Small Angry Plant

Hello, you've found a pretty green little blog all about bioactive reptile and amphibian setups in typical homes. I am happy to answer any questions you might have. Profile picture © Jo Smith of Westcoast Exotics

[fancytunaaaaaaa-blog]

[hearts-of-fire]

Here is a VERY brief tutorial for setting up an arid environment bioactive tank.

1) Start off with a base layer of substrate that will hold moisture. I used a mix of organic potting soil, spagnum moss, eco earth and bark chips (just because I had them). Leave a space where your UTH is going.

2) Next add your more sandy layer. This is about a 50:50 mixture of organic potting soil and play sand, with some eco earth. Cover the empty space about the UTH with this mixture.

3) Using just about anything, place your permanent hides. I used some water bottles and an OJ bottle cut in half, and some shelf organizers.

4) Add your permanent decor. These are items that you want to be secure in place. This should include plants with roots.

5) Mix up some excavator clay. You can add some play sand to this if you wish. Cover all exposed substrate areas and hides with this mixture.

6) Before it dries, you can sprinkle some play sand if you prefer that look over the clay look. Pack it down and let dry.

7) Add any final touches, and your cleaner crew.

8) Let the tank stand for at least a few days before adding animals. This allows time for the cleaners to find a safe place and the plants and substrate to set.

This tank isn’t completely finished yet, I’d like to add some more clay to cover the rest of the plastic and make the inclines more gradual. But for now it will do.

[gay-snoodle-deactivated20170105]

Attention Reptiblr!

Okay so I really wanna fill my dash with more reptiles! So if you could please reblog this if you post any of the following!

-reptiles -snakes -lizards -kenyan sand boas -ball pythons -corn snakes -colubrids -constrictors

I’ll be checking out everyone who reblogs this so hopefully I can follow a lot of people!

[tailsandco]

Kabuki’s hide box right here!

[hearts-of-fire]

She loves her little cave

[i-m-snek]

What is bioactive?

A bioactive enclosure is basically mimicking the natural setting of the animal as much as possible. So it is basically a tiny ecosystem in a cage. Some people do it because they don’t want to clean up poop, but it doesn’t actually work like that. It is an entire ecosystem that could possibly crash, and it needs to be taken care of. It is actually a ton more work than just a regular set up cage, but it provides awesome enrichment and encourages natural behaviors of the animal :) 

[fimbry-talks]

That is interesting, how are you maintaining yours currently that it is so much work? From my experience, bioactives are some work to get materials together and sorted, but after that it is even easier than traditional “sterile” methods to maintain!

My work in my bioactive enclosures is very short and easy, some spot cleaning here and there if I see anything. In more established enclosures, the cleaning crew and bacteria get very efficient so it only gets easier with time too. After my first bio was set up for a year, the cleaning crew could even quickly eat entire shed skins! It’s amazing.

[thegreenlizardmachine-blog1]

Not to mention everything about a bioactive setup is 10 times more appealing to a nature/reptile enthusiast then a sterile enclosure stuffed with plastic plants! Instead of that stale plastic or bin smell, you get the fresh scent of a mossy forest escape. It is a world more visually appealing to have live plants and real wood branches instead of fake plastic and cork.

[daedricsnakes]

Vaermina seems to really enjoy exploring her viv. She’s still not living in it yet (soon, hopefully), but I let her in it a few minutes a day to check it out, and she makes good use of that time, poking her nose in every inch of the space. I love it!

[fsthhdwefg-deactivated20180515]

Ethical/Unethical Fancy-Bred Fish

Okay/healthy most of the time:

-selectively bred colour variants (usually causes no problems since colour is only scale-deep, however some variants like dragonscale bettas and certain patterned clownfish have genetic issues unrelated to colour but resulting from genetic bottlenecking)

-long-finned variants of certain species (bettas and angelfish in particular. Ideal fish are naturally slow swimmers that are not excessively hampered by the extra fin length. Even so, problems may arise in cases of extreme length or weight such as rose/feathertail bettas and SVT angels)

-GloFish (are absolutely identical to natural forms in every way except colour. The patenting/legal issues surrounding them are still mighty sketchy, though)

Grey area/debatable:

-round bodied fancy goldfish (while these deformities undoubtedly cause swimming/buoyancy/digestive issues, the fact that they’ve been around for centuries means the community has a pretty good handle on how to mitigate the damage, a well-informed keeper can humanely keep fancy goldfish without too much trouble)

-long-finned cichlid variants (seen most often in rams, Oscars and other S/CA cichlids. Can be kept generally without issue in single-occupant specimen tanks, but will be a frequent target in most community tanks)

-hybrid cichlids (flowerhorns, blood parrots and hybrid peacocks are the most common. As our understanding of their needs increases, it becomes more and more ethical to keep these fish. It is still very necessary to plan for the unpredictablility of their behavior, depending on which behavioral traits they retain from one or another parent species)

Unethical/not-okay:

-balloon-belly cichlids, livebearers and gouramis (just don’t do it. So many health issues, these fish cannot be kept ethically, and should not be bred. Continuing to buy them, even as “rescues” fuels the demand and keeps them on the market. Just don’t do it.)

