Found in Australia, the Blue Tongue Skink (Tiliqua) is one of the largest in the skink family. Whilst preferring to stay close to the ground, the Blue Tongue Skink largely resembles a snake with its long and flat body. They will use their body alongside their four short feet to help them move around quickly.
The blue tongue skink’s popularity arises from its blue tongue, hence the name. It uses it as a startle display tactic, momentarily distracting and scaring off predators before it flees. It is not an aggressive lizard nor is it very large. In the wild, is often attempting to flee from predators especially because it will always remain on the ground making it an easy catch.
Although they are not aggressive, in fact rather docile, they do have extremely sharp teeth and strong jaws used to clamp down on their food.
Blue Tongue Skink Diet?
Skinks are naturally omnivores – they eat fruit, vegetables and meat. As this is their natural preference in the wild, it should be replicated whilst kept as a pet in an enclosure.
Omnivores can eat most things, however, they still require a wide variety of supplements. This especially includes calcium and vitamin D supplements to ensure that your pet is kept healthy and prevent the possibility of metabolic bone disease.
As a skink owner, you want to get the balance right. Feeding them too much meat can lead to some pretty dramatic health conditions.
We’d recommend about 40% meat and 60% fruit and vegetables. This balance allows them to get the protein they need and all the other nutritional requirements.
For young blue tongue skinks, you’ll want to feed them 6 consecutive days, but leave them to rest and digest on the 7th. Adults are slightly different and should be fed roughly every other day.
Insects to consider:
- Crickets
- Mealworms
- Superworms
Fruit and Vegetables:
- Green beans
- Carrots
- Strawberries
- Blueberries
- Bananas
- Parsnips
- Kale
Can you keep a Blue Tongue Skink as a pet?
The Blue Tongued Skink is a very docile creature, meaning that it is very submissive. Therefore, it is incredibly easy to take care of making it a great pet for beginners and even children.
Whilst they are great pets, they need to have ample room to move. As they are native to Australia, their enclosure needs to reflect their natural habitat as much as possible. This requires giving them as much space as you can whilst also providing plenty of substrates.
When picking out a blue tongue skink, you should consider the seller’s reputation as well as try to see the pet before purchasing. Ensure they have well-kept skin (it shouldn’t be dry or have blemishes) as well as clean eyes. This way you can be sure that the blue tongue skink has been well looked after.
If you enjoyed this article you might also like to read about Red Eyed Crocodile Skink
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