Our Ackie Monitors Laid Eggs!

Another species has unexpectedly decided to breed in our zoo- our red Ackie Monitors! Join us as we remove, count, and put all of her beautiful (yet dirty) eggs into incubation!

SNAKE DISCOVERY MERCH!

SNAKE DISCOVERY PATREON

Music by BenSound and Epidemic Sound

[quelquundautre]

the audacity of the mother who complained this is hilarious

[lbow]

So many surprise babies! I wonder if the increased breeding behavior means the animals are happy and less stressed, or if something about being in a naturalistic environment gives them that instinct. And the way she put her self away was so cute! T^T

[CourtLee]

The fact that a mother complained about two lizards breeding in front of her FOURTEEN year old daughter is just plain ridiculous. That poor child🤦🏼‍♀️

[NicholasMati]

My female's first clutch was 7 eggs (6 fertile, 1 slug). I think it largely just depends on how long you wait.

Two comments on husbandry:
- More substrate. In my experience, the female will nominally lay in a tunnel underground. My female had 10 inches to work with for her last clutch and went straight to the bottom. I think the reason why the eggs got scattered for you is because she didn't have a tunnel to fill in. My female had the same digging behavior after laying, but instead ended up backfilling her tunnel, leaving a neat row of eggs with no denting. Apparently, females also get more picky on subsequent clutches, but I haven't witnessed this yet.
- Keep an eye out for the female becoming overly stressed by the male. My girl snapped back in May, 2021 and it's only now that she'll let the male approach without trying to kill him.

[parkershaw]

As soon as I heard the story about the mom and the 14-year-old, I was immediately brought back to one of my favorite memories:

I couldn't have been more than 10 years old, probably more like 7. I've always loved animals, so my grandmother would very frequently take me to a zoo nearby when I was staying with her. I would, of course, frequently be a good distance ahead of her, but she knew that I wouldn't do anything too outlandish for the setting. It was a zoo that catered to children, so moderate amounts of noise and activity weren't uncommon. I've always been a cat person, so I was always happy to see the big cats. But today would be especially exciting.

Something you have to understand is that my family has always been comfortable discussing anatomy. As a result, I knew the process by which reproduction happened at a younger age than most. This led to many interesting stories, but this one is unique in how prominent it was.

As I approach the enclosure, I see a male lion on top of a lioness. How thrilling it is that we get a chance to observe this behavior! I didn't want my grandmother to miss out on this behavior that isn't usually observed by the public audience, so naturally I turn around and at the top of my lungs yell "GRANDMA HURRY, COME LOOK! THE LIONS ARE MATING!" before racing ahead to get a better look.

Did I need to later have it explained to me that it's considered impolite to talk about reproductive behaviors in public? Yes. Was I confused at that? Also yes. Was it mortifying for my grandmother? I'm sure. (Although this is nothing compared to some of the things my mom did in college.) All in all I'm very grateful. Not only that I got to have that educational experience, but also that I have such a communicative and understanding family.

[lyndseyw]

If she thought lizards locking up was bad, she definitely shouldn’t go to a zoo with primates cause they’re nasty 😂

[fallen]

why yes, we must get angry when a 14-year-old (a very innocent being) sees monitor breeding 😂

[cassandrahepp]

I'm so excited that all the animals seem to be so happy and comfortable in their enclosures. It's a testament to how well you did design your zoo.

As for the mother... What does she think happens at a zoo? Most zoos breed animals in some compacity or another. If you're that uncomfortable, don't look. I wish the world hadn't become so uncomfortable with a completely natural interaction. I just hope that her child has someone they can talk to. If two lizards breeding are to shocking for mom then I find it hard to believe there's much open communication when it comes to safe sex or preventing pregnancy.

[marimbagirl]

Wow! So many surprise clutches since the zoo opened, hoping the good luck continues this year!

[ziephernius]

Sorry about Karen, She seems to be everywhere these days. I'm fairly sure 14 years old is old enough for the birds and the bees talk.. or in this case maybe the reptiles and the monotremes?

[lasmirandadennsiewillja]

I feel so sorry for the 14yr old, especially since there's a good chance that she might see the video and the comments, let's all be nice. I'm sure most of us experienced "What the hell is up with you, mom/dad? Was that really necessary? IN PUBLIC?!" moments when we were that age, no matter how perfect or imperfect our parents usually were 😁

[RockyPockyVanilla]

The story about the mom is so funny and it reminds me of my own story. When I was a small child and was visiting a local wildlife zoo a seagull flew into the bear enclosure during the public feeding. It was trying to steal some of the bear food but instead it became the food... Won't go into too much detail but there was a lot of blood, a lot of crying children, and a lot of complaining parents. I was kind of shocked but my parents just explained to me in a really good way that it's part of nature. My parents are great

[montanathrower]

Wow the mom that got upset should have just took her daughter and walked away and looked at something else like how could yall help that but love yalls channel very educational in my opinion

[hippygirl]

I can't be the only one who feels very bad for a 14 y/o whose parents thinks they are too young to know about animal breeding. Like they should have had the talk a long time before that. I wouldn't be surprised if it's one of those parents who believes they don't need the talk until 18 or they get married.

[LeCalzoneZone]

Your channel has done so much for me emily and ed! When im older I want to go to herpetologly school and be a snake breeder! And I laughed when you said that the mom got mad because her 14 year old daughter saw monitor's breeding. Lol

[Vickie-Bligh]

It really is a testament to the naturalness of the enclosures that the animals are breeding. I'd like to say I was surprised about the mom but as Forrest Gump would say, "Stupid is as stupid does". I do feel sorry for the child.

[YKFrench]

The critters are clearly happy with the new digs!!

[MandaPVlogs]

*Clutches pearls* How dare you not be able to control natural animal behaviours! 😂

I’m so excited to see all the new babies ❤️

[taylorwatson]

You’re telling me that lady doesn’t think her 14 year old daughter knows what sex is? 😭

[Kale_]

Hi guys, I love your channel and have become obsessed with anything reptile (mostly snakes) over the holidays because of this channel. I think it would be really cool if you guys did a “day in the life” video to see what your busy busy days look like. From feeding animals to talking to customers, I think we would all enjoy it 😊 ❤️ love you guys