New BTS Videos

[Fatal_S]

I visited my friend today and uploaded 4 new BTS videos I had on my external hard drive. Some are informational, some are funny, and some are adorable. I'll just include links to all 6 of my BTS videos.

Jenga Videos:
New - Jenga does deathrolls
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ac8AL6wSlmg
Old - Jenga tries to kill me
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5KmdMxhBG0A
Old - Jenga is getting better
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dHv9wiRr0iE

New - Trouble is causing trouble
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h-F_0vl1jsA

New - Visiting Jeff and his BTS
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PT8e8BSukI8

New - How-to cut a skinks nails
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oe0FHbOP6aQ

[Kurt]

jenga scares me!

[mv2sa]

Jenga is simply awesome, loved the death roll!

[Linnea]

O__O jengas deathrolls......is there even another skink that is as aggressive as he was?
trouble seems to be equally decisive about where she wanna go and what she wanna do, how did you manage to hold on to her while she moved like that?

SHINGLES

[xxmonitorlizardxx]

Is the death roll used to dismember prey like with crocs?

[Fatal_S]

Jenga is absolutely amazing to me. Given that's he's nearly guaranteed to be CBB and I've never treated him poorly his extreme aggression is quite shocking. At the same time though, he's possibly the most intelligent BTS I've ever met. He knows what he wants and he learns very quickly. I liken him to monitor lizards for intelligence. For example at a recent expo (he was allowed out of his sealed bin during a slow period for good behaviour) he really wanted off the table to escape. Obviously it's not a safe drop, but he was determined. I got tired of trying to stop or catch him, so I sat in a chair with him on my lap and let him choose to fall. Generally a safe drop from a short distance makes them re-think making jumps. He fell and was pretty stunned/amazed when he hit the floor. Back up onto the lap. Second time he looked down, thought about it, measured the risk, and then tried again. Same result. Back on the lap. Now he took a few minutes to look down at the ground and re-think his escape plan. It was like you could actually see him thinking it through. He looked at me, looked at the ground, looked around, back at the ground, etc. I was wondering if he'd finally realized jumping is stupid. Nope! Down he goes again. But to my and everyone around's amazement, instead of simply hitting the ground like he'd been doing he caught himself to lessen the impact on the ground. And since he wasn't stunned immediately took off. I grabbed him easily enough, but he'd learnt how to jump down safely without such a hard impact. He can still do it now too. It's a level of awareness I wasn't even aware BTS had. I consider him a bit of a wonder-skink sometimes. A jerk, but still awesome

Linnea, Jenga is very aggressive for a CBB animal, but some WC animals can be extremely defensive too. I think what makes Jenga special is that he's not simply defensive or scared like most grumpy skinks (Trouble for example), but he's actually trying his best to attack everything. Simply putting something new into his tank (a new log/rock) guarantees 10-30 minutes of him attacking it. And he refuses to eat from his dish unless he's taken the time to grab it and smash it around for a while first (usually ridding it of all that pesky food anyways -.-'). So yes and no, there are other skinks with just as bad attitudes, but I've yet to hear of any that are quite as sadistic.

Trouble (and her brother Clue) are on/off for being jerks. They'll put up a fight but if I don't back down then they will. They definitely have their own opinions on where they should be going or what they should be eating/doing. I can hold onto them simply through practice (know where to hold them) and the acceptance that I might get bitten. Usually I'd use the other hand to secure her better and calm her down, but in this case it was busy with the camera. Sometimes she can be a real sweety though (if a bit mouthy), so don't get a terrible impression from this video

ML, I've seen them roll as a method of escape, but in this case it was definitely to try to cause the most damage possible to the victim. I don't know if they'd use it on food items since I've never seen it. Perhaps another member could answer that.

[Karen]

So Jenga, Trouble, and Clue are your most aggressive skinks? Interesting that they are all Caramel Northerns. I wonder if there is any correlation. Do any of your other skinks show any kind of attitude like that?

[Fatal_S]

Yes, I'd noticed that too. I'm not sure why. Andrew says his caramels don't differ at all from his classics or sunsets. I'm hoping to get my first litter or two in Spring and see how those babies behave. If they take after their parents they'll not be good for beginner-owners. My other male BTS are a bit grumpy/defensive, and my WC tanny is a scaredy-cat who'll bite/pee if bothered, but only my caramels show these randomly aggressive behaviours.

[Nae]

Is the death roll used to dismember prey like with crocs?

While I havent seen them use it on food (I wouldnt be surprised if they do though, consider kangaroo carcasses would be the perfect meal oppurtunity), I have seen it used by males during particularly aggressive fights.

Once thing I find amusing about Jengas death rolls, compared to a crocs, is that he looks almost graceful while doing it

[xxmonitorlizardxx]

Nae, since you are an Australia native, what type of carrion do wild blueys eat?

[Nae]

Hmmm...My guess would be anything and everything - road kill like kangaroos, wallabies, sheep, foxes, rabbits, emus, assorted birds, wild goats, pigs - However, quite often larger animals like kangaroos and ones with tough skin like pigs, even when hit are completely unscathed (Dead, but unscathed if that makes sense ), in which case they would have to wait for a larger predatory animal like a fox or crow to open it up for them. (and this is just me thinking of Coastal and wheatbelt region WA, it would very depending on species available in different areas of course.)

[xxmonitorlizardxx]

Thanks