Why Go Bioactive?

Housing a herptile in certain conditions will cause uproar in the husbandry world. How does each setup stack up against each other?

Different capsules of life

There are different levels of herptile enclosure conditions that most enthusiasts deem to be successful, based on their own experience, budget or knowledge. A look at the different types of living conditions will hopefully clear any confusion of how close we can get to natural perfection.

The minimal setup that most people have witnessed, in a control setting, is the RUB habitat. It stands for Really Useful Box. This clear, plastic tub is a cheap alternative to a tank/vivarium. You can place a paper towel or your local newspaper as the substrate, a water bowl and a feeding dish (depending on the herptile species) inside as the total necessities. On the side you can attach a heat mat to keep them warm and UVB lighting to mimic sunlight and added health benefits if required. No hardscape or even fake plants are necessary.

Example of a RUB-Type Plastic Container

Maintenance is easy. Spot checks, water changes and feeding are all that is needed. Having many baby snakes from breeding projects would be ideally housed in RUBs. Here's a link to a video of such a collection.

Another route to head down is a vivarium or tank. There can be a slight increase of supplies for this setting. Wood, glass or plastic tank/viviarium, herptile safe disinfectant, substrate, lighting/heating, hardscape and fake plants would be all the materials you need as a starter kit.

Naturalistic surroundings are becoming more obvious here. It has everything you need. Bringing up a hardy young herptile is possible as long as the conditions of their care are met. Replicating the rainforest for example, can be done in placing cork branches propped up or sticking fake plants by suction cups on the glass wall of a tank. Using your imagination and some backdrop photos will bring a habitat to life.

Basic Vivarium Styled Habitat

Another option on the care spectrum would be to go bioactive. Simply put, a bioactive enclosure is a constant recycling of nutrients from substrate to herptile and back. To create something this complex, you would need a bigger budget for a full DIY project and research of each living-and-breathing layer. You could go with the full DIY project with the previous setups but there would be no reason to as they are meant to be minimalist styles.

Everything from custom backgrounds made out of expanding foam, silicone and coco-coir substrate to glueing over-hanging branches with live-moss or live-plants attached, make for a dream project. If a herptile species requires a lot of water then a water filter, filter foam, plastic sheets and some hardscape rocks would be the start of a scenic waterfall feature. Again, it forces the idea of using human-made tools to make something look natural that passes on nutrients from one to the next.

Lush Bioactive Rainforest Paludarium

A false-bottom is a solid foundation that starts the process of natural movement of resources. Small clay balls and a permeable membrane, like window screen, would allow the passing of water from one layer to the next and prevent stagnation.

Species-orientated substrate on top of the drainage layer complements growth. It has to allow humid-loving plants to spread their roots. Any invertebrates can feed on the ingredients of the substrate and then pass nutrients back to it. Desert species need a much simpler play-sand/coco-fibre layer that doesn't need moisture but can still hold plants such as cacti or succulents and small beasties like springtails.

Adding leaf-litter and moss/plants to the substrate will allow aeration and nutrient cycling. Mixing in sphagnum moss and leaves into the substrate will create pockets of air. Micro-climates will also occur as each mixed segment will hold different temperatures and humidities for all your inhabitants to thrive upon.

Invertebrates would be the next in line as major players in a bioactive setting. These can be in the form of isopods, springtails and millipedes. They will break down organic and waste matter to allow it to be passed into the soil for plants to feed on. Remember to feed your small creepers with vegetables or fruits to keep them going.

Who Comes Up Trumps?

Jessica May Hornby and Joanna Hedley state, in their 'Reptile Husbandry: The Basics' article, that "No perfect enclosure exists, as it is impossible to recreate the identical environment that reptiles inhabit in the wild. Understanding these different components will allow veterinary teams to advise owners appropriately, improving animal welfare and reducing presentations of preventable diseases in clinics."

Each set-up has their own uses, positives and negatives. If we allow the animal to be stressed and unhealthy then that should be the main issue, irrespective of the enclosure. However, if the setting is the direct cause of said problems then it would be worth re-thinking their home situation.