Red-Eyed Crocodile Skink

Tribolonotus gracilis

A dragon in miniature — armor-scaled, red-eyed, and prehistoric-looking. Shy and nocturnal, but one of the most striking little lizards in the hobby.

7–9 in10–12 years

Habitat

Enclosure

18×18×12 in minimum · terrestrial

Temperature

74–80°F — no hot basking spot

Humidity / Water

75–85% — damp, not swampy

Heating & lighting

Cool and shaded — no hot basking lamp, just ambient 74–80°F. Damp substrate with deep leaf litter, bark hides, and a shallow water dish they can soak in.

Diet

Feed these

Small crickets
Flightless fruit flies
Small dubia roaches
Small earthworms

Never feed

Handling (they play dead and stress badly)
Hot tanks above 82°F
Deep water dishes
Loud, high-traffic rooms

Feed small insects at dusk when they emerge. Many learn to take food from tongs after settling in.

Cohabitation

Can live with

Other crocodile skinks — bonded pairs

Never house with

Any different species Boisterous tank mates

Pairs cohab in big, heavily planted tanks — but they're fragile, skittish, and stress easily. Look, don't touch.