Nosy Mitsio Panther Chameleon

Egg Laying
After a gestation period of 30-45 days, the female will descend to the ground and dig a burrow into which 14-34 eggs are laid.

Depending on the temperature, incubation ranges between 160-362 days.

Egg Hatching
The hatchlings come out typically in 240 days after incubation.

The female will not be involved in the hatching of her offspring and they will be independent at birth.

Tadpoles Development
A baby Panther Chameleon would take a minimum of seven months to attain the ability of reproduction.

Enclosure Requirements
Like other chameleons, Panther Chameleons are arboreal, meaning they live exclusively in trees. Therefore they need vertical enclosures.

The more room you provide for your Panther Chameleon the better. Also, longer enclosure will allow you to provide a warm end and a cooler end for your chameleon’s well-being.

Enclosure tips:

Nosy Mitsio Panther Chameleon  are very territorial. Thus, it is mandatory to house males singly. However, two females can safely be kept together, and babies and young ones can live together with other individuals of the same age
Some experts debate that, in captivity, the two genders of Panther Chameleons would never live together peacefully, in the sense that, the female would starve to death even being in sight of a male

Nosy Mitsio Panther Chameleon  can be housed singly, or they can be housed in groups for a month and then separated into smaller groups as long as aggression or competition for food is not an issue

Avoid placing the enclosure in drafty or noisy areas of your house. This is a stress trigger
Best known pet enclosure suppliers offer enclosure kits specially designed for Chameleons, for example, there is the Zoo Med Reptibreeze Chameleon Kit.

Other options are the Zoo Med Reptibreeze Open Air Screen Cage and the Zoo Med ReptiBreeze LED Deluxe Open Air Aluminum Screen Habitat.

Substrate
No specific substrate is needed for Nosy Mitsio Panther Chameleon, but flat newspaper, paper towel, coconut fiber, or potting soil with no added chemicals or perlite work well.

Newspaper is an inexpensive, easy to clean, and very safe substrate to use. However, it doesn’t look “nice” and of course it should be replaced once a day.

A good looking alternative to the newspaper is a paper towel substrate. In addition, paper towels hold moisture well and help stabilize the humidity of your terrarium.

If you choose coconut fiber, you can check the Zoo Med Eco Earth.

If a particulate or natural substrate is used avoid the following: beddings with small particles (sand, kitty litter, etc.), cedar, gravel, corn cob bedding, and beddings that would hold excess moisture.

As Panther Chameleons are arboreal, they need climbing facilities -branches and plants (live or fake) to climb on.

Plants do also play a critical role in providing a sense of security, so be sure to provide your chameleon with one or two “areas of refuge”. Create a dense area of non-toxic plants on one side for hiding. And on the other side create a more open exposed area of branches for basking.

Some safe live plants commonly used are weeping fig-trees, umbrella trees, and Pothos.

You may choose to simply collect wood from a forest. However, this is not 100% safe unless you make sure you remove any harmful microorganisms.

To do so, first, scrub the wood with a 5% diluted bleach mixture. After the scrub is complete, preheat your oven to 300°F and bake the wood for 30 minutes. This should sterilize the wood and make it completely safe for your chameleon.

Temperature
Panther Chameleons require a daytime temperature gradient of about 75°F, with a basking spot of 88 to 95°F in each enclosure.

At night, they should have a temperature drop of about 10°F (5 to 10°C).

It is key to set up an environment that provides a gradient of temperatures. Temperatures in different parts of the cage can be easily monitored by placing thermometers in a few places.

Provide a ceramic heater for a basking area all day and night.

Another good heat source that can be used outside your chameleon’s enclosure (placed 12-24 inches from the cage walls) is 50-75 watt incandescent bulbs.

Ceramic elements and incandescent bulbs can be used 24 hours per day, without affecting the chameleons’ daily light rhythms.

However, heat rocks or other heating elements under the cage or at the bottom of the cage are not recommended because they can cause burns in your chameleon.