Crested Gecko (aka Eyelash Gecko)

Rhacodactylus ciliatus

Reptiles Alive Name: Rhacodactylus (aka Rhacky)

Hissstory: Rhacky came to us as an unwanted pet in July 2010.

RA Diet: Crickets and fruit.

Natural Diet: Insects and other invertebrates plus fruit and nectar.

Range: New Caledonia.

Habitat: Cool and humid tropical lowland rain forest from the understory to the canopy.

Size: 6-7 inches long.

Lifespan: 10-20 years.

Reproduction: Females lay 1 or 2 eggs which hatch in about 2 months.

Conservation: Crested gecko habitat is threatened by: deforestation, nickel mining, and the introduction of exotic predators.  Most of the crested geckos available for sale as pets in the United States have been captive bred.

Cool Facts: Crested geckos were first discovered in 1866, but were later thought to be extinct.  However, in 1994, two herpetologists on expeditions to New Caledonia “rediscovered” the geckos.

White Lined Gecko (aka Skunk Gecko)

Gekko vittatus

Pilau the White Lined Gecko

Reptiles Alive Name: Pilau

Hissstory: Pilau was an unwanted pet left at a nature center.  The nature center sent Pilau to us in April 2010.

RA Diet: Crickets.

Natural Diet: Insects and other small invertebrates.

Range: India, Indonesia (Java, Timor), New Guinea, Oceania;Belau, Admiralty Islands, Bismarck Archipelago, Solomon Islands, Rennell;Bellona, Santa Cruz Islands.

Habitat: The canopy and understory of tropical rain forests.

Size: 5-8 inches long, including the tail.

Lifespan: Probably 10-20 years.

Reproduction: Females lay 1-2 eggs at a time by “gluing” them to surfaces such as leaf stalks.  The eggs hatch in 3-6 months.

Conservation: Most of the white lined geckos for sale in the United States have been collected in the wild and imported.  Most geckos (and other wild animals) do not survive this process.  The few that do survive to be sold as a pet are usually very ill.  If you are thinking of getting a gecko as a pet, we recommend you adopt from an animal rescue organization or purchase from a legitimate breeder.

Cool Facts: Like all “true” geckos, white lined geckos have microscopic scales in the shape of hooks on the bottom of their feet. These scales grab on to microscopic imperfections found on every surface. This enables them to walk vertically or even upside down on almost any surface! Scientists are studying gecko feet in order to develop super strong tape, and maybe even gloves and shoes you could wear to walk up a wall. Just like Spider-man – or GECKO MAN!

Water Monitor Lizard

Varanus salvator

Splash the Water Monitor Lizard

Reptiles Alive Name: “Splash”

Hissstory: Splash was either an abandoned or escaped pet.  He was found hiding in a drain pipe in the city of Alexandria, VA.  An animal control officer was able to capture him and then called us.  We received him in July 2006 and he has been just a ton of fun ever since!

RA Diet: We feed Splash a varied diet including: roaches, crickets, super worms, cooked chicken eggs, and his favorite:  dead mice.

Natural Diet: Monitors eat carrion, fish, shellfish, small reptiles (including baby crocodiles!) and mammals, eggs of all kinds, and insects.  Pretty much, they will eat anything except their vegetables!

Range: Water monitors are found in southern Asia, from Bengal in the west to the Philippines and the Indo-Australian islands.

Habitat: Water monitors like to live anywhere  near water, including swamps, woodlands, and riverbanks.

Size: Water monitors are one of the biggest species of lizards on Earth.  They can grow almost 10 feet long and weigh up to 75 pounds.  Whew – that is BIG!

Lifespan: Monitor lizards can live for over 20 years.

Reproduction: Water monitors  will take advantage of termite mounds as well as rotting logs or stumps to lay their eggs.  Females lay 20-50 eggs which take about 6 months to hatch.

Conservation: Water monitors are listed as CITES Appendix II, meaning they are becoming endangered.  Their biggest threats come from habitat loss, the skin trade, and the pet trade.

