VALUABLE PLAYERS
Alligator snapping turtle
Weight: up to 200 pounds
Range: wetlands in North America
Status: endangered
Skills: dangles artificial lures to attract prey
Green basilisk
Length: about 2 feet
Range: Central America
Status: stable
Skills: can run on water
Black-throated monitor
Size: up to 7 feet
Range: grasslands and dry forests in southern Africa
Status: stable
Skills: unlike most animals, the monitor knows math and can count
Emerald tree boa
Size: can reach up to 6 feet
Range: South America
Status: stable
Skills: longest front teeth of all nonvenomous snakes
Hellbender
Size: weighs up to 3 pounds
Range: rivers in North America
Status: at risk
Skills: can see with its skin
Cuban crocodile
Size: 6.9 to 7.5 feet
Range: Zapata swamp in Cuba
Status: critically endangered
Skills: can gallop on land
EXHIBIT PREVIEW
Scaly Slimy Spectacular: The Amphibian and Reptile Experience
9:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Mondays-Fridays; 9:30 a.m.-6:30 p.m. Saturdays, Sundays and holidays. It is included in the price of admission to Zoo Atlanta. Adults: $22.99; children (ages 3-11): $17.99; ages 2 and under: free. 800 Cherokee Ave. S.E., Atlanta. 404-624-9453, www.zooatlanta.org/.
April 2 was opening day at Zoo Atlanta's new reptile palace, and these cold-blooded beasts are ready to play.
We’ve picked out a few stars on the reptilian (and amphibian) roster whose trading cards you’ll want to keep.
The heavy hitter of the group, and the star of this rotisserie league team, is Zoo Atlanta’s new Cuban crocodile, which can grow to 7 feet in length.
If our scaly creatures were actually playing ball, this Cuban croc would probably make a good base-runner: He has the unnerving ability to get up on his toes and gallop.
His new dugout will be in a man-made river at the floridly named Scaly Slimy Spectacular: The Amphibian and Reptile Experience.
The 14,000-square-foot domed structure is the newest addition to Zoo Atlanta and, at $19 million, the most expensive attraction in the zoo’s history. It will be home to more than 70 species of reptiles and amphibians, from the tiny, 3/4-inch grass frog to the huge, 2-foot hellbender salamander.
This new attraction replaces the old reptile and amphibian house, which is the oldest structure at the zoo.
Zoo CEO and President Raymond King said the old reptile house represented a “postage stamp collection” philosophy, in which dozens of small terraria were lined up, side by side, to show as many species as possible.
The new attraction features fewer species in bigger habitats, with the goal of prompting more natural behavior in the animals, and creating a more spacious, relaxed experience for the visitor.
For the time being, the old reptile house will continue to provide shelter for the many reptiles and amphibians that are off-exhibit.
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