Deer Fern Farms Uromastyx bLUETONGUE SKINK Page

Bluetongue Skinks

Merauke (Tiliqua gigas evanescens)


"Ocellated" (probable male)	"Pomona" (probable male)

"Orange Crush" (female)

Irian Jaya's (Tiliqua gigas gigas)


"Black Cherry" (male)	"Creamsicle" ()

Key Island (Tiliqua sp.)


"Stutter" (male)	"Stairs" (male)

Bluetongue Skinks are well know in the pet trade. There are numerous species and subspecies (most not fully studied as to their species status) inhabiting Australia, Irian Jaya and the Indonesian Islands. While Australia closed export of all wildlife many decades ago, Irian Jaya and the various Indonesian islands have remained sporadically open. Each island seems to have an isolated and thus slightly different subpopulation of Bluetongues, allowing for a subtle but interesting diversity of patterns and colors. Importation from any one island seems to be very limited, allowing a moderate group to be initially imported then maybe never seen again in the pet trade unless someone sets aside a group for a captive breeding project.

We began our efforts with Bluetongues with a select group of newborn Northerns in the mid 2000's. While we succeeded in producing a few Northern Bluetongues in 2008 and '09, various issues with the breeders prompted us to cut back to just the Island species. While they are notorious for being more difficult to breed than the Northerns, they just seem to be more interesting species to us. Plus they are much poorer represented in captivity as true captive born specimens and may be lost to herpetoculture once further importations cease. We've chosen to work primarily with the two more common Irian Jaya Bluetongues (Merauke and Mainland Irian Jaya's) as well as the as yet unnamed subspecies from Key Island. As with most our breeding projects, we seek to produce the highest contrast specimens possible, avoiding the dilutes, caramels, and similar faded colors popular with many commercial breeders. We are not moved by the rarity of the colors/patterns, but by how nice the specimens actually look. With our Merauke's, we have two lines - a high silver background and a high rose background. In both we are seeking those with as red of bands as possible, with each band outlined in jet black. We kinda have a "thing" for clean straight bands as well, so hopefully we'll be able to limit the propensity for broken and cross bands in all our lines as we move forward. These are all works-in-progress and progress will likely be slow at best, but we hope to be producing some exceptional specimens along the way. Our Meraukes and Irian Jaya's have been purchased as cherry picked adolescent individuals over the past several years so vary in their ages. We've still not definitively sexed all of them but finally got our first copulation attempts mid-winter 2012.

The Key Islands are a unique BT in that they have a shiny glassy almost mirror like cast to their scales. The banded pattern usally fades as they mature (an two of ours have done so) but the glass finish remains. We started out with 3 juveniles born of an imported gravid female. Unfortunately all three appear to be males so we're stuck looking for additional known sex individuals before we ca nhpe to produce any Key's. We're hoping to select for clearer adult patterns while keeping the glossy scales. Another long term project but they are a very interesting subspecies.

We're still looking for more breeding stock and sometimes buy clutches, of which we'll sell the extras. Let us know if you're looking for some and we'll see if we can help you. The going rate is around $125 each plus shipping, but that can vary greatly. Please let us know if you’re interested in any and if we’re sold out, we’ll put you on our waiting list. We keep a "Wanted" list and fill it as specimens become available so please e-mail or call us (360 435-2679) if you're looking to add a Bluetongue skink to your family.

General Care: Bluetongues do not normally play well with others, so we strongly recommend housing each individual in it's own private tank. They seem comfortable in moderate sized housing with a 3' to 4' "Critter Keeper" style tank working well for most individuals. They prefer moderate cage temperatures (mid to upper 80's throughout most of the tank floor with a hotter basking area in the mid 90's) with night time lows in the 70'sF. They seem to do best in low to moderate humidity environments but need daily access to a large water bowl in which to soak. We cover the floor with either chunky Core (coconut husk fiber) or aspen shavings. We place a low shelter off to one side of the pen for a sleeping hide but otherwise keep the cages clear of ornamentation. Bluetongues are omnivores and do well on a variety of diets. We follow the practice of most breeders and rear ours on a base diet of high quality canned dog food with added minerals (Miner-ALL -(I) indoor version). To that we add the occasional insect, slugs/snails, and fruit/veggies (grated squash, peas, carrots, etc.). The goal is to offer a high protein, low fat diet and offer a variety.

We are avid supporters of captive breeding and are always looking to support fellow breeders by purchasing healthy captively produced clutches of the reptiles we work with. Please let us know if you have an interest in wholesaling your clutches. We hold all purchased specimens until well acclimated so we can verify their condition and to let them settle in before being offered to the public. So you can rest assured your hatchlings will be well cared for. We occasionally buy exceptional adults as well. E-mail us photos if you wish us to consider your specimens.