The ocelatted skink (Chalcides ocellatus) is a small skink species with a wide range including Northern Africa and Southern Europe. They make ideal captives for observation or a breeding project, but as a smaller skink they are probably best handled only when required. They become fairly brave and will come out of hiding to feed enthusiastically and sometimes bask out in the open, too, but they also spend a good deal of time hiding.
Caging does not need to be elaborate. A 20 gallon long tank or 30"+ plastic bin works well for 1-4 of these skinks. Although some people use sand, I have found that newspaper works just as well. A shallow water bowl in an otherwise dry cage is used frequently. I use basking lights that produce basking spot of 90-95F along with a T8 10.0 UVB reptile bulb approximately 12" above half of the cage. I feed them primarily on crickets which are often dusted with Repashy calcium plus and always gutloaded with things like fresh greens, tortoise feed, or Repashy superload. I also feed them occasionally on mealworms gutloaded with Superload or black soldier fly larvae.
I turn the hours of light down during the winter and reduce the amount of food, and the overall room temperature drops a few degrees from a high of 78-80 during the summer to about 70-72 in the winter. The young are born live and will feed on small crickets. I separate the live babies from the adults as soon as they are seen.
Caging does not need to be elaborate. A 20 gallon long tank or 30"+ plastic bin works well for 1-4 of these skinks. Although some people use sand, I have found that newspaper works just as well. A shallow water bowl in an otherwise dry cage is used frequently. I use basking lights that produce basking spot of 90-95F along with a T8 10.0 UVB reptile bulb approximately 12" above half of the cage. I feed them primarily on crickets which are often dusted with Repashy calcium plus and always gutloaded with things like fresh greens, tortoise feed, or Repashy superload. I also feed them occasionally on mealworms gutloaded with Superload or black soldier fly larvae.
I turn the hours of light down during the winter and reduce the amount of food, and the overall room temperature drops a few degrees from a high of 78-80 during the summer to about 70-72 in the winter. The young are born live and will feed on small crickets. I separate the live babies from the adults as soon as they are seen.