Dinosaurs@Indian River Reptile Zoo

[suspsy]

Some new faces this year. First, a Plateosaurus.

IMG_2484 by Suspsy Three, on Flickr

Euoplocephalus family.

IMG_2486 by Suspsy Three, on Flickr

IMG_2487 by Suspsy Three, on Flickr

Velociraptors hitching a ride on Iguanodon.

IMG_2488 by Suspsy Three, on Flickr

Maiasaura.

IMG_2489 by Suspsy Three, on Flickr

And possibly the world's worst Ornitholestes.

IMG_2490 by Suspsy Three, on Flickr

[suspsy]

Here are some of the extant denizens of the zoo. First, a banded cobra.

IMG_2467 by Suspsy Three, on Flickr

Gaboon viper.

IMG_2470 by Suspsy Three, on Flickr

IMG_2310 by Suspsy Three, on Flickr

Black mamba.

IMG_2305 by Suspsy Three, on Flickr

African rock python.

IMG_2468 by Suspsy Three, on Flickr

Alligator snapping turtle.

IMG_2498 by Suspsy Three, on Flickr

Saddle-backed tortoise.

IMG_2471 by Suspsy Three, on Flickr

Schneider's dwarf caiman.

IMG_2494 by Suspsy Three, on Flickr

Cuban crocodile.

IMG_2473 by Suspsy Three, on Flickr


Yacare and spectacled caimans.

IMG_2482 by Suspsy Three, on Flickr

American alligators.

IMG_2476 by Suspsy Three, on Flickr

IMG_2481 by Suspsy Three, on Flickr

Nile crocodiles.

IMG_2479 by Suspsy Three, on Flickr

Saltwater crocodile.

IMG_2483 by Suspsy Three, on Flickr

[Gwangi]

What's up with all the crocodilians? Most zoos only have a couple specimens per species but I see nearly two dozen caimans in that one enclosure. I can't imagine the feeding and housing costs for that many crocodilians, in Canada of all places.

[suspsy]

Many of them are rescued animals, sadly. Saved from owners or other zoos that weren't taking proper care of them. They all have pretty big pools inside the building—you cross over them on a secure walkway. But yes, it's probably pretty crowded for them in the winter. And I don't know what they're going to do with the alligators and the crocodiles once they grow to be full-sized.

[Gwangi]

Good on them for that I suppose, but you have to wonder when it will get to be too much. Four adult Nile crocodiles seems like 3 too many and a couple of those Alligators look pretty thin. I love reptile zoos though, Reptiland in PA is fantastic and complete with robotic dinosaurs too, I have a thread about it somewhere. I would like to do my own reptile zoo down the line but we'll see if I ever have the resources to get it done.

[suspsy]

Hate to tell you this, but there's nine or ten Nile crocodiles in total there. The rest were chilling indoors in the pool.

The staff there seem to be pretty dedicated to their work, so hopefully there's some kind of long term plan for when the crocodiles and alligators begin reaching over 12 feet.

There's another big reptile zoo, Reptilia, located in in Vaughan outside of Toronto, and they have a new location opening up in Whitby next month. Their Vaughan location only has two Nile crocodiles, but they're mature adults. The male is around 13-14 feet long. They do a big show every month where they feed him a whole sheep. Would love to go to that someday.

[Gwangi]

Hate to tell you this, but there's nine or ten Nile crocodiles in total there. The rest were chilling indoors in the pool.

The staff there seem to be pretty dedicated to their work, so hopefully there's some kind of long term plan for when the crocodiles and alligators begin reaching over 12 feet.

I guess they'll have to find other institutions that want them but they don't seem like easy animals to re-home. I think most zoos that want them probably already have them.

There's another big reptile zoo, Reptilia, located in in Vaughan outside of Toronto, and they have a new location opening up in Whitby next month. Their Vaughan location only has two Nile crocodiles, but they're mature adults. The male is around 13-14 feet long. They do a big show every month where they feed him a whole sheep. Would love to go to that someday.

He's gonna eat the goat sheep? Sorry, I had to. That would be something to see.