Posts Tagged With: reptiles

Dallas Zoo hatches the only perentie monitor lizards in the AZA

Posted on March 30, 2018 by Jordan Doyle

What hails from Australia, runs as fast as an Olympic sprinter, and is the fourth largest lizard species in the world? The perentie monitor. And who is the only AZA-accredited zoo in North America to successfully hatch them? We are.

Our world-class herpetologists are welcoming three new babies. Weighing about .13 pounds at hatch, these lizards could grow to be 33 pounds and 6.5 feet long.

These little ones are our first perentie monitor hatchlings since 2001, when we became the first AZA facility outside of Australia to reproduce them.

“I am proud of the staff and excited to see hatchlings again,” said Ruston Hartdegen, Dallas Zoo’s curator of herpetology and aquatics. “It’s been a very challenging project and continues to be so. This is the culmination of many years of effort, dedication, and hard work. I look forward to seeing many more hatchlings in the years to come!”

Housing these lizards can be extremely difficult, and you can’t find many outside of Australia. In fact, only two other North American AZA-accredited zoos care for perentie monitors: Omaha’s Henry Doorly Zoo and the Los Angeles Zoo. While housing accommodations are challenging, it’s even more challenging to breed them in human care.

One of our newly hatched perentie monitor lizard babies.

“To successfully hatch this species, it takes a lot of time, attention, and care from reptile staff,” said Hartdegen. “Females also need a ton of space to nest. We actually built two large indoor habitats capable of deep nesting just for them.”

The Dallas Zoo has a lot of experience with monitor lizards, which is one reason we’ve been able to successfully reproduce perenties. Up next: Our herpetologists plan to focus efforts on crocodile monitors, a species that hasn’t been bred in North America in 20 years, mostly because of pairing issues with the animals. Dallas Zoo currently cares for ten crocodile monitors, putting us in a good position for success.

“Zoological expertise has been lost for crocodile monitors,” said Bradley Lawrence, reptile and amphibian supervisor. “We’re hoping to lead the zoo community in that soon, too.”

On your next Zoo visit, stop by the Herpetarium to see one of our crocodile monitors and congratulate our reptile keepers on their new perentie monitor babies. (We don’t have plans to make the hatchlings viewable to the public right now, but promise to let you know if that changes!)

Categories: Reptiles and Amphibians | Tags: , , , , , | Leave a comment

‘Living fossils’: Meet our rare reptiles from the dinosaur eras

Posted on July 2, 2016 by Kayla Belt

IMG_3681-Tuatara 4x6

What if we told you dinosaurs were living right here is Dallas? That would sound crazy, right? Well, it’s true.

While they’re not the towering, fierce giants of the Jurassic that you’re picturing, tuataras are the only surviving member of a distinct reptilian order, Sphehodontia, which lived alongside early dinosaurs 200 million years ago in the Upper Triassic period.

Māori priest blesses the tuataras during Dallas Zoo’s welcome ceremony.

Their small size and dusty brown scales may not catch the eye of many Zoo visitors, but these “living fossils” have one of the most fascinating stories of all of our residents. Don’t be fooled by their scaly skin and long tails – the tuatara isn’t your average lizard!

Tuataras are incredibly rare. They are found only in remote areas of New Zealand or in a few lucky institutions across the globe. The Dallas Zoo is one of only four U.S. zoos to receive permission to host the rare reptile. Not only does the New Zealand government have to grant approval for the export, but a tribe of native New Zealanders also must agree that the export has direct benefits to the species in the wild. When the tuataras arrived here in 1992, a Māori priest came along with them to perform a special blessing for the animals in their new home.

They may have lived through the extinction of dinosaurs, but unfortunately tuataras aren’t indestructible. Oddly enough, one of the biggest threats to their survival is small enough to fit in your hand – rats! Tuatara eggs must incubate 12 to 15 months before hatching, which gives the rats and other predators plenty of time to sneak into the den to steal a snack.

IMG_3692-tuatara-4x6Fortunately, it’s not too late to save these animals from extinction. The Dallas Zoo has donated thousands of dollars to our tuatara conservation partners in New Zealand to fund work in their natural habitat. Because tuatara eggs are so vulnerable in the wild, one of the best ways to ensure the survival of this species is through zoological breeding programs.

“We’re thrilled to be able to work with tuataras and have the opportunity to share with the public a totally unique and ancient lineage of reptile found in very few facilities across the globe,” said Ruston Hartdegen, Dallas Zoo’s curator of herpetology.

We are fortunate to have not one, but three tuataras in our care, and we hope to see that number rise soon. Unlike most reptiles, tuataras don’t breed until they’re 13 to 20 years old, and our two females and male have reached maturity. Veterinary staff recently performed a check-up and are happy to report that all three are in great health. With a little luck and a lot of patience, we hope to welcome the next much-needed generation of tuataras.

 

Categories: Conservation, Reptiles and Amphibians | Tags: , , , , | 2 Comments

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