Exotic Amphibians and Reptiles in Australian Zoos

Not an update but just for sharing gender and name info that was courtesay of a friendly reptile keeper at Taronga (Sydney); the Eastern Diamondback Rattlesnake living in the ARCC Building at Taronga (Sydney) is a male 1.0 and his name is James (didn't realise too but a Corn Snake shares the exhibit with him).
 
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Perth has just lost Sierra, one of their two Galapagos tortoises:

Perth Zoo on Instagram: "Friends, sadly we have had to say goodbye to our loveable giant Galapagos Tortoise, Sierra Many of you would be aware, that Sierra has been receiving veterinary support due to a congenital heart issue. In the past days his health deteriorated and while it was incredibly sad to say goodbye, we know it was the right thing to do for Sierra’s welfare. Sierra was absolutely adored by his carers. He would often prefer to have a neck rub or shell scratch from one of his keepers rather than a crunchy carrot – rare for a tortoise! One of his carers, Katie, has penned some thoughts: "Sierra was everyone’s surprise favourite. From a distance, you could admire his impressive size and his endearingly dopey face, but it wasn’t until you got up close that he truly left you in awe. Over the years, Sierra has been a powerful ambassador for his species, meeting countless visitors during the Close Encounter and media opportunities. He would happily chomp away on celery while his admirers learned about the plight of his wild counterparts. As a media superstar, he enjoyed some of the most elaborate birthday cakes imaginable, which were always devoured with his signature clumsy eagerness. This slow-moving, lovable giant touched countless hearts and inspired a passion for wildlife conservation in so many people. He will be deeply missed, but his legacy will live on in all the awareness he brought to the world.” To our incredible team of animal carers and vet staff: thank you for giving Sierra your all He leaves a very big shell-shaped hole in our hearts Sierra is survived by his brother, Cerro, who lived in an adjacent habitat. He will now have greater territory and the undivided love and attention of the keepers."
 
SugarPlumLucy said:
There was an eyelash viper at Melbourne zoo when I went yesterday and it was quite small. However there were 2 empty exhibits I think they were somewhere inbetweeen the freshwater crocodile and the king cobra.
I also didn't see any sigange or enclosures for Kenyan sand Boas, Painted Wood turtles, Mississippi Map turtle, twisted neck Turtle or the horsfields tortoise.

However today when I went to Werribee they only had leopard tortoise, an eastern blue tongue, a shingleback and 4 Madagascar ground boas which I had never heard of before.
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Just responding to this now after visiting both facilities this weekend. Horsfield's Tortoise is with Carolina Box Turtle and Hermann's Tortoise in a side outdoor enclosure next to the Aldabra Giant Tortoises near the reptile house. Twist-necked Turtle is currently mixed with Plumed Basilisk in the reptile house. Additionally, Bell's Hinge-back Tortoise was displayed next to the Leopard Tortoise at Werribee as of today. It took some time for one tortoise to eventually emerge. The rest of the species you mention were not seen on-show.

Edit: Of course, Eyelash Viper was seen in the reptile house as Melbourne have now acquired a few of them.
 
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WhistlingKite24 said:
Just responding to this now after visiting both facilities this weekend. Horsfield's Tortoise is with Carolina Box Turtle and Hermann's Tortoise in a side outdoor enclosure next to the Aldabra Giant Tortoises near the reptile house. Twist-necked Turtle is currently mixed with Plumed Basilisk in the reptile house. Additionally, Bell's Hinge-back Tortoise was displayed next to the Leopard Tortoise at Werribee as of today. It took some time for one tortoise to eventually emerge. The rest of the species you mention were not seen on-show.

Edit: Of course, Eyelash Viper was seen in the reptile house as Melbourne have now acquired a few of them.
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How many Aldabra Tortoises did they have there
 
WhistlingKite24 said:
Just responding to this now after visiting both facilities this weekend. Horsfield's Tortoise is with Carolina Box Turtle and Hermann's Tortoise in a side outdoor enclosure next to the Aldabra Giant Tortoises near the reptile house. Twist-necked Turtle is currently mixed with Plumed Basilisk in the reptile house. Additionally, Bell's Hinge-back Tortoise was displayed next to the Leopard Tortoise at Werribee as of today. It took some time for one tortoise to eventually emerge. The rest of the species you mention were not seen on-show.

