# Reptilian egg cavern discovered on the In-ko-pah RR!



## Ray Dunakin (Jan 6, 2008)

Several nights ago I was going over the railroad with a flashlight, checking for black widow spiders. I looked into this small cave just above the Cliffside Mine, and discovered it's inhabited by an alligator lizard -- and she's filled it with eggs! I've been keeping on eye on it ever since. She's gone during the day but always in there guarding the eggs at night. 

I've started feeding her some mealworms and got her to take some from my hand already. I've posted a few pics on my website, and also a brief video of her taking a mealworm from my hand:


http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/Wildlife_At_Home.html


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A8iuvzPQ1cg




.


----------



## Dan Pantages (Jan 2, 2008)

Ray, this is way cool. What part of the country do you live in to have these animals?


----------



## Ray Dunakin (Jan 6, 2008)

Dan, I'm in San Diego, CA.


----------



## Ray Dunakin (Jan 6, 2008)

BTW, one morning last week I went out and walked around the layout, and there were tiny baby Western Fence Lizards everywhere. After I came back in the house, my wife pointed at me and said, "Look!" One of the baby lizards was clinging to my jeans! 

The fence lizards bury their eggs in the dirt, so we never see the eggs. We just suddenly start seeing their babies a various times during the summer.


----------



## Paulus (May 31, 2008)

Nice! Those are giant looking lizards compared to your model railroad! The little video clip with the lizard looking on the roof and watertower just looks like a scene from a monster movie from the 50's!


----------



## vsmith (Jan 2, 2008)

Ray if you feed it, they'll just follow you home.


----------



## eroc731 (Aug 4, 2010)

Very cool! As a lover of reptiles and the owner of several, this is great to see....wonder if they come back to the same spot each time?


----------



## pete (Jan 2, 2008)

Watch out ray you will be the first jauraske garden railroad.


----------



## Ray Dunakin (Jan 6, 2008)

This evening I spotted another, slightly smaller alligator lizard going into a little "cave" at the other end of the layout. I couldn't see the interior though so I don't know if this one has eggs too.


----------



## caferacer (Jul 22, 2010)

Ray good on you mate looking after the local wildlife some years ago when doing Dolphin research my wife use to feed the stingrays at 4. pm every day down on the beach some days the Dolphins would not appear but sure as eggs the stingrays would be their for a feed without fail at 4 pm every day good to see people and the environment getting on together caferacer


----------



## Ray Dunakin (Jan 6, 2008)

The eggs have hatched!! 

Saturday the mother lizard left the nest and didn't return. Sunday night, the eggs started hatching. 

Monday morning only a couple eggs were left. The one closest to the mouth of the cave was hatching. The little guy just got his head out, then lay there for a couple hours. I had to leave, and when I came back later in the day he was gone. I never saw any of the babies after that... 

It's hard to get a decent shot through the narrow opening of the cave, while holding the camera in one hand, a flashlight in the other, and trying not to crush any of the Cliffside Mine structures. Also, as soon as they were free of the eggs, the baby lizards would quickly scurry into the farthest reaches of the cave when I'd try to get pictures. But I did manage to get a few shots, which you can find here: 


http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/Wildlife_At_Home.html 

...


----------



## Torby (Jan 2, 2008)

"They came from the layout." 
(scary music) 
(scream)


----------



## takevin (Apr 25, 2010)

very cool,


----------

