would go for enclosures larger than most people use for things like small monitors, Blue-tongueds, etc, but for these I wouldn't worry about a large enclosure unless you enjoy looking at it. Many people do keep these in groups, but I find it easier to manage them when kept singly, and it's the only way to easily manage how much each individual eats. Keeping them in groups often ends up resulting in one fat lizard and one scrawny one, a problem I never had, and managing their individual feeding was no doubt part of why I was getting about 15+ clutches per year per female - incidentally, before anyone whinges about me overbreeding them, they retained sperm, it's not like I was pairing them up between each clutch, but it's worth keeping in mind that some males will wear females out if kept together constantly, not just from getting them to breed too much but also from all that rapey time.