Pineapple plant safe?

[Repti]

I just bought a small pineapple plant that has a small pineapple on it from my grocery store and just wanted to know if it’s safe to put in my vailed chameleon enclosure?

 

[nightanole]

There are plenty of jacksons/veileds on Hawaii, they are not using row of pineapples to ward them off

 

[Repti]

Thanks. Now I’m imagining gaint chameleons attacking people and there is a wall of pineapple protecting us.

 

[KalaiDaCham]

There are plenty of jacksons/veileds on Hawaii, they are not using row of pineapples to ward them off

Btw there is barely any veileds here in hawaii, which is also sad, but saying this means that who knows if pineapple plants are safe for veileds. But if you ask me i think they are.

 

[chameleonneeds]

Interesting fact: archaius Tigris (formerly calumma), from the Seychelles, lay their eggs in the leaves of pineapple plants.

I'm sure it isn't toxic. But some others with more plant experience might need to confirm that. Veileds do eat vegetation so it is best to be safe when using plants with this species.

 

[Syreptyon]

Interesting fact: calumma Tigris, from the Seychelles, lay their eggs in the leaves of pineapple plants.

That is interesting!

 

[Repti]

The plant is a bit sharp so that concerns me.

 

[CamrynTheCham22]

Well chameleons are pretty slow moving when they are not stressed or excited, and they usually know well enough to avoid sharp things. The only thing I would worry about is if the chameleon would fall on the point. Maybe you could snip the sharp parts or round them off?

 

[leedragon]

Interesting fact: archaius Tigris (formerly calumma), from the Seychelles, lay their eggs in the leaves of pineapple plants.

I'm sure it isn't toxic. But some others with more plant experience might need to confirm that. Veileds do eat vegetation so it is best to be safe when using plants with this species.

you sure it was pineapple plants?

 

[chameleonneeds]

you sure it was pineapple plants?

"Although most observations of reproduction show that the chameleon will dig a hole in the ground to lay eggs (e.g. Gerlach and Gerlach 2002), its reproduction on Mahé is associated with introduced pineapple (Ananas comosus), as it occasionally lays eggs inside the leaf axils (Van Heygen and Van Heygen unpubl. data). Although this strategy has not been observed on Silhouette or Praslin islands, Van Heygen and Van Heygen (unpubl. data) report an ad hoc experiment conducted with one female from Silhouette which, when given the choice between a bromeliad leaf axil and soil, chose the leaf axil to lay her clutch. If this species' natural nesting sites are typically leaf axils, the native host species are not known but are assumed to be the endemic Pandanus and palms (Lodoicea maldivica)."

http://www.iucnredlist.org/details/61425/0

So it seems, other than invasive pineapple plants they lay their eggs in plants with thick leaf axils. The axil of the plants must provide the absolute best conditions for incubation.

 

[leedragon]

"Although most observations of reproduction show that the chameleon will dig a hole in the ground to lay eggs (e.g. Gerlach and Gerlach 2002), its reproduction on Mahé is associated with introduced pineapple (Ananas comosus), as it occasionally lays eggs inside the leaf axils (Van Heygen and Van Heygen unpubl. data). Although this strategy has not been observed on Silhouette or Praslin islands, Van Heygen and Van Heygen (unpubl. data) report an ad hoc experiment conducted with one female from Silhouette which, when given the choice between a bromeliad leaf axil and soil, chose the leaf axil to lay her clutch. If this species' natural nesting sites are typically leaf axils, the native host species are not known but are assumed to be the endemic Pandanus and palms (Lodoicea maldivica)."

http://www.iucnredlist.org/details/61425/0

So it seems, other than invasive pineapple plants they lay their eggs in plants with thick leaf axils. The axil of the plants must provide the absolute best conditions for incubation.

Hm neat.So they are using the pineaples as a replacement for their naturalnesting plants. I had Heard this but I didn´t rememebr it was ordinary pinapels. itsn´t likw other reptiles in madagascar which use introduced plants for their new habitat?

 

[JacksJill]

Just another interesting thing about chameleons. Love it.