Corucia Digestion

Leeway Corucia Research Center(LCRC)


From: Oceanic Giant Skinks

Corucia Digestion



A normal Corucia turd has the appearance and size of a pretzel nugget or the end of a cigar and will have a smoky smell.

Corucia urine will often be clear but can be colored red. The red color can occur from several aspects-probably only food related. Through a leavy green food source containing Oxiliates such as Pothos leaves,, the urine will always have a red color. This is due to the fact that with such plants as Pothos contain a toxin to keep hungry herbivores from eating the leaves. Corucia zebrata has trough the course of evolution, evolved the means to process this toxin and digest the leaves without diliterious effects. If a Corucia has been passing clear urine, an effective means (B.Schnirel 2001 & others) to measure digestive processing time can be utilized by giving Pothos and measuring the time it takes to see red urine. At times with Corucia urine, white urates will be passed.

At defecation times, Corucia will often 'pass air'. To one who isn't used to this, it can be quite surprising and amusing.

Corucia like Iguanas and other animals, will pick their spot to pee and defectate. Quite often, they will used their soaking dish to accomplish this.

A Corucia ready to go with lift the hind quarters up with the tail raised and wiggle the hips from side to side just before commensing with bowl movements.

Brian L. Schnirel
LCRC

Digestive Times

Interestingly, one of a trio I acquired about two and a half years ago passed cantaloupe seeds about a week and a half after I got them. Since I had not fed them cantaloupe, I can only assume that's how long it took the seeds to pass through their digestive systems, from a meal they eaten some time before they were shipped to me.

-- Celeste

Hi Celeste,


That is interesting.

Did your Corucia pass anything else during that week to week 1/2? Otherwise, she/he may have had a temporary intestinal blockage. Usually corucia pass food fairly quickly - especially if allowed to soak or gain access to misting or a natural rainshower. You may already know this, but a good way to track Corucia digestion is to feed them Pothos only and watch for them urinate. The urine becomes a distinctive brown. By the elapsed time from feeding to seeing this, you can determine the digestion rate (I might have posted this observation previously).

Hope all is well with your skinks and with you.

Sincerely,
Brian
LCRC

Addendum:

Urine is reddish brown with Pothos digestion and I apologise. I did mention it above.

Getting senile in mmy old age!

Sincerely,
Brian
LCRC