Reptile Gardens

Our second stop to celebrate Matt's birthday on July 24th was the famous Reptile Gardens, also in Rapid City. Back in 1937, when Mt. Rushmore was being carved, Earl Brockelsby had a prime spot for watching. He set up a telescope and charged people to take a look. One day he found a rattlesnake and put it in a box and charged people to look at it, too. This was the start of what is today a highly renowned reptile facility. There are several snake specimans that they have the only ones of outside of the country where they are found, such as Australia. Naturally, this was right up Matt's alley!

We had no sooner arrived and were on our way to the Bird Show, past the gator enclosure, when Matt was given the opportunity to observe and feel a young alligator. We all got to touch it and Rob chatted with the handler on the various ways to tell alligators and crocodiles (they have both) apart. Once Matt finished with the young alligator, we continued on to the bird show. It was great and we got to see a falcon, a turkey vulture, a bald eagle, and an owl.

Following the bird show, we headed over to take in the snake show. This turned out to be a good move as the heavens opened up and it poured down rain. The handler, named Matthew, showed several kinds of snakes, including some highly venomous varieties. Afterwards, Rob got a chance to ask him about a snake he'd encountered on the road while running. He managed to take a picture of it with his iPhone and Matthew identified it as a smooth green snake. While that sounds like a description (and a very apt one at that as it was a *very* green snake), that's actually what it's called. Matt and Rob both posed for pictures in this giant boa photo spot.

There are three giant tortoises at the Reptile Gardens, all of which are over 100 years old. They are not "caged" and roam freely through their enclosure, which people are allowed to walk through. Matt had the opportunity to feel how leathery the neck is and get up close. The other two were occupied in amorous activities while we were there, which was quite an experience. The male is *very* loud in such pursuits. And in this particular instance, the female seemed to be trying to get away from him.

We definitely wanted to take in the gator show while we were there. Matthew, the handler from the snake show we went to, also did this show. It included, in part, how they wrestled the gators if necessary to get their mouths closed. This was amazing to see.

Matt also got the opportunity to handle a snake. This one was out for precisely that purpose. Following this, we went into the dome to check out the rest of the snakes and other reptiles on display. It really was amazing. Being me, I took lots more pictures, including the amorous tortoises, which you can find in the Reptile Gardens album here: http://picasaweb.google.com/debdistante/ReptileGardens.