Edit: Of course, Eyelash Viper was seen in the reptile house as Melbourne have now acquired a few of them.
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Yeah the Map Turtle and Painted Wood Turtles have not been on display for a long time now, think it’s been since 2019 for the Wood Turtle and even longer for the Map Turtle. Kenyan Sand Boa was on display pretty recently within Growing Wild, I’m sure they still have both their animals.

Interesting with the Bell’s Hingeback Tortoises. They (or some other tortoise but I was pretty positive it was them) were on display in one of the meerkat enclosures in Growing Wild late last year so it appears they’ve been moved back to Werribee where they were.
 
Yoshistar888 said:
Yeah the Map Turtle and Painted Wood Turtles have not been on display for a long time now, think it’s been since 2019 for the Wood Turtle and even longer for the Map Turtle. Kenyan Sand Boa was on display pretty recently within Growing Wild, I’m sure they still have both their animals.

Interesting with the Bell’s Hingeback Tortoises. They (or some other tortoise but I was pretty positive it was them) were on display in one of the meerkat enclosures in Growing Wild late last year so it appears they’ve been moved back to Werribee where they were.
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Melbourne have one of each - female Map Turtle and male Painted Wood Turtle. I can confidently say I don't think I've ever seen the Map Turtle on display for as far back as I can remember!

One of the Kenyan Sand Boas passed last year - the other should still be in the Growing Wild building.

I don't think it was the Bell's Hingeback Turtles - the inventory makes no mention of them. Perhaps it was Star Tortoises? The Bell's Hingeback's have been at Werribee for a while; I think it was 2017 ish that they were first moved in with the Leopard Tortoises.
 
Just an interesting observation. The National Zoo and Aquarium are now calling their box turtle - an individual named Speedy in her 50s that they have had for many years - as a Coahuilan Box Turtle Terrapene coahuila being an endangered species from Mexico. Looking into their previous posts this individual was previously referred to as an a usual Terrapene carolina.

The turtle is shown in a video for World Turtle Day and has been mentioned in the past across various posts and livestreams. I have no idea how to differentiate the two species but if someone has further insight on this individual, feel free to share.
 
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zooboy28 said:
-Philippine Sail-finned Water Dragon Hydrosaurus pustulatus - Australian Reptile Park, Hartley's Crocodile Adventures, Melbourne Zoo
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Melbourne no longer have Philippine Sailfin Dragons.

The last male recently passed away. He was hatched at Dallas Zoo in September 1988 and arrived to Melbourne two months later, meaning he greatly exceeded the average lifespan of fifteen years.

Side note: Melbourne have bred 73 Philippine Sailfin Dragons of which have been dispersed to collections regionally and globally.
 
zooboy28 said:
American Alligator Alligator mississippiensis - Adelaide Zoo, Altina Wildlife Park, Australia Zoo, Australian Reptile Park, Ballarat Wildlife Park, Billabong Sanctuary, Crocodylus Park, Currumbin Wildlife Park, Darling Downs Zoo, D'Aguilar Wildlife, Gorge Wildlife Park, Halls Gap Zoo, Hartley's Crocodile Adventures, Hunter Valley Zoo, Kangaroo Island Wildlife Park, Marineland Melanesia, Mogo Zoo, National Zoo, Oakvale Fauna Park, Shoalhaven Zoo, Snakes Downunder, Symbio Wildlife Park, Tasmania Zoo, Wild Cat Conservation Centre, Wildlife HQ
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Altina Wildlife Park no longer has American alligator:

From socials:

We at Altina made the Agonising decision to transfer our magnificent Alligator “Matong”, Freshwater Crocodiles “Baru and Collie” and Saltwater Crocodile “Dundee”, to other Wildlife Parks over the last couple days.

It was very difficult waving goodbye to these animals that have called Altina home since 2007. We appreciate your support and understanding during this time.
 
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