Leopard Gecko Lighting And Heating Requirements

Incandescent heat lamp as daylight.

Leopard gecko lighting and heating requirements.

Leopard geckos do not need artificial lighting or uv light which some reptiles do require but they do need to know whether it is day or night. Infrared heat lamps will provide your leopard gecko with heat overnight and are specially designed to use with nocturnal animals as the light s color doesn t affect leopard geckos. This is what you need to replicate in your leopard gecko s vivarium. To simply a standard 10 gallon tank would work as long as it is a long and not a high.

Some swear by the heat lamp while others advocate heat mats. When looking for a leopard gecko terrarium consider your gecko s age and size before making your choice. Heating mats and heating pads are the preferred choice for leopard geckos. Leopard geckos are crepuscular lizards which means that they will be sleeping and hiding from the sun during the day.

In reality it doesn t really matter which method you use as long as it s safe for your leopard gecko and provides enough heating. In the wild they hide from bright light and sun during the daytime hours and come out when it becomes cooler. Leopard gecko terrarium lighting and heating. While leopard geckos don t need uvb to survive uva uvb light has been shown to greatly improve the immune system health and wellness of all reptiles both diurnal and crepuscular.

I find that this can be done most effectively with a good basking bulb and a dimmable heat lamp with a ceramic socket my favorite is this one by zoo med. Here is a quick overview of a 5 element setup for any leo tank. Using a mini heat uvb fixture with a zilla 50w mini halogen bulb and a zilla desert mini compact fluorescent uvb bulb will provide the correct heat and uv for your leopard gecko to thrive. Ceramic bulb for nighttime heating or a heating pad if your tank is too small.

Depending on the size of your viv determines the wattage of the bulb needed. Red blue or black night light which should be for a couple of hours while you want to watch your geckos optional. We have our lights on a timer. In our vivariums we have lights to help heat their enclosure.

There are also a lot of different opinions regarding heating a leopard gecko enclosure many of which we ll touch on briefly here. As leopard geckos are terrestrial ground dwelling the tank or cage you keep them in should be long and wide. Humidity improper humidity can make it more difficult for them to shed properly cause hydration issues or increase the chances of leopard geckos getting an infection. Heat lamps supply heat in a way that works with a leopard gecko s instincts replicating nature in captivity.

6 16 cm or shorter 20 gallon tank or about 30 x 12 x 12. T5 or t8 5 6 uvb bulb 2 3 for albinos. Given measurements are length x width x height.