chinese crocodile lizards

[CornSnakeLover]

wow there different

[Jon2ooo8]

after reading up on these species, i must say hats off to the both of you. a ) for getting your hands on these
b) gettig them to settle in.
after from what ive read these are extremely difficult to look after and please, but yours seem so happy,

[dave28]

chinese crocodile pics (various)

[xvickyx]

Wow they are beautiful

[dave28]

The Chinese Crocodile Lizard, otherwise known in the scientific world as the (Shinisaurus Crocolilurus) is classified as an endangered species, origanating from China in the hills and mountains of Hunan, Guangxi, Zhuang, and Guizhou provinces. There a semi aquatic lizard with enlarged boney scales which are plated, and ridged behind the eyes, running from there head down to there muscular tail just like a real crocodile in the wild. There head itself is like a head of an agama. The male tends to be more colourful than the female especially during the breeding season. The males head tends to be slightly bigger than the female, where as the females head is more rounded is the best way to put it, bit like her body as a whole. They have a fork tongue, which they use to help grab there prey and also to taste things. They have little pin prick teeth just like a bearded dragon but a tinsy bit smaller, but never the less they are sharp! A chinese Crocodile Lizard also has 3 eyelids, you got the outer eye lid which they close, then inside there is another eyelid like a white film that comes accross from the side of there eyes, then the 3rd is inside above there eyeball and there eye will go upwards towards there head. They certainly don't wake up easliy once asleep, even with a fair amount of noise. There not known as a very active lizard, they spend alot of time in the undergrowth or in a hollow log, but can have there moments where they beocome quite active and the dominent 1 will chase the other around, you hear a few thuds and bangs as they do. They communicate with there heads, the dominent 1 will anyway when giving orders via the old head bobbing up and down slowly, nowhere near as fast as say a bearded dragon, can be quite entertaining to watch. Overall there a quite shy lizard, easily spooked and tend to run for cover, noramlly a hiding spot like the hollow log or undergrowth, or the water pool as they will submerge themselves under water and can stay under water for sometime. A chinese Crocodile Lizard will spend sometime in a water pool during daylight hours, or be perched on overhanging branches above the water pool, where if they feel threatened they can just drop off branch into the pool below. They are handable and will sit in your hand not always play dead like most reports will tell you, but have a tendency to leap out your hand and they can move quick when they want to. There substrate is a mixture or orchid bark, and spagham moss and soil, temperature between 16 degrees celcius and 32 degrees celcius dependant on the time of year, but in the wild they can experience temps of around -4 degrees and will hibernate during the winter months. There diet consists of fish, tadpoles, snails, crickets, insects, earthworms, caterpillars, dragonfly larvae, grasshoppers, mealworms, although i wouldn't recommend mealworms as they have been known to get lodged in throat even just the small 1s and cause a blockage. They will grow to about 40-46cm (16-18 inches) They reach sexual maturity in around 2-3 years old and there breeding season in the wild would be around july/august time, and the female will carry the young for 9-12 months as they are livebearers and give birth to anything between 4 and 12 young which will become active within a few mins of being born. They have been known to be bred in captivity in other countries where the climate is different and there kept outside, far as im aware no1 has been successful in the united kingdom as of yet. And the success rate those lucky enough like myself to own some arn't that high in captivity so other reports have said and mention, but personally i've had no problems. i would say they are more for the more experienced keeper not for a novice thats for sure if you are ever lucky enough to lay your hands on 1 or more, they are like gold dust and certainly not many in the country and they cannot be exported from the wild as there a protected species, i know of someone who breeds them all the time in another country and it is possible to get some shipped from him as they are captive bred, maybe when the finances are right i may increase the number i have from a pair to more and possibly have more of a chance of getting this wonderful lizard to breed sucessfully, and i know there are alot of keen people interested in them out there who would be over the moon if myself or the other person i know in a certain reptile shop up north suceeds in getting hers to breed. Hope this information has been useful, its certainly the most extensive information you will find anywhere on the web about this wonderful species.

[dave28]

Pictures of 'HIDE' AND 'SEEK' (hide) nearest in the water pool, (seek) over the bk of pool amongst plants, and also the last picture thats 'HIDE' on the big hollow log at top on her way home inside the log (her favourite place).

[otb2]

Any updates on these?

[dave28]

Hello all click on the link if you would like to see all the pics of my pair of chinese crocodile lizards.

Chinese Crocodile Lizards | Facebook