Keeper timer setting
T5 UVB: one hour later on, one hour earlier off
During active care — ON: 1 hour after daylight starts.
OFF: 1 hour before daylight ends.
During hibernation / full brumation: T5 UVB OFF (0 hours). In transition months, keep UVB off while dormant and use the active timer only once the animal is warmed and active.
October: daylight 10.5 h; T5 UVB 8 h 30 m.
The active T5 duration is the photoperiod minus two hours. Example: daylight 08:00–20:00 means UVB 09:00–19:00. Follow the monthly UVI strength measured beneath the tube and provide access to shade. This timing rule does not introduce hibernation for species whose schedule has only a mild or active winter rest. If an older combined heat / UV column is present, the new T5 UVB duration column governs UVB timing; existing heat settings are preserved.
UVI beneath the optional T5 tube
Working exposure targetOctober target at normal back height
UVI 1-2directly under the tube when it is on
The retained range remains a provisional captive working target. No new species-specific result was found that clearly requires a numerical change. Retaining it is not certification of an experimentally established optimum.
Your measuring point
Measure at the animal's normal back height directly beneath the brightest accessible part of the T5 strip, positioned toward the middle/back. The animal can enter and leave this area freely.
Keep a lower-UVI gradient and fully covered refuges near UVI 0. This is the optional exposure area, not the average across the cage.
Use a UV Index meter, such as a Solarmeter 6.5/6.5R. Warm the tube for about 30 minutes; keep reflector, guards and mesh in place. Raise or lower the fixture within its manufacturer's minimum-distance guidance, then recheck the reading and every higher accessible surface.
Evidence level: Provisional retention. These are working recommendations, often inferred; exact species optima and seasonal UV dose usually have not been measured. Log lamp-on time and animal behaviour as well as UVI.
Baines et al. (2016), UV-Tool · Muryn, Baines and Dishman (2026), Reptile Lighting Guide V10
October management
Selected automatically using the Netherlands date
Autumn taper
Cool humid Nothofagus forest, hollow logs, trunks and shaded rocks - central-southern Chile
14-18 CDay ambient
8-11 CNight
29-31 CBasking
1-2T5 UVI*
10.5 hPhotoperiod
8 h 30 mT5 UVB duration
60-75 / 75-90%RH day / night*
2-3 sprays/wkSpray / rain
1-2Food offers*
Annual schedule
Scroll sideways on smaller screens
| Month | Day ambient | Night | Basking | T5 UVI* | Photoperiod | T5 UVB duration | RH day / night* | Spray / rain | Food offers* | Status / breeding |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 8-12 C | 5-8 C | Off | Off | 8.5 h | Off (0 h) | 65-80 / 80-90% | Light rain 1-2x/wk | None | Winter rest |
| February | 8-12 C | 5-8 C | Off | Off | 9 h | Off (0 h) | 65-80 / 80-90% | Light rain 1-2x/wk | None | Winter rest |
| March | 12-16 C | 7-10 C | 28-30 C limited | 1-2 | 10 h | 8 h | 60-75 / 75-90% | 2 light sprays/wk | 1-2 late | Staged warm-up |
| April | 15-18 C | 9-12 C | 30-32 C | 2 | 11 h | 9 h | 55-70 / 70-85% | 2-3 sprays/wk | 2-3 | Full activity begins |
| May | 17-20 C | 10-13 C | 31-33 C | 2-3 | 12.5 h | 10 h 30 m | 50-65 / 65-80% | 2-3 sprays/wk | 3 | Courtship / territoriality |
| June | 18-22 C | 11-14 C | 31-34 C | 2-3 | 14 h | 12 h | 50-65 / 65-80% | 2-3 sprays/wk | 3-4 | Peak activity / breeding |
| July | 19-23 C | 12-15 C | 32-34 C | 2-3 | 14.5 h | 12 h 30 m | 50-65 / 65-80% | 2-3 sprays/wk | 3-4 | Nesting window begins |
| August | 18-22 C | 11-14 C | 31-33 C | 2-3 | 13.5 h | 11 h 30 m | 50-65 / 65-80% | 2-3 sprays/wk + moist nest | 3-4 | Egg-laying / recovery |
| September | 16-20 C | 10-13 C | 30-32 C | 2 | 12 h | 10 h | 55-70 / 70-85% | 3 light sprays/wk | 2-3 | Post-lay active period |
| October | 14-18 C | 8-11 C | 29-31 C | 1-2 | 10.5 h | 8 h 30 m | 60-75 / 75-90% | 2-3 sprays/wk | 1-2 | Autumn taper |
| November | 10-14 C | 6-9 C | 28-30 C limited | 1 | 9 h | 7 h | 60-75 / 75-90% | 2 light sprays/wk | 1 then stop | Cooling down |
| December | 8-12 C | 5-8 C | Off | Off | 8.5 h | Off (0 h) | 65-80 / 80-90% | Light rain 1-2x/wk | None | Winter rest |
Keeper notes
Use measured gradients and animal behaviour, not single thermostat readings
T5 UVI measurement
Measure UVI at normal back height directly beneath the brightest accessible part of the optional T5 strip. Place the strip toward the middle/back with free access to and away from it; preserve a gradient into fully covered refuges near UVI 0. These numbers describe the exposure area, not the whole enclosure or a daily average.
UVI review
The retained range remains a provisional captive working target. No new species-specific result was found that clearly requires a numerical change. Retaining it is not certification of an experimentally established optimum.
Identity and habitat
Pristidactylus torquatus is endemic to Chile and strongly associated with mountain Nothofagus forest. It uses trunks, hollow logs, tree bases, rocks and shrubs; northern populations also occur in some sclerophyll forest.
Thermal biology
Direct Pristidactylus studies show a cool thermal profile: mean spring-summer substrate around 19.4 C and laboratory-selected body temperature near 28 C. Use only a modest local basking patch and maintain cooler air and deep shade.
Humidity and rain
No direct species field-RH dataset was located. The 50-80% daytime and 65-90% night values are captive working targets translated from humid forest ecology. Use light rain/spraying 2-3 times weekly in the active season, a slightly humid hollow refuge, and enough ventilation for exposed surfaces to dry between events.
Diet
Primarily insectivorous, especially beetles, with occasional predation on small lizards and other large arthropods reported. Feed varied gut-loaded invertebrates; do not use live lizards as routine prey.
Reproduction
Oviparous. Chilean sources report 5-6 elongate eggs laid in January-February native season under logs or in loose sun-warmed sand, with hatching after the cool season / following summer. In this Northern Hemisphere schedule the main nesting window is shifted to July-August.
Incubation warning
Published accounts imply a prolonged seasonal incubation with a cool phase. Do not assume a standard short tropical incubation or high constant temperature. Record every egg and use a conservative seasonal incubation protocol with expert oversight.
Social warning
Males are territorial. Individual housing is safest when compatibility is unknown. Separate for biting, persistent pursuit, refuge exclusion, suppressed feeding or weight loss.