My Town Monday: Reptile Love in San Diego, CA

This Monday sees Mr. Conehead and Fat Letta, our male and female veiled chameleons, sharing a cage and some romantic time together.

They usually live in separate cages, sans date nights or any other type of interactive behavior. Veileds are solitary creatures, and it stresses them to hang out too much together. In fact, it can stress them to the point that they stop eating! I'm sure I can make some kind of comparison with my own past dating life, but will refrain. :)

So, you're perhaps wondering how we know when to pluck Mr. Conehead from his cage to let him wander the branches of Fat Letta's abode. For us, it seems to be more an art than a science.

Apparently, Fat Letta sends out some pretty powerful pheromones. Last week, someone forgot to latch the door on Mr. Conehead's cage. When I went to spray him with water the next morning, he was nowhere to be found! Eventually, I looked up, up, up. There he was--perched on the very top of Fat Letta's cage! However, when I opened her cage door to let him in, she hissed and gaped at him. When Fat Letta gapes, she lunges at Mr. Conehead, her mouth wide open and her eyes wild. It is not an attractive sight and is even somewhat scary. Her gaping lets us know she has zero interest in entertaining Mr. Conehead. When Mr. Conehead realizes he's not welcome in Fat Letta's cage and is being banished to his bachelor pad, he gapes at me!

Following Mr. Conhead's escape, every couple of days or so, I hold him near Fat Letta to gauge her reaction. Eventually a day will come when she has no reaction. (Fat Letta is not the most demonstrative of women.) And that's when I place Mr. Conehead on a branch in her cage, then latch the door on the lovebirds.

If you look closely, you will see some beautiful turquoise spots on the lovely Letta. This is another sign that she's interested in spending time with Mr. Conehead.

I added some mood mist to the cage. Just kidding! It's just the mister which increases the humidity.

Wish us luck in our quest for a clutch of fertilized eggs.

I'm this week's hostess. If you throw up a My Town Monday post, let me know here or on the official My Town Monday blog, and I'l link to you on both. Have a great day!

Please check out these posts from other My Town Mondayers!

In celebration of this week's 42th anniversary of the Apollo moon walk, Jim Winter posts about Cincinnati's Neil Armstrong

From Dayton, OH, Jeannette Marie Powell posts about the BEST potato chips!

Clare2E of Women of Mystery has some fun menu items from a Mamaroneck, NY Mexican restaurant