urbanjungles
BeastMaster
Just wanted to share a pic of my 4 month old Ambilobe...I can't wait to see what he's gonna look like in a year!
-
Responding to email notices you receive.
**************************************************
In short, DON'T! Email notices are to ONLY alert you of a reply to your private message or your ad on this site. Replying to the email just wastes your time as it goes NOWHERE, and probably pisses off the person you thought you replied to when they think you just ignored them. So instead of complaining to me about your messages not being replied to from this site via email, please READ that email notice that plainly states what you need to do in order to reply to who you are trying to converse with.
-
IMPORTANT! PLEASE READ!! About the Google Adsense ads being displayed
=====================
Posted 08/15/2025
=====================
Yeah, I know. They are a pain in the butt. But they pay the bills to keep my server running. Just a fact of life, I am afraid.
Want to get rid of them? Simple. Just become a Contributor level member or above and they will be gone. -> Please click HERE."
Is that too much for me to ask of you to keep this site running? Well, sorry about that. I too wish I could get everything for free. But alas.....
=====================
Addendum: 01/10/2026
=====================
Google Adsense ad revenue for December, 2025 was just $30 over the cost of the lease for the server running this site. So, in effect, the money providing the incentive for me to continue running this site is coming SOLELY from the paid memberships and sponsorships here. Which honestly ain't much....
Ambilobe Male
- Thread starter urbanjungles
- Start date
mattjillson
New member
Looking good!
Hey Danny,
That male is looking really, REALLY good, that is some of the best blue in a Panther's bars I have seen. Glad you're liking him and that you got him. So far all the people who have gotten something from that clutch have been supremely pleased. Already a screamer but damn, when he is adult he is going to be something seriously interesting. Looking forward to getting one of your new local babies!
-Matt
Hey Danny,
That male is looking really, REALLY good, that is some of the best blue in a Panther's bars I have seen. Glad you're liking him and that you got him. So far all the people who have gotten something from that clutch have been supremely pleased. Already a screamer but damn, when he is adult he is going to be something seriously interesting. Looking forward to getting one of your new local babies!
-Matt
urbanjungles
BeastMaster
Thanks Matt, this guy has more than exceeded my expectations in every way so far...
I can't wait until he's HUGE!!!
I can't wait until he's HUGE!!!
mattjillson
New member
Updates???
Hey Danny,
Do you have any picture updates on this heart breaker? Would love to see how he is coming along. Thanks.
Hey Danny,
Do you have any picture updates on this heart breaker? Would love to see how he is coming along. Thanks.
urbanjungles
BeastMaster
Well Matt...
I dunno what do you think, I'm not all that impressed.....
NOT
Isn't he friggin' awesome!
I dunno what do you think, I'm not all that impressed.....
NOT
Isn't he friggin' awesome!
Reptileking636
New member
That is an understatement! He is a killer, definately keep up with the updates and more pics!
mattjillson
New member
Drool....
DAMN Danny that male is looking pretty awesome. Well, I asked for an update and you sure provided one. Just crazy to see the development from your first pic to this one. Well, it really is a no brainer when you look at the bloodlines that made this screamer - Phoenix and a offspring from Cyclops. But I will admit after you giving me the details on your setup, what you're feeding him and the frequency I guarantee that too is playing a HUGE part in this animal's continued success and second to none coloration. What is it, Crickets, Superworms, 7 species of Roaches, 2 species of Walking Sticks and varied insects you collect plus you never cycle in the same feeder less than a week apart? Man, that is putting the "V" in variation no doubt. Fill us in a little bit more about your set up and feeders plus how you maintain them as I am sure everyone here would love to get some insight into that. Thanks.
-Matt
DAMN Danny that male is looking pretty awesome. Well, I asked for an update and you sure provided one. Just crazy to see the development from your first pic to this one. Well, it really is a no brainer when you look at the bloodlines that made this screamer - Phoenix and a offspring from Cyclops. But I will admit after you giving me the details on your setup, what you're feeding him and the frequency I guarantee that too is playing a HUGE part in this animal's continued success and second to none coloration. What is it, Crickets, Superworms, 7 species of Roaches, 2 species of Walking Sticks and varied insects you collect plus you never cycle in the same feeder less than a week apart? Man, that is putting the "V" in variation no doubt. Fill us in a little bit more about your set up and feeders plus how you maintain them as I am sure everyone here would love to get some insight into that. Thanks.