Cool Facts: The largest living lizard in the world is a monitor lizard commonly known as the “Komodo dragon.”  Water monitors are very closely related to the the Komodo dragon, and just like the dragon, the water monitor is very intelligent.  Some scientists believe monitor lizards may be the most intelligent groups of lizards.  After working with monitors, I would say I agree.  They are fast learners and they are VERY curious.  There really is something going on behind those dragon eyes!

Posting by Caroline Seitz

Jennifer and I had a great time visiting with some old friends and colleagues at the National Zoological Park (NZP) in Washington DC.

First, we went to see the legendary Janis Gerrits, Senior Keeper at the Reptile Discovery Center (RDC).  Janis is a former Reptiles Alive keeper who left us in 2003 to join the NZP team.   The Zoo is very lucky to have Janis – she is a top notch reptile keeper.  She has an amazing ability to know an animal’s needs.

Here she is demonstrating target training with a monitor lizard.

Why bother training a monitor lizard at a zoo?

Monitors are very intelligent animals that need something to do.  By training an animal at the zoo, it makes their life more comfortable and interesting.  The monitor in this video has become at pro at target training thanks to Janis’s expertise in training reptiles.

Speaking of monitor lizards, we couldn’t visit the zoo without saying hello to Murphy the Komodo Dragon!

What a handsome lizard he is, and big!  I was amazed as how calm he was around Janis.  (You can see Murphy’s head behind the glass of this picture of  Janis.)

Komodo dragon

We were very impressed with what Janis has accomplished at the National Zoo.  The animals were all healthy and their enclosures were super clean and well designed.  The enclosures had real live plants in them and very cool rock work.  The animals all had nice comfy places to hide while allowing the public to still see them.

Iguana eats a yummie lunch

After spending the morning hanging out with Janis and all the awesome animals at the RDC, we headed down to the Bird House to meet up with the renowned former Reptiles Alive Wildlife Educator and Keeper – Reade Harbitter.

Reade at the NZP Bird House

Reade left Reptiles Alive to become a full time Bird Keeper at NZP about 2 years ago.  Although we specialize in reptiles, both me and Jen love birds too.  She introduced us to some of her favorite feathered friends, including a toucan, some rheas, and lots of other exotic and strange birds.

As we were leaving the zoo, a car pulling out of the parking lot started honking.  I looked over and saw my friend and colleague Debbie Grupenhoff!  Debbie and I used to work together at the Reston Animal Park way, way back.  I had not seen her in years and I was so surprised!  Debbie said she is now working at the zoo’s commissary.  That is so cool – a professional chef for the animals!

What a fantastic day we had.  Thank you Janis and Reade for the tours.

The zoo is a great way to get close to nature in the big city.  Tell us about your trip to the zoo!

Eastern Glass Lizard (aka Legless Lizard)

Ophisaurus ventralis

Reptiles Alive Name: “Ophisaurus”

Hissstory: Ophisaurus was transferred to us in 2005 from the Virginia Living Museum.

eastern glass lizard

RA Diet: Ophisaurus munches on crickets, roaches, earthworms, and super worms.

Natural Diet: Glass lizards enjoy insects, spiders,  small snakes and lizards. They especially love grasshoppers.

Size: Legless lizards can grow 24 – 36 inches long.

Range: Southeastern United States as far north as southeastern Virginia.

Habitat: Legless lizards like to hide in sandy soil in pine forests and mixed hard wood & pine forests.

Lifespan: Glass lizards can live over 10 years.

Reproduction: A female glass lizard will lay 8-17 eggs from June to August.  She will coil around the eggs and hangs out with them until they hatch about 2 months later.

Conservation: Glass lizards are classified as a “State Endangered Species” in Virginia.  This is because they are only found in one small part of southeastern Virginia and the entire population could be wiped out if their habitat there was altered.

