Your reptile collection

What would be your collection of reptiles? Would this be just your reptile house in your zoo or would you make a zoo specializing in reptiles? About quantity, 30 species is a good number, but if you want, you can put more or less; It depends on you (preferably, try not to exaggerate). If you want, you also can describe the location of the enclosures, their size, their appearance, the amount of animals of each species, draw a plan...

If you want, you also can include other animals like amphibians, fishes and invertebrates.

 

I may want to construct reptilarium like that on my thread 'Broken Glass' (in) Reptilarium. Small and effective, for housing for up to 9-10 species of reptiles.
If venomous snakes can be obtained, the reptile collection will be:

-Cuban crocodiles (juvenile first) or dwarf crocodiles
-Emerald tree monitor
-Gaboon viper
-Red spitting cobra
-Eastern green mamba
-Mount Rungwe bushviper (currently not represented in zoos)
-Siamese spitting cobra
-Brongersman's blood python
-Emerald tree boa
-Eyelash viper

As you can note, tortoises, turtles and lizards (other than emerald tree monitor) are excluded due to limited space available (81.0 m2 total reptilarium) and because tortoises won't attract a lot of visitors at first.

 

Do you think a row of 8 snakes attracts more visitors? Sure, a snake lover will like it,
but the average visitor propably likes more variety.

For my own reptile collection, I would like a very diverse collection, with relatively few
species, and lots of education around each one. I would prefer to keep EEP/ESB
species, and have some space available for serious breeding effort, mostly behind the scenes.
Visitors can see (one of) the breeding room(s) through a small window, again with
lots of education about the status of different reptiles in the wild.

The collection itself would be mix between attractive and endangered species.
I won't give a list, as availability plays a hug role. But I am particulairly fond of
the Cyclura and Phelsuma genus, as well as caiman lizards, when it comes to
lizards. For chelonians both Astrochelys species, as well as the Cuora genus and the
malasian giant turtles have always made quite an impresson on me. I have few
preferences with both snakes and crocodiles, though I really enjoyed seeing
Rhynchophis boulengeri in Rotterdam this summer.

 

I agree that variety is more attractive, but I have one lizard on the list - Emerald tree monitor. Snakes are always attractive, partly because many people are scared of them. Especially when they are more colourfull and bigger. There are also cultural and geographical differences in preferences, here for example, people are used to meet tortoises, bigger green lizards (Balkan green lizrads), snakes every time when they go in wilderness durring spring/summer/early autumn, so that said, average visitors won't make much difference between Greek tortoise and radiated tortoise from Madagascar.
Because I am limiting the space for my eventual future reptilarium just because less space means more realistic chances for establishing, and hence the ommitting of tortoises, lizards.

 

Sorry, but I agree with Mr. Zootycoon: too many snakes... If you like that, you have every right to do, but it would be better to vary a little more... And it's not just the snakes that have a good variety. Lizards, for example, also have a lot of variety, probably even more than snakes. Also, at least one species of turtles/tortoises would be nice.

But stopping talking badly, how do you discovered this subspecies of Great Lakes bush viper? Do you know if at least some zoo has it?

 

One thing I realize is that, while not threatened and being very common, everyone likes Giant day geckos or Caiman lizards (I'm not a exception) xD

 

Sure! Though I would have a hard time to pick my favourite Phelsuma species, it would
probably be P. klemmeri. They have always fascinated me with their beautiful colour and
pattern. And caiman lizards just have amazing personalities. I'm really lucky to have the
chance to work with such incredible creatures.

 

I have a big list with about 75 species of reptiles and some invertebrates and amphibians... I will organize it to put in a list of about 30 enclosures for reptiles (though there are species of amphibians that I would like get, like Golden mantella, Panamanian golden frog, Mountain chicken, Titicaca water frog and Lemur frog, and species of invertebrates, like Lord Howe Island stick insect, Achrioptera fallax, Giant devil flower mantis, Gooty sapphire ornamental blue tarantula, Brazilian pinkbloom tarantula/Goliath pinkfoot tarantula and Goliath beetle [maybe the Royal goliath beetle]).

I'm thinking in some enclosures with mixed species, like Rhinoceros viper + Fire skink, Red-headed podocnemis (and MAYBE other amazon turtle species like Twist-necked turtle... Also, is it possible to put a Emerald tree boa in there?) + Caiman lizard and Bushmaster (Which species would be the best? I imagine that the less common is the Black-head bushmaster... Is it too hard to get? What about Central American and South American?) + Poison dart frogs (maybe Dendrobates tinctorius or Ranitomeya sp.?)

 

Besides the Giant madagascar day gecko, I also like Standing's day gecko and Yellow-headed day gecko (though I don't know a lot of Phelsuma species). Fleeing from the Phelsuma genus, I also like Turquoise dwarf geckos.

