Diet

Blue tongue skinks are omnivorous reptiles accustomed to warm temperatures.  The diet recommended for blue tongue skinks consists of both carnivorous and herbivorous parts.

 Animal Items^*

*Never offer scorpions or lightning bugs.

 Plant Items

 A diet consisting of equal parts plant and animal items is nutritionally complete. When feeding live insects, only provide as many insects as the animal can eat in a few hours.  Items from the list of green plants are appropriate when a mixture of 3 or more types is used in each meal.   Vitamin supplements are unnecessary, and in fact are often harmful. Clean water should be available at all times.

Temperature and Lighting

Daytime ambient temperature (everywhere in the enclosure) should be maintained around 85 degrees F (29 - 32 C). Night time ambient temperature should be maintained at 75 - 80 degrees F (29.5 - 35 C).  

Blue tongue skinks require a good source of UVB light for at least 8 hours every day.  Fluorescent lamps with a stronger UVB output, such as the Repti-sun 8.0 (ZooMed) or ReptiGlo 8.0 (Exoterra) are appropriate. The lamp should be within 18 inches of the animal's body, with no glass or plastic between them.  

Housing

Blue tongue skinks are best housed individually, as fighting with cage mates can occur between all combinations of blue tongue skinks.   If breeding is desired, males and females should be introduced together only during spring or early summer. 

Recommended cage substrates include coarse gravel, dry orchid bark, forest mulch, and folded paper.  The majority of intestinal impactions occur due to sand (including Calci-Sand), crushed walnut shell, or other substrates composed of small, equal-sized particles and therefore these are not recommended.  Indoor-outdoor carpeting is also not recommended due to the possibility of carpet threads constricting toes or being ingested.  

Gut-Loading

Gut-loading is the practice of feeding insects a diet high in calcium, protein, and other nutrients prior to offering the insects to reptiles and amphibians.  Domestic crickets and meal worms should be fed a diet consisting of four parts chicken or turkey starter mash and one part calcium carbonate for two or three days before offering the crickets to your pet. Also, offer the crickets water in a shallow dish or wet sponge.  Gut-loading beyond 2-3 days is not beneficial, and can actually decrease the life expectancy of the insects.

© Sonora Veterinary Group, 2003  Free for distribution with proper citation.  JJ/DG