So about 1/3 of my 6'x2'x30'' "swamp" biope is land, with dirt that is a mix of peat pellets and several types of aquatic plant substrate, covered in live moss.
I've got a bunch of wiry manzanita branches going over the water area, covered in Spanish moss (which I could remove if necessary). The branches could support a lizard or frog, but not a huge one.
The land comes up a maximum of 4'' or so above the water line. Water depth maxes at about 11''. Water temp is ~80, ph is ~6.5, atmospheric temp is usually ~82, very high humidity, basking spot is currently ~90, although I can adjust that pretty easily.
There are some fish in the water, but the main inhabitant of the tank is my baby Reimanni snake necked turtle. When I first put him in the tank he spent quite a bit of his time on the land, but once he realized there was nothing scary in the water he took to it. Now he almost never comes on land.
So my question is this: what else could I put in here that would make more use of the terrestrial section of the tank?
I've thought of maybe some kind of lizard, aquatic snake, or frog. But it'd have to be something that wouldn't fight with or poison the turtle, as he is #1.
I was talking with a fellow MFKer about possibly putting a chameleon in there, but I'm concerned that a) the branches might not hold it (unless it's a smaller sp), b) if it falls off the branches it could drown, and c) it would require higher temperatures than I'm currently doing.
What about a green basilisk? My research seems to think they might work out in this setup.
Or maybe some kind of tree-frog? Eventually the turtle will get big enough to eat it I'd assume, but if it's not poisonous I should be able to remove it before there's any kind of issue.
Would LOVE any input or suggestions, I'm pretty new to reptiles and amphibians (as a responsible adult).
THANKS!
I've got a bunch of wiry manzanita branches going over the water area, covered in Spanish moss (which I could remove if necessary). The branches could support a lizard or frog, but not a huge one.
The land comes up a maximum of 4'' or so above the water line. Water depth maxes at about 11''. Water temp is ~80, ph is ~6.5, atmospheric temp is usually ~82, very high humidity, basking spot is currently ~90, although I can adjust that pretty easily.
There are some fish in the water, but the main inhabitant of the tank is my baby Reimanni snake necked turtle. When I first put him in the tank he spent quite a bit of his time on the land, but once he realized there was nothing scary in the water he took to it. Now he almost never comes on land.
So my question is this: what else could I put in here that would make more use of the terrestrial section of the tank?
I've thought of maybe some kind of lizard, aquatic snake, or frog. But it'd have to be something that wouldn't fight with or poison the turtle, as he is #1.
I was talking with a fellow MFKer about possibly putting a chameleon in there, but I'm concerned that a) the branches might not hold it (unless it's a smaller sp), b) if it falls off the branches it could drown, and c) it would require higher temperatures than I'm currently doing.
What about a green basilisk? My research seems to think they might work out in this setup.
Or maybe some kind of tree-frog? Eventually the turtle will get big enough to eat it I'd assume, but if it's not poisonous I should be able to remove it before there's any kind of issue.
Would LOVE any input or suggestions, I'm pretty new to reptiles and amphibians (as a responsible adult).
THANKS!
