The Best Reptile Collection in the UK ?...

The Chester Zoo reptile collection wins for me. There aren't many places where you can see Tuatara, Komodo dragons, Gila monsters, Beaded Lizards, Dwarf Crocodiles, several venemous snake species and many other species besides, I love it!! ZSL London comes a very close second.
 
PJ said:
The Chester Zoo reptile collection wins for me. There aren't many places where you can see Tuatara, Komodo dragons, Gila monsters, Beaded Lizards, Dwarf Crocodiles, several venemous snake species and many other species besides, I love it!! ZSL London comes a very close second.
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Sorry Chester no longer got West African Dwarf Crocs they Have been replaced by Phillipine Crocs now,as Chesters collection been better than Londons not a chance and thats coming from a Chester member of over 20 years.
 
London has the best Reptile collection that i have ever visited, although i havent visited Chester. I particularly liked the Black Mamba exhibit, because i fear and respect that fine specimen of snake in equal measure!
 
Another vote for London here, with snakes being their obvious strength. The komodo dragon exhibit is very good and the male Raja an impressive specimen. Chester's komodos have better outdoor enclosures though.

I'm also a fan of Jersey's collection. Small but diverse, strong on amphibians and some rarities.
 
oh yes forgot to mention about the komodo dragons. When i last visited London Zoo we approached the Komodo Dragon exhibit, and the automatic doors were open. Looking into the exhibit all of a sudden i saw one of the dragons come bounding up towards me, and for a split second i forgot that there was glass in between us, its fair to say i nearly ran a mile :P
 
scottie31 said:
oh yes forgot to mention about the komodo dragons. When i last visited London Zoo we approached the Komodo Dragon exhibit, and the automatic doors were open. Looking into the exhibit all of a sudden i saw one of the dragons come bounding up towards me, and for a split second i forgot that there was glass in between us, its fair to say i nearly ran a mile :P
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Now you mention it, I did wonder what that brown stain on the floor was! ;)
 
scottie31 said:
oh yes forgot to mention about the komodo dragons. When i last visited London Zoo we approached the Komodo Dragon exhibit, and the automatic doors were open. Looking into the exhibit all of a sudden i saw one of the dragons come bounding up towards me, and for a split second i forgot that there was glass in between us, its fair to say i nearly ran a mile :P
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did you remeber the lions were in a cage too?
 
Emerald exotics pet shop witney keeps:
Tegu, Iguana loads of tortoises and terripens, Frilled lizerd, lots of venomus snakes, Burmese and reticulated python, cumugi water monitor, Chinese and american alligators, dwarf, slender snouted and morelets crocs, spectceled, dwarf and black caimens + Spiney tailed lizard, auzie water dragon and beared dragon, pretty cool, Ha!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
 
really? i hate pet shops that keep rare exotic species that people really have no idea how to keep :( my local has a few more common ones like iguana and tortoises, if they ever got a crocodile i would report them
 
Cat-Man said:
Emerald exotics pet shop witney keeps:
Tegu, Iguana loads of tortoises and terripens, Frilled lizerd, lots of venomus snakes, Burmese and reticulated python, cumugi water monitor, Chinese and american alligators, dwarf, slender snouted and morelets crocs, spectceled, dwarf and black caimens + Spiney tailed lizard, auzie water dragon and beared dragon, pretty cool, Ha!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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Intresting that they have Chinese Alligators,African Slender-snouted Crocs and Black Caiman.I was not aware of any Black Caiman in the U.K any idea how many they have got,also would be intrested to know how many Chinese Alligators and African Slender-snouted Crocs they have as i only know of 2 other specimens of both these species in the U.K>
 
Right, 2 slender snouted crocs, 3 chinese alligator, 4 black caimen.
(All crocodilians share 1 enclosure)
What zoos keep chinese alligators an slender snouted crocodiles?
 
Cat-Man said:
Right, 2 slender snouted crocs, 3 chinese alligator, 4 black caimen.
(All crocodilians share 1 enclosure)
What zoos keep chinese alligators an slender snouted crocodiles?
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Slenders are at Colchester. Not sure where the Chinese are these days but previously ZSL and Thrigby Hall had them.

I was completely unaware that there were any black caiman in the UK; I don't know of any public zoos with them. I am also surprised that somebody besides Cotswold has Morelets.

I have seen an advert on the net that had Chinese alligators for sale (at the start of the year) which I thought at the time was odd. I'm guessing they are either the same animals or from the same origin.
 
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Tigerlemurguy said:
really? i hate pet shops that keep rare exotic species that people really have no idea how to keep :( my local has a few more common ones like iguana and tortoises, if they ever got a crocodile i would report them
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Given that reptiles in particular are kept by huge numbers of very competent and knowledgeable amateurs, and that many zoos reptile houses are pretty mediocre (there's one not a million miles away from where you live), this seems a very short-sighted view. If someone is not able to look after an animal humanely, it does not matter if that beast is rare or common - it is still as wrong to mistreat a green iguana as it would be to mistreat anything else. So unless you are to say that no wild animals should be kept privately, I do not see the logic of your argument.
 
tetrapod said:
Slenders are at Colchester. Not sure where the Chinese are these days but previously ZSL and Thrigby Hall had them.

I was completely unaware that there were any black caiman in the UK; I don't know of any public zoos with them. I am also surprised that somebody besides Cotswold has Morelets.

I have seen an advert on the net that had Chinese alligators for sale (at the start of the year) which I thought at the time was odd. I'm guessing they are either the same animals or from the same origin.
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Chester were looking at getting Black Caiman about 3 years ago but could not get hold of any.
 
Where do crocs live at colchester.
P.S

All of the animal enclosures at emerald exotics are in exilent contition
 
Cat-Man said:
Where do crocs live at colchester.
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If you've ever been to Colchester, you will know that it can be hard to explain the geography :rolleyes:
If you go in the main entrance and immediately turn hard left and follow the sign for the chimps, you'll see the crocodiles straight away, on the right of the passageway that leads into the chimp house.

Alan
 
Cat-man, could you give some more details on the enclosure that you say houses all of the crocodilians? Without going into too much detail, the 3 species you list are entirely incompatible, a quick google of their respective habitats will reveal that there is no way in which these 3 species could be maintained together without serious compromise. Interspecific aggression is also well documented between different crocodilian species. Although it is true that many private hobbyists do provide conditions far superior to many zoo collections, I think it is even more apparent that pet shops that promote incorrect husbandry have a much greater negative impact on reptile welfare. Unless anyone can suggest an alternative I cant think of a single good reason to house these animals together that isn't profit driven.
 
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