-Matt
urbanjungles
BeastMaster
Well...
You make it sound like it's all some sort of master husbandry plan Matt but much like the rest of my collection I'm just learning something new everyday and so I like to experiment with as many parameters as possible. All of your info and that of Jim's has also been really helpful. I really haven't much of a clue of what I'm doing as a chameleon noob.
Firstly I guess I'll start with his cage:
I have him in a 2'x2'x4' indoor cage (for the long NJ winter ahead) which has dual reptisun 4' flourescents running the entire hieght of the cage along the side so that he can bask with ease from anywhere he chooses in the cage. I have alot of dogs and I was worried that they would intimidate him and keep him from behaving normally so I offered alot of foliage (he isn't really bothered by them at all luckily). On top of the cage I have a 160W "Capture the Sun" MV bulb and not visible in this pic (installed recently) is another 10" clamp lamp resting on top of the cage with a 100 watt flood bulb just to provide a broader light and temperature gradient for him to choose his optimal spot. I've also added some more horizontal branches to the top of the cage so that he has additional basking sites so that he can warm up to whatever temps he needs. Light cycle is 12/12 because he has to share the room with my beloved Corallus who prefer that photoperiod. His basking area ranges from 110 degrees near the very top to the low 70's towards the bottom druing the day. I dunno if you can see it in the pic but behind his cage is a small sliding window which I leave slightly cracked now, it really creates a broad temperature gradient and I notice he definitely like to sleep in the cooler area near the window at night. I don't supply any heat at night as the room never dips too low since my treeboas are here too. For the summer I plan on building a huge outdoor walk in enclosure which I've kind of always wanted to do with some nice exotic plants (another hobby) that will be connected to a greenhouse
Watering and humidity needs are met in a few ways. Of course I always keep a couple of plastic cups with pinholes that I will usually fill on a daily basis and allow to drip onto the foliage below but the cage is also connected to my pro-products misting system which (is really for the Corallus) mists the cage for about 2 minutes a day at various intervals. I often see him licking up water after the sprayers go off. Lastly I run an ultrasonic humidifier into the cage, mostly at night just to keep those humidity levels up during these days when the baseboard heater starts kicking up and dryng out the air. Although he's not a big fan of it, I will usually put him in the shower on a branch about once a week where he takes a 1/2 hour or so shower and takes a hearty drink....I'm kinda paranoid about dehydration. I really do this mostly for my other pet Chameleon, my CB Melleri on a daily basis who really loves it...
But I figure it doesn't hurt to throw Bling in there once in a while too.
As far as feeding goes, this is where I cheat a bit. I'm lucky enough that my profession entails working closely with an entemologist and caring for a large group of inverts which really allows me to play with his menu. I try to offer a new food item every day in the way of various roaches like Cuban greens, Central American Cave roach nymphs, Hissers, Beetle-mimics, Australians, Death heads and lobster roaches. All roaches are strictly cup-fed to prevent escapes. He also gets the typical fare of crickets, superworms, silkworms and just for variation I throw in some aisan mantid nymphs, vietnamese stick insects, and Australian prickly stick nymphs. If you don't know what these are they look like this as adults....
...and are about the size of my hand. I'm lucky enough to live on an eco-friendly farm where I'm positive that no insecticides are used, So during this passed summer Bling has also munched on several species of grasshoppers, leafhoppers, small spiders, moths, beetles, houseflies, and the occasional grubs I dig up while doing work. I have barely used anything other than the occasional calcium suppliment (but that'll change for the winter, slightly) and a good gutload of fresh veggies, grains, etc. On Jim's advice I am going to try that prepared gutload for crickets that you guys use down at the Cham. Co.
