Jeb's Reptiles

This is the setup for Lovecraft, my adult crested gecko. I consider this setup to be a naturalistic vivarium, meaning it imitates the natural environment that this species lives in, but does not have the cleanup crew that a bioactive terrarium would. I would recommend this naturalistic setup to anyone with experience keeping plants who wants to create a visually appealing setup. Please note that if you are housing a breeding pair you should also include a second hide and a laybox. This guide represents an updated version of my original setup. When I first moved Lovecraft to his adult terrarium, I did not adequately use the volume of the tank, and was left with the top half of the terrarium totally empty. 

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Container

This setup is in an Exo Terra 18x18x24 glass terrarium, which holds about 30 gallons. These terrariums are the most popular in the reptile industry for a reason! They come in a variety of sizes, with this one being appropriate for a single adult Crested/Gargoyle Gecko or a breeding pair. The screen lid and holes across the front provide appropriate ventilation, but the glass holds in humidity well. The two doors at the front of the terrarium can open separately and a small lock at the bottom ensures your geckos won't escape.

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Substrate

The substrate in this terrarium has a few layers which all serve different purposes. The bottom layer is Zoo Med Hydroballs for drainage. These effectively prevent the upper layers of substrate from becoming soggy or waterlogged, which can lead to mold. The next layer is an 18x18 sheet of terrarium mesh, curled up in the front to catch any loose substrate. This separates the drainage layer from the dirt above, making replacement and cleaning of substrate much cleaner. The next layer is plantation soil, which makes a good layer for plants to grow in. Don't completely cover your plants' root systems in this layer though, because there will be more on top of it. After that is a layer of Eco Earth, which is a great substrate for holding in humidity and gives the terrarium a natural look. The final layer is Zoo Med sphagnum moss, which holds humidity well, and can be removed and washed about three times before it requires replacement. Lovecraft will sometimes bury himself under this layer, presumably around when he is in shed. I have also recently added some magnolia leaf litter from Josh's Frogs in the areas not covered in moss.

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Hides

Lovecraft has one hide in this terrarium, an Exo Terra Canopy Cave. He is hardly ever not in this cave! It makes a perfect moist hide and I put a handful of sphagnum moss inside to keep it humid whenever he is shedding. The cave can be easily removed from its plastic wall mount for maintenance and it comes with a sticker that covers the wall side of the hide so that your gecko will feel more secure, but the sticker can be pulled down to check inside without disturbing anyone potentially sleeping inside. The only downside is that it can be hard to clean because the entrances are at difficult angles. 

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Plants

There are a number of live plants in this setup, all planted in the plantation soil layer of the substrate. Most of these are from the Josh's Frogs Crested Gecko plant kit. They have changed the contents of this kit since I bought mine, but I trust it will still include high quality, safe, and healthy plants. Although a couple of the plants I got in this kit died within a few months, the majority of them survived and look wonderful in the terrarium, especially the pothos! I have also included a couple plants that I sourced elsewhere, at farmer's markets and small plant stores while visiting New York City. These include a Dracaena "Limelight" which is the large, sturdy plant in the back, and a small Boston Fern, which has unfortunately not adapted well to this setup so I will probably remove it. When choosing plants for your terrarium, look for something that requires similar humidity, temperature, and light levels to your gecko. These plants all seem to do fine with low light, but I supplement them with a red/blue grow light if they look like they need it. Don't be worried if part of your plants die off or lose leaves in the process of adjusting to their new terrarium, after a month or two you should know which ones will thrive in the terrarium and which should be removed. Some of the plants I've taken out of this terrarium now make excellent houseplants!

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Hardscape

The major hardscape pieces in this setup are the background and the piece of wood. The background in this setup is just the one that came with the Exo Terra terrarium. I am not a huge fan of this background because it feels cheap and does not look entirely natural, but it does make a good climbing surface for my gecko and I didn't have to go through the extra work of building my own. I ordered this wood piece online, which I normally would recommend against, just because you don't know what you're getting. This piece worked out fine though, and is pretty stable when buried deep in the substrate and jammed into the background. Although barely visible in these photos, there is also a large amethyst cluster on the ground in this terrarium. If using any rocks, stones, or crystals, make sure you get something that is not water soluble and has no particularly sharp edges.

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Other

The artificial foliage in here includes a small one right behind the Canopy Cave, a vine, and a large flexible piece covered in multicoloured leaves. The larger piece is attached by trapping leaves and bits of stems between the walls and the removable lid of the terrarium. The climbing vine is held in place by leaning it against walls and hardscape elements, and passes through the second opening of the food ledge. These artificial plants take up most of the volume of the top of the terrarium, and Lovecraft has been much more active since I gave him these additional climbing surfaces.

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Another important piece of any enclosure is the food dishes. Pangea's suction cup food ledge works well to hold food dishes, but Lovecraft does occasionally knock his food bowls onto the floor. Gargoyle and crested geckos are arboreal, and feel more comfortable feeding above the ground. You can purchase a set of 100 plastic food bowls to put on the ledge, although since I wash and reuse mine, I really don't need that many.

 

The last item in this enclosure is a Zoo Med analog thermometer and hygrometer. Keeping track of the humidity and temperature in your terrarium is very important because geckos can easily die of overheating or dehydration. For reptiles that don't require a thermal gradient, these cheap analog ones work fine.