On going into the building (which is quite small) I saw a tank with brambles in it, and on closer inspection discovered it had infant Giant Australian Walking Sticks!
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Here's a nice big display of bearded dragons and a mali uromastyx. (Is that a comfortable position?) |
| In a small tank, looking remarkably like Jabba the Hutt, was this African Bullfrog. |  |
I am always surprised at the size spiders can be: here is a Chilean Rose Tarantula. And another one, a classroom animal, I understand.
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A Tiger Salamander hiding in the water, under his log. |
| Joe got him out so we could see his fine size and lovely color more clearly. |  |
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Pine snakes in a big cage. They were not interested in meeting us. |
I've never seen a Fennec Fox before, although they appear regularly in the on-line comic, Kevin and Kell! This one was peacefully resting until disturbed by the crowd of visitors. It is considerably smaller than a normal housecat, only weighing-in at about 2 or 3 pounds!
| My notes say these are Panther Chameleons. |  |
| In a large enclosure, almost a small room, were numerous iguanas, turtles, and other big lizards - and a caiman. |
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Outdoors in a pen there is a Mara, a South American creature like an outsized guinea pig. I thought it was some sort of rabbit or hare, and apparently it fills that niche in its native environment.
| Leopard Geckos! | |
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There are two miniature hedgehogs living here, a normal color and an albino. *So* cute!
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Young copperheads - note the yellow tailtip! |
A pretty girl introduced me to Minnie, a Goffin Cockatoo. Perched on a stand in the sun was Jimmy, a Molluccan cockatoo.
| A Timber rattler sleeping in his cage by the front door. |  |
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Chinese ratsnakes become more colorful as they mature, rather unusual. |
| An Albino Black Ratsnake. |  |
Several injured/handicapped birds also live here, among them a little Screech owl and some Redtail Hawks.
| Here is one of the most unusual snakes I have ever seen: a File Snake.
It is totally aquatic but it is an air-breather, it has lungs. It has no
muscle-tone for dealing with being on land. See how limply it hangs, no effort
to move. Oddly enough, it has been fighting blister disease - usually caused
by dirty damp environments. How do you treat that in an aquatic specimen?
It's called a File Snake or Wart Snake because the skin texture is rough
- so it can catch and constrict slippery things in water!
It concerns me that this snake was brought into the USA in the pet trade. It lives in water and cannot be played with or even clearly seen. I am glad this one has found a knowledgeable home. Joe used a hook to get the snake out, as he would have been bitten had he reached into the tank with his hand! |
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...and who is this watching as we leave, suspiciously peering from the very front tank, right by the door? :) |
After this already quite exhausting afternoon we went to visit the new petstore, Carolina Specialty Pets, http://www.carolinaspecialtypets.com . What a full day!