My Melleri (his name is Obi) gets the same diet although he seems to like a little less variety and I have a much more aggressive humidity/watering regimen for him. He usually hops in the shower every night for a few minutes just before I do...as if my wife didn't hog up the shower enough.
My goal for Bling is to soon have him feeding on these...
(JK)
Thanks for all the good words. But this animal's coloration is primarily do to the fact that Matt, you have created a phenomenal pairing out of outstanding stock...pure natural perfection, as close as you can get to it anyways. And I can't wait to see what the Chameleon Company churns out in the next few months...you guys are creating amazing living (and as a purist) naturally occurring art.
PS-Finally got my Reptiles delivered....great article!!!!!
You make it sound like it's all some sort of master husbandry plan Matt but much like the rest of my collection I'm just learning something new everyday and so I like to experiment with as many parameters as possible. All of your info and that of Jim's has also been really helpful. I really haven't much of a clue of what I'm doing as a chameleon noob.
Firstly I guess I'll start with his cage:
I have him in a 2'x2'x4' indoor cage (for the long NJ winter ahead) which has dual reptisun 4' flourescents running the entire hieght of the cage along the side so that he can bask with ease from anywhere he chooses in the cage. I have alot of dogs and I was worried that they would intimidate him and keep him from behaving normally so I offered alot of foliage (he isn't really bothered by them at all luckily). On top of the cage I have a 160W "Capture the Sun" MV bulb and not visible in this pic (installed recently) is another 10" clamp lamp resting on top of the cage with a 100 watt flood bulb just to provide a broader light and temperature gradient for him to choose his optimal spot. I've also added some more horizontal branches to the top of the cage so that he has additional basking sites so that he can warm up to whatever temps he needs. Light cycle is 12/12 because he has to share the room with my beloved Corallus who prefer that photoperiod. His basking area ranges from 110 degrees near the very top to the low 70's towards the bottom druing the day. I dunno if you can see it in the pic but behind his cage is a small sliding window which I leave slightly cracked now, it really creates a broad temperature gradient and I notice he definitely like to sleep in the cooler area near the window at night. I don't supply any heat at night as the room never dips too low since my treeboas are here too. For the summer I plan on building a huge outdoor walk in enclosure which I've kind of always wanted to do with some nice exotic plants (another hobby) that will be connected to a greenhouse
Watering and humidity needs are met in a few ways. Of course I always keep a couple of plastic cups with pinholes that I will usually fill on a daily basis and allow to drip onto the foliage below but the cage is also connected to my pro-products misting system which (is really for the Corallus) mists the cage for about 2 minutes a day at various intervals. I often see him licking up water after the sprayers go off. Lastly I run an ultrasonic humidifier into the cage, mostly at night just to keep those humidity levels up during these days when the baseboard heater starts kicking up and dryng out the air. Although he's not a big fan of it, I will usually put him in the shower on a branch about once a week where he takes a 1/2 hour or so shower and takes a hearty drink....I'm kinda paranoid about dehydration. I really do this mostly for my other pet Chameleon, my CB Melleri on a daily basis who really loves it...
But I figure it doesn't hurt to throw Bling in there once in a while too.
As far as feeding goes, this is where I cheat a bit. I'm lucky enough that my profession entails working closely with an entemologist and caring for a large group of inverts which really allows me to play with his menu. I try to offer a new food item every day in the way of various roaches like Cuban greens, Central American Cave roach nymphs, Hissers, Beetle-mimics, Australians, Death heads and lobster roaches. All roaches are strictly cup-fed to prevent escapes. He also gets the typical fare of crickets, superworms, silkworms and just for variation I throw in some aisan mantid nymphs, vietnamese stick insects, and Australian prickly stick nymphs. If you don't know what these are they look like this as adults....
...and are about the size of my hand. I'm lucky enough to live on an eco-friendly farm where I'm positive that no insecticides are used, So during this passed summer Bling has also munched on several species of grasshoppers, leafhoppers, small spiders, moths, beetles, houseflies, and the occasional grubs I dig up while doing work. I have barely used anything other than the occasional calcium suppliment (but that'll change for the winter, slightly) and a good gutload of fresh veggies, grains, etc. On Jim's advice I am going to try that prepared gutload for crickets that you guys use down at the Cham. Co.
