Just a reminder. Depending on where people live, and what species they own, this time of year can be problematic for a number of Reptiles and Amphibians wrt heat. Amphibians are at very high risk during these periods. Cool-loving mole salamanders need special attention. Cool-Forest-edge and Cool-Forest pygmy chameleons, higher altitude Montaine Chameleons, ombrophilus (rain loving) and trophophilous (change loving) chameleons {which over-lap highly with cool-forest-edge chameleons} are at most risk from the increased ambient temperatures. I have reported to me the highest losses of pygmy and Jackson chameleons during the hot summer months. For species able to tolerate a short period out of their vivs, the sunlight outdoors provides an excellent opportunity to gain the best rays from the sun (especially UVB). But take care not to overheat any reptile, and to take note of any stressors (such as birds in the sky) causing distress. Exposure to high intensity UVB does not require a long exposure duration. The UV light that passes through most glass windows will also benefit many species of reptile. There is a myth that UV cannot pass through normal glass. That is not wholly true. Whilst most UVB is blocked by most glass, most common glass is quite transparent to UVA. Exposure to UVA can increase the well-being, and pep-up some species. UVA can also be involved in Vitamin D3 synthesis in certain species of animal or in certain biochemical situations. Taking Action to avoid overheating: Apart from normal husbandry routines of having temperatures checked (turning off heating and lighting in confined spaces), ventilation, watering, the summer months requires some added thought to these factors. Having thermostats on heating equipment is of little use in controlling temperatures if ambient temperatures rise too much. Suitable fans placed above the tank can be a god-send. One cheap idea is to use computer pc fans (cost a few quid each) and hook-up a good number of them to a 9 volt power source across the vivs. That costs very little to install. Humdity (water vapour) and water spraying......there is a big difference between the two. The difference could be the difference between life and death for certain species: If a suitable high-output fogger or air-conditioning is available, then that sorts the solution. But not everyone has such equipment. Natural Humidity (in our sense here) is water that has an extra energy content (called the latent heat of vaporisation). In water, that energy is high (that is why a gram of steam at 100 C is much more damaging to the skin than a gram of water at 100 C !!). When the water in water vapour (humidity) condenses, it passes the latent heat of vaporisation to the body it lands on (ie it heats the body up somewhat). Sometime after that latent heat has been passed to the body, the water condensed on the surface of the body will then take heat from the body and evaporate (which will cool the body down) if the humidity is lowered. Hence, I would recommend having an increase in humidity early in the morning which will then start to act as a coolant during the hotter periods of the day. Water spraying should follow the morning increased humidity. Water spraying on the animal, however, is something much different to humidity as it acts like rain. It is unlikely to have a heating effect (until it turns to water vapour at a later stage), but is more likely to have a 2-fold cooling effect (one of simple temperature gradient changes, and one of grabbing latent heat of evaporation from the body at a later time) I would recommend water spraying to be used as if it were rain during the hot periods....and ombrophiles will more than love it anyway.
Posted on: Wed, 10 Jul 2013 10:52:44 +0000
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