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A very impressive lizard species, bright and colourful, the Fire skink inhabits tropical forests in Western Africa. Total length is around 40cm, snout to vet around 20-23cm - but it is their colouration that impresses the most. This species was brought in to the UK hobby originally as wild caught adults. They have not proven to be an easy species to breed, however they are quite an easy species to track down as CB as more breeders produce them. WC are still brought in, but in dramatically reduced numbers, this could cause future issues with inbreeding - WC stock is still important. They are a relatively easy species to care for, and they tame down from their naturally fast and skittish nature in very little time at all. They come…

A fantastically impressive snake species, best suited to those that are more experienced at snake keeping due to their irritable nature. They originate from Thailand and the Malaysian Peninsula and grow to around six feet long. Some writers report that wild individuals tend to be quite calm - not my own findings. They are often cave dwellers, only active during the day in the caves. Outside of caves they are purely nocturnal, but often take up residence in disused buildings and then revert back to daytime activity in the darkness of the building. They are well documented catching bats in mid-flight and whilst roosting during the day. Birds are also caught on the wing, this ability to catch flying creatures probably accounts for the lightening strikes and their well known…

Vinegaroons are an arachnid occurring throughout the world (except Europe and Australia), in sub-tropical and tropical regions. The are a burrowing species often found in burrows under rotting logs and the like. They are named Vinegaroons due to them releasing acetic acid as a defence, which gives them a vinegary aroma. Another common name is Whip Scorpion. They do not use the full eight legs for walking, the front two are used as antennae-like sensory organs. All species also have very large scorpion-like pincers – each pincer has an additional large spine. They have a pair of eyes at the front, three on the side of the head. These are very easy to keep. Maintain a temperature of around 25-28C, a deep layer of damp substrate such as coir, leaf…

There are five sub-species of Pine snakes, all occurring in North America, the Northern Pine snake is the nominate form. It occurs throughout New Jersey, the western Appalachian mountains of Virginia, North Carolina, southern Kentucky, Tennessee, northern Alabama, Northern Georgia, the piedmont area of southern North Carolina and nearly all of South Carolina. Often found in upland, sandy, dry coniferous woodland, mainly pine, and usually in forest openings. It has a large developed rostral plate on the tip of its nose that allows the snake to burrow in the sandy conditions – mainly to escape the hot summer temperatures. It is one of the largest North American snakes at around 2m in length. Often has an irritable nature, huffing and puffing, mouth agape in a typical (for the species) “s”…

Elegant geckos (sometimes known as Short-fingered gecko) are a small species of nocturnal geckos found in Norther Africa up into the Middle East – most found in captivity are originally from stock sourced in Egypt. They are a terrestrial species growing to around 6-8cm long. An interesting fact is within the taxonomy, the scientific name given is Stenodactylus sthenodactylus – the “h” shouldn’t be there, typos even existed when the species was originally described in 1823!   Being from a desert region, they need an arid set up to thrive in captivity – much like a Leopard gecko in many ways, just in miniature. A small vivarium suffices, make sure there are no small gaps between the glass or elsewhere. Floor covering needs to be sand (don’t worry too much…