My Melleri (his name is Obi) gets the same diet although he seems to like a little less variety and I have a much more aggressive humidity/watering regimen for him. He usually hops in the shower every night for a few minutes just before I do...as if my wife didn't hog up the shower enough.
My goal for Bling is to soon have him feeding on these...
(JK)
Thanks for all the good words. But this animal's coloration is primarily do to the fact that Matt, you have created a phenomenal pairing out of outstanding stock...pure natural perfection, as close as you can get to it anyways. And I can't wait to see what the Chameleon Company churns out in the next few months...you guys are creating amazing living (and as a purist) naturally occurring art.
PS-Finally got my Reptiles delivered....great article!!!!!
Chameleon Company
New member
Danny,
It sounds and looks textbook correct. I especially liked the well-foliated cage with multiple basking and temperature gradient options. Too many people focus more on meeting their human observaton needs, and less on the chameleons needs. We have many different micro-environments with our various cages in the greenhouse, and the problematic "holdbacks" that we keep for ourselves always seem to prosper in the most heavily planted cages, where they are hard to see, and we basically put food in every day and leave them alone. We can take an animal from a less foliated cage, perhaps where it also has a cagemate or two, and is not doing well, and put it in these "forget about me, just feed me" cages, and they do great. Go from weakling to beast in no time. As for meeting the animals calcium needs, the jury is still way out on the best way to accomplish that, and we still have many approaches being tested here to ascertain the long term viability of different mechanisms. It is also far less of a concern with a male chameleon. I would hope that more chameleon keepers would use your logical approach to meeting the chameleons needs. Put a photo up every few months. For the record, I think that your guy also has a sibling brother in AZ, WV, FL (not here ... but down in Pompano Beach). I do have his only sister though! She's doesn't look much for color, but she has the right genes! Take care.
It sounds and looks textbook correct. I especially liked the well-foliated cage with multiple basking and temperature gradient options. Too many people focus more on meeting their human observaton needs, and less on the chameleons needs. We have many different micro-environments with our various cages in the greenhouse, and the problematic "holdbacks" that we keep for ourselves always seem to prosper in the most heavily planted cages, where they are hard to see, and we basically put food in every day and leave them alone. We can take an animal from a less foliated cage, perhaps where it also has a cagemate or two, and is not doing well, and put it in these "forget about me, just feed me" cages, and they do great. Go from weakling to beast in no time. As for meeting the animals calcium needs, the jury is still way out on the best way to accomplish that, and we still have many approaches being tested here to ascertain the long term viability of different mechanisms. It is also far less of a concern with a male chameleon. I would hope that more chameleon keepers would use your logical approach to meeting the chameleons needs. Put a photo up every few months. For the record, I think that your guy also has a sibling brother in AZ, WV, FL (not here ... but down in Pompano Beach). I do have his only sister though! She's doesn't look much for color, but she has the right genes! Take care.
urbanjungles
BeastMaster
Thanks for the good words Jim, getting the thumbs up from you definitely makes me feel better about the compulsive modifications I have been making to his enclosure on a weekly basis. I agree 100% in that it's SO important to meet the animals needs first especially in the way of security.
At first I was kind of bummed that he wasn't really visible in the cage for a while but after several weeks and plenty of time to survey his domain he now feels secure enough where he spends most of the day out in the open basking, rarely retreating anymore. I'm used to dealing with older, more secure animals which aren't as shy but he's certainly come out of his shell as of late.
It would seeem that making sure his needs are met first rewards me with alot of "normal" behavior (and visibility) and the emergence of a great personality.
At first I was kind of bummed that he wasn't really visible in the cage for a while but after several weeks and plenty of time to survey his domain he now feels secure enough where he spends most of the day out in the open basking, rarely retreating anymore. I'm used to dealing with older, more secure animals which aren't as shy but he's certainly come out of his shell as of late.
It would seeem that making sure his needs are met first rewards me with alot of "normal" behavior (and visibility) and the emergence of a great personality.