Cool Facts: Although the glass lizard has no legs, it is a lizard – not a snake!  Unlike snakes, glass lizards have  eyelids and ears.   They also have the ability to detach their long tail in case they are attacked.  Their tail will regenerate as long as they can find enough food.  Snakes do not have the ability to regrow a lost tail.  Neither do humans.  Some scientists are studying lizards to try and find the secret behind their ability to regenerate so doctors can help people who have been hurt.

Green Iguana

Iguana iguana

Reptiles Alive Name: Fritz & Juan Amigo

Hisstory: Fritz is leasing a room with us as his owner, our curator Jennifer, likes having him at work better than having him at home.  Juan Amigo was left at the Alexandria Animal Shelter and we adopted him in April 2010.

Reptiles Alive Diet: Greens, vegetables, some fruit and a special zoo food made for iguanas.

Natural Diet: Leaves, flowers, and fruit.

Range: Mexico, Central and South America. Introduced into Florida and Hawaii.

Habitat: The canopy of tropical rain forests is the normal habitat of iguanas, but they can also be found in urban areas around homes and hotels.

Size: These huge lizards grow 5-7 feet long from nose to tail and can weigh up to 18 pounds.

Lifespan: Iguanas often live over 20 years.

Reproduction: A female iguana will lay 12-40 eggs buried in the forest floor.  The eggs take 90-120 days to incubate. Babies spend the first part of their life in the under story. They will climb up to the canopy as they grow bigger.

Conservation: Iguanas face threats from the loss of habitat, the pet trade, and they are sometimes hunted for food.

You should know: Iguanas are commonly kept as pets, but most pet iguanas either die from improper care or are abandoned when they get large. Many pet stores buy iguanas bred in “puppy mill” conditions, and sell them for low prices to unsuspecting buyers and without the proper equipment. (Proper iguana housing costs over 500 dollars.) Iguanas have sharp teeth, a strong bite, sharp claws, and do NOT make good pets, especially for children. Thousands are euthanized annualy because proper homes cannot be found for them.

Cool Facts: Iguanas have a big flap of skin under their chin called a dewlap. They communicate to each other by lowering their dewlap and bobbing their head up and down. When threatened, iguanas can whip their spiky tail like a dinosaur. If that doesn’t work, they will leap out of the tall trees and dive into a river below.  They tuck their legs against their bodies and swim like crocodiles.

Leopard Gecko

Eublepharis macularis

Reptiles Alive Name: “Larry”

Hisssstory: Larry came to live at Reptiles Alive in April of 2004.  He was already about 5 years old when his owner decided he didn’t want a gecko as a pet anymore.

RA Diet: Larry loves crickets and meal worms.

Natural Diet: In the wild, leopard geckos will eat just about any moving creature that is smaller than themselves, including: insects, spiders, snails, and scorpions.

Range: Northwestern Pakistan, Afghanistan, and India.

Habitat: Leopard geckos live in some of the hottest, driest deserts on earth, so they spend much of their time in cool underground burrows.

Size: Leopard geckos can grow 6 to 8 inches long.

Lifespan: Leopard geckos can live 10-20 years or more.

Reproduction: Mating takes place during the rainy season. A female will lay two eggs at a time, but can lay several clutches a year. She can even store sperm from one mating for later.

Conservation: Leopard geckos are commonly sold in the United States as pets.  They are easier to care for than most other reptile species, but they still have special requirements to stay healthy in captivity.  Before getting a pet, whether it is a dog or a gecko, be sure you have done enough research to know how to care for your pet for its entire life.

Cool Facts: Leopard geckos store fat in their tail so they can survive for months without food or water.  Camels, another desert creature, use a similar survival strategy by storing fat in their humps.

Nile Monitor Lizard

Varanus niloticus

Reptiles Alive Name: “Logan”

Hissstory: On September 2, 2000, a person having breakfast looked out their window and saw a “Komodo Dragon” hanging on their bird feeder.  He called the Wildlife Center of Virginia and explained the situation.  The Wildlife Center was able to capture the dragon, which turned out to be an escaped or abandoned African Nile monitor lizard.  The Wildlife Center called us, and we agreed to provide the monitor lizard with a home.

