determining the gender of blue tongue skink

[skinks101]

I was wondering how to tell if my skink is a boy or a girl?. I would also like to know what age is a good age to breed blue tongues for both female and male? I plan to breed my blue tongue pretty soon maybe a year or 2. I am excited!!!

[Susann]

Hi skinks101, welcome and good luck with your plans!

If you do some searches on "sexing" you'll find lots of posts on it.

[skinks101]

Thank you!!!

[skinks101]

[skinks101]

Here are more pictures. Are you now able to see if it is a girl or boy? By the way I used the strawberry so then she could face the camera and stick out her bright tongue!! I hope these photos are better. The lighting is not the best because it is very cloudy and it is about to rain. Please let me know if you need more photos or better photos.

[Jbolar]

it's really best to use images similar to this.. the laptop lense does to much from the top.. needs to be a top down photo on hard surfaces. some of the more experienced keepers with gigas will be able to give you a better idea.

[skinks101]

okay, I will take a better camera and I will probably take pictures when it is sunnier or I will find some pictures that are just like the one you have.

[skinks101]

Here is some questions about breeding. Do you have to put your blue tongue skink in burmination to breed? Also what is a good age to breed a skink for a female and male? How much do they need to weigh before breeding? Also I think that my skink is a female because there is no budges that I can see or that are obvious.

[Susann]

Do you have to put your blue tongue skink in burmination to breed?

For the Australian species and Irian Jayas, you do. The gigas species do not require brumation as they mate before it cools down in the northern hemisphere.

Also what is a good age to breed a skink for a female and male?

Males can mate from the age they become sexually mature and are big enough to handle the female. Not set age or size; just whenever he can get the job done.

How much do they need to weigh before breeding?

There's no real numbers on that. I generally say, when the female is adult size. My youngest female was 18 months old, was about 24 inches long, and weighed, I believe, just under 600 grams when I mated her the first time.

Also I think that my skink is a female because there is no budges that I can see or that are obvious.

That is a tricky one. You don't always see bulges on males, and sometimes females have what appear exactly like bulges. So the fact that she doesn't have any bulges is a good sign, but when you put her with a male, you need to take extreme precaution to stop any aggression just in case you've guess wrong.

The only way to be sure you have a female is if she gives birth to either babies or slugs (unfertilized ova).

Did that help you?

[skinks101]

yes. Thanks!! Can you tell me if my skink looks like a boy or a girl in these pictures?

[Susann]

My guess would be female.

[skinks101]

That is what the breeder told me. If I do breed should I get a male that is the same size or bigger? Also how many times do the gigas need to mate? what is a good time to breed the blue tongue skinks? I probably won't breed skinks for another year.

[Susann]

Who is the breeder you're talking to? Did they produce your Merauke?
How long have you had your skink?

[skinks101]

I can't remember the breeder ,but they did produce her. I got her about a year ago. At first when I got her she did not want to eat a lot and she started to eat better about when I had her for about 6 months. ( she is now a piggy) She would eat cat food because that is what the breeder fed her, but I feed her lean ground turkey, veggies, and fruits.