BLUE TONGUE SKINKS

My juvenile Halmahera bts is the sweetest lizard in the world but when ever I take him outside he gets a little huffy puffy towards me, and today after letting him soak up the sun I went to pick him up and he bit me for the first time ever, and opened his mouth to try to scare me. Why does bringing him outside and getting natural sun light revert him to his wild instincts?

alot of people say its because of the natural sun

but think about it,they are brought outdoors in the open,not a familiar area,no access to hides,grabbed at by us if heading for a hidey hole

natural insticts has them at there most vunerable,in short anything could get them,they are crapping there pants so to speak,especially little ones

how would we react of something doing similar to us,we would react in a similar manner,some get used to it in time,but sitting out in the open in nature puts them in big danger

But when I take him out and put him on my bed with no hiding spots he is extremely docile. Even when i put him in a room where he's never been before he is really tame. That's why I think the natural sun has something ro do with it

Outside, there's a ton more open space. There's also birds, and he can probably smell predators or other animals. It is much more stressful to be in an environment with so many different threats than in an enclosed room.

Not trying to hijack this thread, but what are the most common predators to bts Richard?

Pet BTS turning "wild" when brought outside is actually fairly commonly reported. No clue why, just hear it a lot.

It can't be the noises. I keep my skinks outside in a sub-tropical climate, with loads of noises around. They act just the same. I think it is more on the lines of the UV radiation or being enlcosed. But then again, I let my skinks roam inside with no problem of them turning wild.

Kurt wrote:Not trying to hijack this thread, but what are the most common predators to bts Richard?

anything bigger than them,birds,snakes,lizards,dogs,cats,foxes,feral pigs,dingoes,aboriginals(people)there are literally hundreds of things that happily consume them

thats how they rediscovered the pygmy bluetongue,a road killed eastern brown snake was found containing a food buldge,they examined gut contents and low and behold a lizard not seen in 30 years was found,further studies in that area found more there were populations there


back on topic,as a keeper of some species outdoors year round,exposed to natural sunlight,in the outside cages they follow me around,if i sit instead of running to cover they climb over me,they feel safe as they are familiar,have shelter if need,when i take them out of there in the open they lose thar and try to bugger off ,just like indoor ones do,some even get defensive,yet in the outside enclosures they remain calm,most dont even huff and carry on,they return to following and climbing on you

they watch anything from planes,choppers,birds,even butterflies wizz over and they freeze and watch,or flee,they see things long before hearing it,but sometimes they hear it first ro

natural insticts ,they are born with it,tells them to try and avoid being out in the open,especially youngsters,but even adults

Richard.C wrote:they watch anything from planes,choppers,birds,even butterflies wizz over and they freeze and watch,or flee,they see things long before hearing it,but sometimes they hear it first ro
natural insticts ,they are born with it,tells them to try and avoid being out in the open,especially youngsters,but even adults

You're not allowed to make that claim about planes Richard.

I did a few years ago and even had photographic evidence, only to be told I was wrong and there would have to be another explanation. Apparently those who have never seen a BTS in the wild have a far better knowledge of BTS behaviour than us.

lol norm,planes and choppers flying over make most of mu lizards look up and freeze until they bugger off,when u see 20 to 30 blueys,6 water dragons and a handfill of cunninghams do it in unison,it kind of erases any doubts,wildones do it to,seen it countless times with easterns

even our old pet galah did it,if there was something above it sat still and quiet and kept its eye on it till it was gone

Susann wrote:Pet BTS turning "wild" when brought outside is actually fairly commonly reported. No clue why, just hear it a lot.

Glad mario isn't the only one lol it was just weird seeing that side of him because he's such a gentle teddy bear inside my house

In fact, I love how bluey show his "natural instinct" when brought outside. It's like seeing the other side of him

I've seen more cautious behavior when taking them outside...especially away from cover. They will move with a start, stop motion and sometimes prop themselves up on their front legs and look around at...who knows? A few times I've seen mine perk up and seemingly paying attention to something in the sky or above them but tough to figure out what as at the park lots of people and things moving about. If you touch them without warning they may struggle for a split second before it seems they realize who it is(me or a human which they know is safe)

I used to have 3 Northerns but am now down to 2.
One of them (male) was VERY nervous outside. He would flatten out and do a full tongue display which i've not seen on any of my other skinks. Definitely not comfortable outside. The other male is good outside but you can tell he is a bit nervous and easily spooked. The female is totally relaxed outside. Perhaps the fact that the previous owner had a 3 year old daughter that "loved her" has made her pretty fearless