The Nature of Things

Meet Our Reptiles

There are different kinds of reptiles.  Turtles, tortoises, snakes, lizards, and even dinosaurs are reptiles.  Let's learn about them!

What is a turtle?

A turtle is a reptile that has plates called scales and a hard shell to protect them.  They lay eggs like a bird and bury these eggs in the sand or dirt to keep them safe and warm.  Mothers do not help to rear their offspring after they hatch, so they are left to fend for themselves.  Many baby turtles don’t make it through their first year, as they are easily caught by many other animals.  Turtles are cold-blooded, which means they cannot produce heat inside their bodies.  They must bathe in the sun to get warm and retreat to the shade to cool off.  A turtle’s shell is attached to his backbone and made of bone.  At “The Nature of Things” we have many different kinds of turtles in our reptile room.

What is a snake? 

Snakes are a part of the group called reptiles.  Reptiles are unique because they have scales (small, hard protective plates on their skin), are cold-blooded and usually lay eggs.  Snakes do not have legs, ears, or eyelids.  They use their tongue to smell and hear vibrations around them.  All the snakes owned by “The Nature of Things” are constrictors, which means that they kill their food by squeezing it around the chest so that it cannot breathe.  “The Nature of Things” does not have any venomous snakes.  Venomous snakes kill their food by biting it and releasing venom into the body of their prey.

What is a lizard?

A lizard is another reptile.  They usually have four legs.  However, the legless lizard and the glass lizard do not.  How can we tell that they are not snakes then?  Lizards have eyelids and ears, but snakes do not. 

Our turtles & tortoises include:                  Our lizards include:

Red Foot Tortoise                                                Flying, Golden, and Carrot Tail Geckos

Eastern Box Turtles                                             Leopard Geckos

Three Toed Box Turtle                                        Fat Tail Geckos

Musk Turtles                                                        Crested Gecko                                              

Yucatan Wood Turtle                                           Iguanas

Hingeback Tortoise                                              Chinese Water Dragon

Hermanns Tortoise                                               Bearded Dragons

Mud Turtle                                                           Mountain Dragon

African Spur Thigh Tortoises                               Blue Tongued Skinks

Russian Tortoises                                                 Uromastyx (Spiny-tail)

African Side Neck Turtle                                     Argentine Tegu

Red-eared Sliders                                                  Armadillo Lizard (very small)

Our snakes include:

Colombian Red Tail Boas                                      Black Mexican King Snake

Albino California King Snake                               Corn Snakes

California King Snake                                           Florida King Snake

Ball Pythons                                                          Milk Snakes

Western Hognose Snake                                     

Gray-banded King Snake                                      

**Please note that even though this is a comprehensive list of all of our animals, not all of these animals are appropriate to bring to certain programs.  In these cases, it is left to the discretion of the environmental educator.  Please contact us with any questions you may have regarding certain animals.**