RA Diet: Logan loves to eat dead mice, roaches, crickets, and sometimes, cooked chicken eggs.

Natural Diet: These huge, carnivorous lizards eat just about anything!  Insects, eggs (including crocodile eggs), snakes, rodents, other lizards, birds, and even baby crocodiles can all be dinner for a Nile monitor lizards.

Range: Most of Africa including northern Egypt to Sudan and south to South Africa.

Habitat: If there is a river or lake or other water source, and you are in Africa, you are probably in Nile monitor habitat.

Size: Nile monitors are one of the largest lizards in the world.  They can grow 5-7 feet long. The record is 8 feet long.

Life span: Monitors can live over 20 years.

Reproduction: Nile monitors lay 10-60 eggs in a nest they dug in the ground. They especially like making nests inside of termite mounds. The eggs will incubate around 9-10 months. When they hatch, Baby monitors are only 6-8 inches long, but they will grow to 20 inches in a year.

Conservation: Threats include habitat loss,  and poaching for bush meat and the skin trade. Nile monitors are protected under CITES Appendix II.

There are several large populations of these lizards throughout Florida. People illegally released them into the wild after they were no longer wanted as pets. Nile monitors eat nearly any animal, making them a threat to native American wildlife. There are no natural predators for them in the United States. Current evidence suggests that total eradication of this species from Florida is no longer feasible and the population may be spreading!

Cool Facts: Scientists have found out recently that female Nile monitors often come back to their nests when the babies are beginning to hatch. She will help the babies by gently digging the eggs and hatchlings out of the ground.

Sudan Plated Lizard

Gerrhosaurus major

Reptiles Alive Name: “Major Gary”

Hisssstory: We rescued Major Gary in September 2001 when he became unwanted by his owner.

RA Diet: Gary devours crickets, meal worms, super worms, roaches, earthworms, greens, vegetables, and fruit.

Natural Diet: Wild plated lizards love insects, especially termites, and vegetation.

Range: Africa

Habitat: Semi-arid grasslands around rock piles and especially in and around termite mounds.

Size: Grows 16 to 28 inches.

Lifespan: Plated lizards can live over 20 years.

Reproduction: Plated lizards lay 2-6 eggs that hatch in three to four months. They will often lay eggs in termite mounds where the temperature stays around 85 degrees.

Conservation: Plated lizards are often captured in the wild and then sold as pets, and sadly, most wild pets do not survive.

Cool Facts: Plated lizards are covered in large scales called osteoderms - scales that have bone in them.  Crocodiles and alligators have similar scales.  Osteoderms protect them from the harsh environment and enemies, kind of like a knight wearing armor.  Plated lizards also have huge ears. Can you seem them in the picture above?

Prehensile Tail Skink, aka Solomon Island Skink, aka Monkey Tail Skink

Corucia zebrata

Reptiles Alive Name: “Mortimer”

Hissstory: Mortimer belonged to a former Reptiles Alive animal keeper who left for another job and left Morty here  in May 2002.

Zoo Diet: Greens, vegetables, and fruit.

Natural Diet: Leaves,  blossoms, and fruit.

Range: Solomon Islands near Papua New Guinea and Australia.

Habitat: The canopy of old-growth tropical rain forest.

Size: Prehensile tailed skinks are one of the largest skink species in the world!  They can grow 18-24 inches long, most of which is tail.

Lifespan: Prehensile tailed skinks can live over 25 years.

Reproduction: Unlike most lizards, prehensile tailed skinks bear live young and even care for their babies!  They become very protective of the one or two large baby skinks for about a year after giving birth.

Conservation: Prehensile tailed skinks are sometimes eaten by indigenous people, but their biggest problems are the pet trade and habitat destruction.  They are now listed as CITES Appendix II and are  no longer legally imported for the pet trade.

Cool Facts: Prehensile tailed skinks are nocturnal – they come out at night and sleep in the day.  Because of their funny faces and nightime habits, they are sometimes referred to as “Island Gnomes” or ghosts, by the people who live in the Solomon Islands.