-extremely deformed fancy goldfish (bubble eyes, pearlscales etc. Breeding of these fish needs to be ceased immediately)

-long-finned tetras, barbs, danios and minnows (these are highly-active, fast moving schooling fish. Long, heavy fins absolutely prevent them from living proper lives, and in particularly nippy fish can succumb to infection after repeatedly receiving bites to their oversized fins)

DEFINITELY NOT OKAY:

-bicephalic arowana (do I even need to expand on why this is not okay?)

-zigzag fish (should generally be culled for humane reasons, definitely should never be bred)

[jayce-space]

All of this! People don’t get why I get upset at some lines. Also for the commenter, zigzag fish are fish with deformed spines to make an z/s shape either horizontally or vertically. They’re culls…it’s very painful and impedes quality of life greatly. Some people think it looks cool… Which isn’t.

[jayce-space]

I actually feel very strongly about this topic and have convinced my lfs to stop selling balloon bodies and some long fins… I see nothing but problems with deformities from grey down… Even long fins I do see issues with from time to time. I’ve seen a bicephalic (two headed) eel being sold… I raised hell because they know better…

[fimbry-talks]

A good list break down. For people having trouble finding examples for zigzags, I imagine it’s probably similar to the “King Arowanas” people breed for.

Deformed spine but selected for in the name of beauty.

Normal Asian arowana for comparison:

[leviathan939]

Woodland vivarium. Tiger salamanders.

April 23, 2016 Update. I decided to add another lemon cypress and some blue spruce seedlings. The additional trees give it a much more filled out look that I was originally hoping for. The initially planted Ficus trees are growing in new foliage and doing quite well. The Ficus planted in the second planting all seem to have handled transplanting very well. New growth and visible root expansion. The cypress are stable seeming, though not showing much in terms of growth. The tiger salamanders seem quite comfortable and like to come out and beg for bugs when they notice me. Only time will tell how well this setup will work in the long run, but I am optimistic about it’s future.

[thegreenlizardmachine-blog1]

My five baby crested geckos

[double-char]

He waits

[thegreenlizardmachine-blog1]

What does he wait for

[thegreenlizardmachine-blog1]

Asparagus Fern and Succulent living together in harmony.

[leviathan939]

April 12, 2016 Italian crested newt tank progress.

These guys are growing like crazy. The plants have exploded with growth. I have seen spermatophores and I suspect my females could be gravid.

[leviathan939]

Woodland vivarium for fire salamanders.

[pirumparummoved]

today i re-vamped the tree frog vivarium with some new plants. the previous plants in there (boston fern) did not make it with such high humidity so i added anthurium, more pothos and something else that i don’t recognize. look at how sweet my little frog is sleeping on a leaf! 

[kaijutegu]

what's a good hydrometer for a reptile?

I like this one! It is a cigar hygrometer, made for a market that gets really upset if their humidity is off. It’s accurate to with one percent and it tracks averages so you can make sure that things are stable! It’s also easily recalibratable which is useful… BUT it’s most accurate at the higher end of the humidity spectrum. If you’re keeping a humid species, great! But under 50% it can be a bit inaccurate. This one is also pretty good. It’s a little less accurate and can be as much as 5% off, but it handles the low end better! Both of these have magnet mounts. The magnets are a little weak to actually stick through glass, but if you buy a couple of those really powerful neodymium/rare earth/whatever magnets to use as anchors, you could easily mount either of these inside the tank or vivarium or whatever without having to worry about sticky stuff around your herp!

[shadowsthetitle]

Remenission, or Remi for short 😍 Any live plant recommendations for when I get him/her a tall tank? @crest

[pallanophblargh]

I rewarded myself for turning 30 by buying a whole box of sedums and sempervivums from my favorite local nursery! And these cuties from @purpletabby arrived in the mail at the same time! Rain or not, I am going to spend a chunk of today weeding and planting, and will hopefully get back into the real swing of things this evening.