 

I found this (sub)species on google image typing bush vipers.
And yes, I don't know whether there is any zoo in the world holding this (sub)species, but there are however several holders in Europe holding just Atheris nitschei with no further specifications about subspecies (as for Atheris nitschei rungweensis - that in future may prove to be separate species).

 

You think that it's something like C. caninus and C. batesii, in which species (subspecies) are different but few people know?

 

Yeah most probably. I never read of this.

 

Mr. Zootycoon, I forgot to mention that in the genus Cyclura I really like the Grand Cayman blue iguana... But it's probably very difficult to get one, maybe even more than a Fiji crested iguana?

 

Previously only Corallus caninus existed, but now it is believed that there are two different species: C. caninus and C. batesii.
I believe the subject didn't get very popular outside Brazil.

 

Guys, so what you think about mixing:
Rhinoceros viper + Fire skink?
Caiman lizard + Red-headed podocnemis + Amazon Basin emerald tree boa?
Giant girdled lizard + Pancake tortoise?

 

Also Cuora sp. (C. mccordi, C. aurocapitata, C. galbinifrons...)+ Chinese alligator

 

I'd like my collection of reptiles and amphibians not only to be housed in a small reptile house for certain species, but in their own exhibits and small "Reptiquariums" in some exhibits. For example, my African Kopje exhibit in the micro zoo thread had outdoor and indoor exhibits for White-throated Monitors, like with the Komodo Dragon exhibit at the Bronx Zoo. This allows for natural UVB and heating for half of the year and artificial on cold days or during the winter ( Assuming my exhibit is in a temperate climate.) I'd also have any exhibits for Galapagos Tortoises or crocodilians have both outdoor and indoor exhibits. The reptile house would be small, with about 20-30 species, of all forms, reptile and amphibian. I'd have exhibits for species that i'll post later.

 

1) Not a very good idea.
2) In a large vivarium?
3) Already practised in zoos.
4) Cuora sp. + Chinese alligator: sure, if you want to extend the diet of your alligators.
5) I wouldn’t recommend to mix Lachesis sp. with any other species. Or caiman lizards with dendrobats.

 

Sorry, but what do the numbers mean?

Why do you think that the Chinese alligtors would eat the Cuora sp. turtles? You probably know that it is common to mix crocodilians with turtles, and the Chinese alligator is one of the smallest crocodilians.

 

. Philippine crocodile > Cuban crocodile
. African slender-snouted crocodile

. Galapagos giant tortoise (I don't know which subspecies would be the best option)
. Burmese star tortoise
. Flat-shelled spider tortoise > Common spider tortoise

. Fiji crested iguana > Fiji banded iguana
. Usambara giant three-horned chameleon > Parson's chameleon > Cameroon sailfin chameleon > K. matschiei > K. multituberculata > Four-horned chameleon
. Perentie monitor > Komodo dragon > Crocodile monitor
. Grand Cayman blue iguana
. Blue-spotted tree monitor
. Thorny dragon
. Rhampoleon acuminatus > Rhampoleon viridis
. Solomon Islands skink
. New Caledonian giant gecko
. Turquoise dwarf gecko
. Giganteus leaf-tailed gecko

. Amazon Basin emerald tree boa
. Boelen's python
. Golden lancehead > Eyelash viper
. Samar cobra
. Mangshan pitviper > Wagler's pitviper
. Rhinoceros ratsnake
. Brongersma's blood python
. Jameson's mamba > Eastern green mamba
. San Francisco garter snake

. Rhinoceros viper + Fire skink
. Red-headed podocnemis + Northern caiman lizard
. Cuora sp. (McCord's box turtle, Yellow-headed box turtle, Indochinese box turtle) + Chinese alligator
. South American bushmaster + Dendrobates tinctorius
. Giant girdled lizard + Pancake tortoise





What do you think? Maybe this list is only temporary. Other species that I would like to have are Ethiopian mountain viper, King cobra, Indochinese spitting cobra, Red spitting cobra, Cape coral snake, Papuan taipan, Diamondback terrapin, Spiny hill turtle, Baja blue rock lizard, Rio Fuerte beaded lizard, Borneo earless monitor...

There are also amphibians and invertebrates, that I didn't include... Maybe some of the amphibians would be Lemur frog, Peacock tree frog, Cinnamon frog, Golden mantella, Panamanian golden frog, Tomato frog, Giant waxy monkey tree frog, Pipa pipa...

Some invertebrates that I like are Lord Howe Island stick insect, Achrioptera fallax, Chan's megastick, Goliathus orientalis, Pandinus cavimanus, Gooty sapphire ornamental blue tarantula, Goliath pinkfoot tarantula, Pamphobeteus sp. "platyomma", Orange baboon tarantula... Hey, someone know a cool and unusual species of centipede? Giant snail?