MotherofDragons
Member
@Tom asked me to share some pictures of my yearlings. Unfortunately, as one of the fastest iguanas in the world photo-ops are limited and potentially dangerous. These are little Velociraptor flight risks! I had one escape for a week once while trying to take pictures for a potential buyer. I mixed in some older pictures of them as well to show them off better. The flashy blues they fire-up to come and go as they develop I've noticed.
Ctenosauara melanosterna are a rare endangered species of Iguana that are primarily insectivorous as juveniles to one year, transitioning over that time to more greens/fruit/veggies. Similar to tortoises they thrive best off weeds, tree leaves like mulberry, etc. but they can also have fruits/veggies. Mine only get insects via tongs and are little fiends if they see you coming or hear that clinking sound. They will also take flowers & foods from my hands. Often they jump on the doors and me in excitement for bugs, causing a bit of anxiety about impending escape as I house them outdoors 24/7 this time of year. I plan to build a permanent outdoor enclosure I can walk in and sit with them soon which will help with bonding and allow me to interact with them more. They will need heated hides or to be brought indoors in the cold of winter, but winter is short here. They are smaller than a Rhino, males reach 36" (total length nose to tail), and can fit in one hand, and females closer to 24" Ty Park has referred to them as a mini-Cyclura in the past. They get bulky and gorgeous, a very dinosaur-esque look, and the most appealing to me of the Ctenosaura, an Iguana should have a dewlap I think! They're just starting to get more adult colors. Eventually they will have more stark contrasts of white/black and fire up turquoise/white.
They are a fun species, highly intelligent, recognize their keeper, and just an absolute blast to work with. They are very curious, and always watch everything I do intently. I do not forcibly hold them, but will lead them onto my hand with a roach reward at the end of the tongs. If they are really hungry they will perform a flying leap to yank it off the tongs, hanging there like loons before I put out my hand to support them; they can be characters. It's August and they are officially a year old now. I started with a group of 7 from two sources, and have whittled the group of keepers down to 4 (2.2). I still had hoped to rehome my 2nd female Cherry as right now I'm leaning towards keeping them as pets versus breeding. I've read of females laying up to 32 eggs per clutch (and double clutches in a year are possible). They are not a well known species and selling to people is aggravating in general so I'm carefully considering if I want to deal with all that. I do think they get less love than other Ctenosaura who don't get much love at all to begin with. I'm prejudiced, these are the best. There are only a handful of people I know of in the U.S. who work with the melanosterna and have adult pairs.
These are the most territorial and aggressive (toward each other) of all the Ctenosaura species. Long term keepers have stories of them killing each other, or eating a leg, even in large spacious enclosures, even after 10 years as a happily mated pair. It is a species you must always be prepared to separate. My research indicates most aggression is observed after egg-laying and initiated by angry females. Females are also unlikely to accept weak, small, or younger males and attack them. Kelly Paul still lists melanosterna as one of his top picks within the genus that make the best pets, they just require more work than say a pectinata.
This is Lucifer, probed Male.
This is Godzilla, probed Male. First two photos are from today, others are him about 6mos of age showing off lots of blues. He was the bravest of 7 early on, grew the largest and was obviously a male from the start. He is a little more shy now, and requires I move slowly for him to trust me. He is a stout, bulky guy and my favorite male appearance-wise, but Lucifer is friendlier.
Godzilla about 4-6mos old
Blue before her busted lip, no filter. When you catch that color coming through it's just incredible. She is more turquoise than anyone else. Picture taken indoors through glass. Maybe 4mos here.
Does anyone else keep any Ctenosaura species? I'm obsessed with mine and would love to see and hear about yours!!
Ctenosauara melanosterna are a rare endangered species of Iguana that are primarily insectivorous as juveniles to one year, transitioning over that time to more greens/fruit/veggies. Similar to tortoises they thrive best off weeds, tree leaves like mulberry, etc. but they can also have fruits/veggies. Mine only get insects via tongs and are little fiends if they see you coming or hear that clinking sound. They will also take flowers & foods from my hands. Often they jump on the doors and me in excitement for bugs, causing a bit of anxiety about impending escape as I house them outdoors 24/7 this time of year. I plan to build a permanent outdoor enclosure I can walk in and sit with them soon which will help with bonding and allow me to interact with them more. They will need heated hides or to be brought indoors in the cold of winter, but winter is short here. They are smaller than a Rhino, males reach 36" (total length nose to tail), and can fit in one hand, and females closer to 24" Ty Park has referred to them as a mini-Cyclura in the past. They get bulky and gorgeous, a very dinosaur-esque look, and the most appealing to me of the Ctenosaura, an Iguana should have a dewlap I think! They're just starting to get more adult colors. Eventually they will have more stark contrasts of white/black and fire up turquoise/white.
They are a fun species, highly intelligent, recognize their keeper, and just an absolute blast to work with. They are very curious, and always watch everything I do intently. I do not forcibly hold them, but will lead them onto my hand with a roach reward at the end of the tongs. If they are really hungry they will perform a flying leap to yank it off the tongs, hanging there like loons before I put out my hand to support them; they can be characters. It's August and they are officially a year old now. I started with a group of 7 from two sources, and have whittled the group of keepers down to 4 (2.2). I still had hoped to rehome my 2nd female Cherry as right now I'm leaning towards keeping them as pets versus breeding. I've read of females laying up to 32 eggs per clutch (and double clutches in a year are possible). They are not a well known species and selling to people is aggravating in general so I'm carefully considering if I want to deal with all that. I do think they get less love than other Ctenosaura who don't get much love at all to begin with. I'm prejudiced, these are the best. There are only a handful of people I know of in the U.S. who work with the melanosterna and have adult pairs.
These are the most territorial and aggressive (toward each other) of all the Ctenosaura species. Long term keepers have stories of them killing each other, or eating a leg, even in large spacious enclosures, even after 10 years as a happily mated pair. It is a species you must always be prepared to separate. My research indicates most aggression is observed after egg-laying and initiated by angry females. Females are also unlikely to accept weak, small, or younger males and attack them. Kelly Paul still lists melanosterna as one of his top picks within the genus that make the best pets, they just require more work than say a pectinata.
This is Lucifer, probed Male.
This is Godzilla, probed Male. First two photos are from today, others are him about 6mos of age showing off lots of blues. He was the bravest of 7 early on, grew the largest and was obviously a male from the start. He is a little more shy now, and requires I move slowly for him to trust me. He is a stout, bulky guy and my favorite male appearance-wise, but Lucifer is friendlier.
Godzilla about 4-6mos old
Blue before her busted lip, no filter. When you catch that color coming through it's just incredible. She is more turquoise than anyone else. Picture taken indoors through glass. Maybe 4mos here.
Does anyone else keep any Ctenosaura species? I'm obsessed with mine and would love to see and hear about yours!!
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