FYE.
EXOTICS

Agalychnis callidryas

Where They're From

Tropical lowland rainforests of southern Mexico, Central America (Costa Rica, Panama), and parts of northern South America.

Day In The Life

Completely arboreal — they live high in tall trees and only come down rarely to mate.

What's For Dinner

Insects like moths, flies, grasshoppers, and crickets — and sometimes other small frogs, showing off their cannibalistic side.

Here @fye.exotics we're working on a project for captive-bred red-eyed tree frogs. Available soon.

Chamaeleo calyptratus

Where They're From

Arabian Peninsula — Yemen and Saudi Arabia. A popular pet-trade reptile, so wild populations can also be found roaming parts of Florida.

Day In The Life

Arboreal — they spend their whole lives in trees or thick vegetation across valleys, vegetated highlands, and very dry areas. Not your typical rainforest chameleon.

What's For Dinner

Crickets, grasshoppers, spiders, silkworms, and flies. One of the few chameleon species that will also eat leaves and plant matter for extra nutrients.

Personality

Not social — they prefer a solitary life.

Female veiled chameleons can lay eggs without mating.

Here @fye.exotics we're working on captive-bred chameleons.

Lepidodactylus lugubris

Where They're From

Native to places like Hawaii and Southeast Asia.

Day In The Life

Small, all-female arboreal lizards that thrive in groups. They don't need males to reproduce — some say they're all clones of one original mourning gecko.

What's For Dinner

Pretty much any small insect that fits in their mouth (they only reach about 4–5 inches) — usually fruit flies, ants, and pinhead crickets.

Personality

Social and most active in the evenings and at night. They communicate with soft chirping or clicking sounds.

Here @fye.exotics we're focusing on captive-bred mourning geckos. Available soon.

Candoia bibroni

Where They're From

Solomon Islands and other southwestern Pacific islands, thriving both in trees and on the ground.

Day In The Life

Mostly nocturnal and arboreal/semi-arboreal. During the day they stay concealed and inactive — resting among branches, vegetation, tree hollows, or other protected spots — then become active and hunt once evening arrives.

What's For Dinner

In the wild, pretty much anything they can fit in their mouth: rodents, birds, lizards, amphibians, even other small snakes.

Personality

Arboreal/semi-arboreal, meaning they're comfortable both on the ground and in the treetops.

Female Solomon Island boas give live birth. They're different from your average boa — some say they resemble vipers because of their slender heads, but they're harmless and non-venomous.

Here @fye.exotics we're working closely with this species — one of the most difficult snakes to care for in captivity since most are imported or wild-caught. Hopefully one day we can launch a successful breeding program.

Chalcides ocellatus

Where They're From

Widespread across North Africa, the Mediterranean, and the Middle East, extending into parts of Asia. Introduced populations are also established in parts of the U.S., including Florida.

Day In The Life

Semi-fossorial — they spend a lot of time under the substrate and can essentially "swim" through loose sand and soil by moving their bodies side to side.

What's For Dinner

Mostly insects and other arthropods: beetles, crickets, insect larvae, isopods, and spiders.

Personality

Their mood shifts with temperature and season. SUPER FAST, and more inclined to hide and burrow.

They give live birth. "Ocellated" refers to the eye-like spots on their scales — similar to the ocelot cat.

Here @fye.exotics we're caring for this species. Hopefully one day we can establish a breeding program.

Lamprolepis smaragdina

Where They're From

A huge island range across parts of Indonesia, the Philippines, New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Micronesia, and surrounding Pacific islands.

Day In The Life

Strongly arboreal — they spend most of their time climbing trunks and branches rather than walking on the ground. Diurnal, so they're active during the day.

What's For Dinner

Primarily insectivorous, but wild emerald skinks have been documented eating ripe fruit. In captivity they'll eat leftover fruit and Pangea diet — I sometimes give mine mango and banana.

Personality

Extremely quick climbers that can launch themselves between branches — an open enclosure door can turn into a chase fast. One of the most social lizards I've ever owned: super curious and they thrive in groups.

Captive-bred emeralds can live up to around 12 years with proper care. My favorite skink, too!

Here @fye.exotics we're working closely with this species to produce captive-bred offspring. Hopefully by 2027–early 2028 we'll have our first hatchlings!

Morelia spilota harrisoni

Where They're From

Native to New Guinea (Papua) and coastal areas of northern Australia.

Day In The Life

Semi-arboreal — they love climbing. They use the ground but are excellent climbers, often resting on sturdy elevated branches and high in trees, and sometimes hiding in ground spaces or logs. Like other pythons, they have heat-sensitive pits around the mouth to detect warm-bodied prey, and their sense of smell through tongue-flicking is extremely important.

What's For Dinner

STRICTLY CARNIVOROUS — small mammals, birds, and other reptiles. AKA anything they can fit in their mouth when hungry.

Personality

Very alert and visually aware. Compared to something like a ball python, a carpet python will watch what's happening outside the enclosure, investigate changes, and actively explore. Babies tend to be snippier with more attitude, but proper handling and husbandry improve behavior. One of my favorite snakes to work with.

If you like carpet pythons but don't want the size of a big coastal, Papuans are generally slender, athletic, smaller, and better-tempered. Males average 3–5 ft at most; females can reach 6–8 ft. Still a constrictor species, so handle with care.

Here @fye.exotics we're taking our time caring for our carpet python. We started with one male so far — hopefully in the future we can start a successful breeding program.

Correlophus ciliatus

Where They're From

New Caledonia, a tropical island nation in the Southwest Pacific, where they thrive in humid rainforests.

Day In The Life

Usually nocturnal, so you'll see more activity at night.

What's For Dinner

In captivity they thrive on Pangea or another premium fruit/insect mix. In the wild they eat ripe fruit from trees or the forest floor, plus crickets, cockroaches, and other small insects.

Personality

Calm, docile, solitary reptiles that do great with proper handling. They may drop their tail if startled or frightened — and unlike some species, crested gecko tails don't grow back.

Crested geckos come in a variety of genes and colorways, like Dalmatian, Lilly White, and Axanthic.

Phidippus adumbratus

Where They're From

Native to western North America, including Southern California, Baja California, and Mexico.

Day In The Life

A daytime visual hunter that doesn't build a traditional prey-catching web. Instead of orb-weaving, it uses silk for safety lines and small silken retreats/hammocks where it rests, hides, and molts.

Personality

Watches its surroundings with excellent eyesight, stalks prey, then pounces. Jumping spiders can even plan indirect approaches and repeatedly stop to reorient toward where they last saw prey — surprisingly sophisticated spatial memory for such a tiny animal. Females are usually bigger than males and differ in color.

I've owned and handled a handful of these jumping spiders — they're one of my favorites because they're so observant.

Gastropholis prasina

Where They're From

Coastal areas and lowland forests of East Africa, including Kenya and Tanzania.

Day In The Life

Diurnal (active during the day) and strictly arboreal, spending nearly their entire lives high in tree canopies and rarely coming down to the forest floor.

What's For Dinner

Primarily insectivorous: crickets, cockroaches, and worms. I've even fed mine small minnows and organic grain-free cat food (usually the seafood options) as a fatty treat.

Personality

Incredibly fast, active predators that stalk, chase, and leap to catch moving insects. Naturally timid in the wild, hiding quickly under leaves — but in captivity they often become highly curious and inquisitive.

The keel-bellied lizard is basically a small monitor — and it has a prehensile tail, like a monkey.