I got my leg up into the world of exotics from a turtle. I caught him on a fishing line while on a canoe trip. Nobody would have guessed that it was the turtle who hooked me, rather than the other way around. Maybe it was my capture at such a tender age that made reptiles my favorite. Though I love all exotic creatures, lizards, snakes, crocodiles and turtles are the ones that live closest to my heart.
Do you know what I like best about reptiles? They don’t make any noise. I mean, they are absolutely silent. Sure, a snake will hiss once in a while and a giant tortoise will grunt at the peak of reproductive ecstasy, but all in all, reptiles are a tight-lipped bunch. Millions of years ago, reptiles and their dinosaur kin ruled the earth. Imagine what the woods must have sounded like then! It was before the time of birds, so nobody would have been cooing in the trees. Elephants were not in existence either, so the wild would be free of trumpeting. In short, when the crickets and locusts and bees were asleep and the reptiles were afield, the world must have been a deadly silent place. Yet even though they have taken a vow of silence, reptiles give off vibes. If I, who know them pretty well, could take a time machine back to those days, I bet I would know they were there.
As pets, reptiles have a variety of requirements and offer a range of rewards. Some reptiles are as responsive as the average house cat, while others disdain human contact and will scurry from view if not managed with circumspection. Unless you choose a giant python with an appetite for chickens and pigs, reptiles are also inexpensive to feed. Whatever may turn you on about a reptile pet, you are not alone. The reptile fancy is not a new one, and there are scores of clubs and organizations across the country devoted to the care and breeding of this fascinating group. These organizations, by the way, are one of the best sources of specific information on care and breeding, particularly if you end up with a collection.
Reptiles are grouped with amphibians in the academic field of zoology, though this is a matter more of historical convention than of good sense. Scientists and hobbyists alike have found the terms “reptiles” and “amphibians” a bit clumsy when said together over and over. They have thus coined the term “herps,” from the Greek word for “crawling thing,” to cover both.
Reptiles are a vanishing class of beasts. When I was a boy, there were loads of creatures that could be had for a couple of dollars and kept in a gallon jar under the bed. Now many of those same friends are living under threat of their lives in some shrinking jungle somewhere. Crocodilians, for example, which I raised in abundance in my younger days, are nearly all ecologically threatened. I therefore omit them from discussion. There are still many other reptiles, however, thriving in the wild. These are not protected by legislation and are thus available to us as responsible pet owners. It is to this myriad of fascinating forms that this portion of the site is devoted.
Popularity: 46%
