Animal species
Insects, spiders, scorpions, amphibians, lizards, snakes and turtles are the animal groups most commonly kept in terrariums. We'll give you tips on how to keep these animals, and to make the information easier to find, subdivide them not in rainforest and desert animals, but in the groups mentioned above. Although this is not systematically correct biologically, it will make your job easier.
Insects and myriapods
Although the insect group is huge, only a few species are regularly found in the terrarium. Even amongst the myriapods (millipedes, centipedes, and others) there are few species that are regularly kept. Both groups of animals are suitable for beginners. Only scolopendra are better left to the expert because of their toxicity!
Myriapods / millipedes (in the order of Julidae)
Scolopendra
Praying mantises
Leaf insects and stick insects
Arachnids
Spiders & scorpions
Unlike the insects, all arachnids have not 6, but 8 legs. They have most of their nerve cells in their legs, so you could say they think with their legs! Spiders and scorpions are ideal for smaller terrariums. Extreme caution is required with some of them because of their toxicity. Please also remember that terrariums with poisonous animals should be secured with a lock ( JBL TerraSafe ). Spiders and scorpions do not require UV-A and B proportions in their lighting. They need light to generate heat but no UV radiation ( JBL ReptilJungle Daylight 24W , JBL SOLAR REPTIL JUNGLE T8 , JBL ReptilDay Halogen , JBL LED SOLAR NATUR , JBL Reptil LED Daylight 12W ).
Tarantulas
Scorpions
Amphibians
Amphibians, also known as caudata and anura, can be fascinating terrarium inhabitants, and they are enormously attractive both in terms of colour and behaviour. Caudata (salamanders, newts, axolotls) can easily get used to substitute food, while frogs (anura) eat only live food such as flies and so on. This needs to be considered from the start when choosing your animals.
Axolotls
Newts
Poison dart frogs (dendrobates)
Red-eyed treefrog (Agalychnis callidryas)
Clawed frogs (Xenopus)
Lizards
The lizards form an extremely diverse group of animals that has populated almost all habitats with the exception of the world’s ice regions. Only very few species are herbivores which can be fed without animal live food. Please give careful thought to the size of the terrarium you select. Many lizards are very large and need a lot of space. Climbing species require high terrariums, while ground dwellers need a lot of floor space. Aggression within the species can be extremely pronounced (eg in chameleons).
Central (or inland) bearded dragon (Pogona vitticeps)
Spiny-tailed lizard (Uromastyx species)
Beaver-tailed agamas (Xenagama species)
Chameleons (Chamaelo and Furcifer species)
Anolis species
Collared lizards (Crotaphytus collaris, C. bicinctores)
Green iguana (Iguana iguana)
Common chuckwalla (Sauromalus obesus)
Geckos (Gekkota)
Skinks (Scincomorpha)
Monitor lizards (Varanus)
Snakes
The fascinating group of snakes is incredibly diverse. It has everything - from almost 10 m long constrictors to 1 m long nonpoisonous colubrids to deadly venomous species. In the case of venomous species, securing the terrarium doors with a lock ( JBL TerraSafe ) is absolutely necessary! All snakes are predatory feeders. Many of them can be fed well with dead animals (e.g. mice or chicks). Some species like to hunt small fish & frogs, others insects and some species are very hard to get used to dead food. This needs to be clear to anyone interested in snakes. The contents of your freezer may need to change accordingly.
Depending on the habitat you'll need to build a dry, semi-dry or even a humid terrarium. A 3 m long boa constrictor imperator needs a terrarium with the dimensions 200 x 100 x 200 cm. Except for desert species, a bathing pool ( X JBL ReptilBar ) pool is almost always recommended.
The bath water must be clean - either by filter or by daily renewal. For larger baths the JBL internal filter series JBL CristalProfi i is very well suited (for bathing pools up to 110 litres e.g. the JBL CRISTALPROFI i80 greenline ). It is best to use a water conditioner ( JBL Biotopol T ) to bind any existing pollutants such as heavy metals. Care should be taken when using climbing opportunities to ensure good anchorage and screw connection to the branches. Snakes have enormous physical strengths and can bring almost any decoration down. This also applies to rock constructions in desert terrariums, which need to be well inter-connected with a non-toxic adhesive ( JBL PROHARU UNIVERSAL ). The type of substrate depends on the snake species being kept. For many of them, such as pythons and colubrids JBL TerraBasis is well suited. Very large constrictors prefer coarser substrates like JBL TerraCoco coconut chips. But also beech wood shavings, such as JBL TerraWood are very popular with boas and pythons. For desert snakes JBL TerraSand natural yellow is mostly used. Since most snakes are day-active, lighting with UV content is a must. With the help of metal halide lamps JBL ReptilDesert L-U-W Light alu (Special lamp for use in reptile keeping! Not suitable for other applications! No EEK label required. Exemption according to (EU) 2019/2015 Annex IV 3. c) UV radiation > 2mW/klm) and the JBL UV-Spot plus (Special lamp for use in reptile keeping! Not suitable for other applications! No EEK label required. Exemption according to (EU) 2019/2015 Annex IV 3. c) UV radiation > 2mW/klm) the right UV-A and B supply is always ensured. Even for nocturnal species such as the green tree python, UV radiation is important because the decrease in UV radiation in the evening is the start of its activity time and it receives a lot of UV radiation during the daytime during its resting phase in the treetops. It is vital to research the living conditions of your own snake species.
Constrictors
Colubrids
Vipers, pit vipers, elapids and back-fanged snakes (Boiginae)
Tortoises and turtles
Turtles and tortoises have reached most biotopes: the sea, the land, the swamps and the fresh water, and the terrarium design needs to be adapted accordingly. When buying juveniles people often forget the size the animals will reach when fully grown and which terrarium size will then be needed. They also tend to forget the high ages they can reach!
Tortoises
