East Indian brown mabuya (Eutropis multifasciata)

Short answers

East Indian brown mabuya: How big does the enclosure need to be?

~90×45×45 cm for one animal; larger is better (offer climbing and structure).

East Indian brown mabuya: What temperature does it need?

Daytime 27–32 °C (cooler side), basking spot 35–40 °C basking spot, at night ~18–21 °C.

East Indian brown mabuya: Does it need UVB lighting?

UVB: UVB needed (a diurnal basker, Ferguson zone 2–3, UV index 2–4).

East Indian brown mabuya: How long do they live?

Life expectancy: 8+ years in captivity.

East Indian brown mabuya: Is it suitable for beginners?

Rather not – it is considered an intermediate species (difficulty: Intermediate).

Climate

Daytime temperature

27–32 °C (cooler side)

Night temperature

~18–21 °C

Basking spot

35–40 °C basking spot

Humidity

60–80 % (tropical; mist once or twice a day, water dish)

UVB

UVB needed (a diurnal basker, Ferguson zone 2–3, UV index 2–4)

Enclosure

Minimum size

~90×45×45 cm for one animal; larger is better (offer climbing and structure)

Substrate

Humus-rich substrate they can dig in (soil, coco humus or plantation soil), ~7–10 cm; not pure desert sand

Feeding

Food

Mostly insects (roaches, crickets, black soldier fly larvae, worms, snails, silkworms), occasionally fruit (banana, papaya, berries)

Feeding interval

adults daily to every other day (as much as is eaten in about 5 minutes)

Key facts

Adult size

up to ~35 cm total length (SVL up to ~13 cm; the tail 1.3–1.6× the SVL)

Life expectancy

8+ years in captivity

Origin

South and South-East Asia (India, southern China, Myanmar, Thailand, Indochina to Malaysia, Sumatra, Borneo, Java, the Philippines); invasive in Florida

Protection status

Not listed under CITES; IUCN "Least Concern"; not specially protected in Germany, no registration duty

Brumation

None (a tropical species, warm and even all year)

Cohabitation

Keeping them singly is the safest choice for beginners. Experienced keepers can try female groups or one male with several females in a large enclosure (about 120x60x60 cm for up to three animals) with plenty of structure and close observation. Never keep males together: violent fights are documented repeatedly for the species.

Notes

Very fast and skittish → a well-secured terrarium, a lid, and visual screening. Live-bearing (viviparous), with no egg-laying. Common mistakes: too dry (a tropical species!), too little space, and housing males together. Older animals often lose the thick tail base (described as natural).

Do you keep this species?

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Related species

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• Long-tailed sun skink (Eutropis longicaudata) – Beginner
• Rough-scaled sun skink (Eutropis rugifera) – Beginner with some knowledge
• Keeled grass skink (Eutropis carinata) – Beginner with some knowledge
• African five-lined skink (Trachylepis quinquetaeniata) – Intermediate
• Algerian skink (Eumeces algeriensis) – Intermediate
• Berber skink (Eumeces schneideri) – Beginner to intermediate
• Berdmore's water skink (Tropidophorus berdmorei) – Beginner with some knowledge

All species in the care wiki →

What you need to start

To keep East Indian brown mabuya (Eutropis multifasciata) you typically need: a suitable enclosure (~90×45×45 cm for one animal; larger is better (offer climbing and structure)), substrate (Humus-rich substrate they can dig in (soil, coco humus or plantation soil), ~7–10 cm; not pure desert sand), a heat source with a thermostat, UVB lighting, thermometer and hygrometer, a water dish and hides. You will find equipment in the Reptoria marketplace.