The Status of Non-indigenous Herpetofauna Collections in Privately Funded Zoos and Reptile Parks in Australia

Reticulated python Python reticulas

John Weigel Australian Reptile Park

Abstract
An assessment is given of the collections of non-indigenous reptiles and amphibians in non-government tourist attractions. This assessment includes the history of involvement of these institutions with non-native herpetofauna, the current species held, and the trends and challenges presently faced by these operators. A look at the process of acquisition and importation of additional species is also provided.

The first importation of non-indigenous reptiles by a privately-funded zoo in Australia, is, to my knowledge, one undertaken in 1964 by the Australian Reptile Park (i.e. Eric Worrell). Peter Krauss, the General Curator of the Park at the time, accompanied a large number of specimens of a diverse range of species, from Gaboon vipers and cobras to green iguanas and Galapagos tortoises during the seven week voyage of the Dutch freighter the Oman Kerk from Naples France. The shipment included about 30 species from three European Zoos – from Sweden, Switzerland, and Stuttgart, Germany – where Peter had previously been employed. During the journey the snakes were kept in bags, which were changed as needed. The lizards and tortoises were kept in crates of various descriptions. A large number of live rodents accompanied the transport, and a supply of other foods were brought along. Care had to be taken to avoid venomous snakebite, as no antivenom therapy would have been possible. As an interesting aside, upon approach to Melbourne, still some miles from shore, Peter disposed of a Cook’s tree boa – which had not survived the voyage. The snake was simply dropped overboard – without further thought. Some days later, as fate would have it, the dead snake washed ashore, and was found by a young snake enthusiast, who had never heard of any species of sea snake lacking the characteristic paddle-tail. Upon presentation of the snake to the Victorian Museum, herpetologist John Coventry began a process of identification, that lead him to a correct identification and some rather brave theories of trans-Pacific reptile colonization. These were usurped by Charles Tanner a few years later though, who, after hearing about the snake, casually mentioned the mystery surrounding it to Peter. In the mid to late 1960’s, Eric received several shipments of reptiles from Czechoslovakian herpetologist Zanek Vogel. Mr Vogel had a bad habit of losing patience with the Australian licencing requirements, and regularly sent the shipments prior to the final go-ahead of ‘Customs?’. This led to the seizure and destruction of the final shipment that he sent. Vogel sent many remarkable reptiles, including Cuban species – which were accessible to him due to the communist connection. In the late 1960’s and early 1970’s the Reptile Park made numerous importations from Papua New Guinea, and worked with species including Papuan black snakes and crocodile monitors.

During the 1970’s Eric made numerous importations from South Africa (Transvaal Snake Park) and Southeast Asia (dealers in Bangkok). The last two importations that Eric made (African bullfrogs from Transvaal and various lizards from Bangkok) landed him in hot water with Canberra when he jumped the gun and was less than accurate in his paperwork, and appeared to provide fuel for Hank Jenkins and Tom Burgin in the creation of the VPC in 1982. To my knowledge, no other privately funded zoo has imported reptiles or amphibians into the country – though numerous facilities have maintained them in the past – and continue to do so. The animals have been acquired from public zoos and of course, the Reptile Park. At present there are about 35 species on non-indigenous reptiles maintained in a total of six only Australian private zoos. Following is a list of the species held by each of these facilities.

Armidale Reptile Centre, Wungong, WA (3 species)
Boa constrictor Boa constrictor
Red-eared sliders Trachemys scripta
Star tortoise Geochelone elegans

Australia Zoo Sunshine Coast, Qld (16 species)
American alligator Alligator mississippiensis
Alligator snapping turtle Macroclemmys temmincki
Galapagos tortoise Geochelone nigra
Aldabran tortoise Geochelone gigantea
Mud turtle
Red-eared slider Trachemys scripta
Carolina box turtle Terapene carolina
Green iguana Iguana iguana
Fiji banded iguana Brachylophus fasciatus
Fiji crested iguana Brachylophus vitiensis
Reticulated python Python reticulatus
Burmese python Python molurus
Boa constrictor Boa constrictor
Yellow anaconda Eunectes notaeus
Corn snake Elaphe guttata
Rhinoceros iguana Cyclura cornuta
Reticulated python Python reticulas

Ballarat Wildlife and Reptile Park Ballarat, Vic (10 species)
Reticulated python Python reticulatus
Boa constrictor Boa constrictor
Spectacled cobra Naja kaouthia
Mozambique cobra Naja mosambica
California king snake Lampropeltis getulis
Green iguana Iguana iguana
Carolina box turtle Terapene carolina
Burmese tortoise Manouria emys
Aldabran tortoise Geochelone gigantea
Red-eared slider Trachemys scripta

Mogo Zoo (couple of species)
Wild World Cairnes, Qld (1 species)

Australian Reptile Park Somersby NSW (24 species)
Alligator snapping turtle Macroclemmys temmincki
Star tortoise Geochelone elegans
Green iguana Iguana iguana
Galapagos tortoise Geochelone nigra
Fiji banded iguana Brachylophus fasciatus
Madagascan day gecko Phelsuma madagascariensis
New Caledonian gecko Rhacodactylus auriculatus
New Caledonian gecko Eurodactyloides viellardi
Giant New Caledonian gecko Rhacodactylus leachianus
Reticulated python Python reticulatus
Burmese python Python molurus
Boa constrictor Boa constrictor
Corn snake Elaphe guttata
Corn snake x yellow rat snake Elaphe obsolete x E guttata
Asian cobra Naja kaouthia
Cantil Agkistrodon bilineatus
Eyelash viper Bothriechis schlegelii
American alligator Alligator mississippiensis
Rhinoceros viper Bitis nasiconis
Spur-thighed tortoise Testudo graeca
Ball python Python regius
Blood python Python curtus
Boelen’s python Morelia boeleni
Sailfin lizard Hydrosaurus pustulatus

Bredl’s Reptile Park, Renmark, SA (9 species)
Reticulated python Python reticulatus
Burmese python Python molurus
Yellow anaconda Eunectes notaeus
boa constrictor Boa constrictor
Corn snake Elaphe guttata
Cantil Agkistrodon bilineatus
Spectacled cobra Naja kaouthia
Leopard tortoise Geochelone pardalis
Spur-thighed tortoise Testudo graeca

Status/Problems/Frustrations
Privately funded zoos in Australia have struggled for many years with regulatory walls that appear (to those of us in the industry, at least) to be unreasonable.

Although the regulatory line in the sand discriminating between government-owned zoos and privately-funded zoos still remains, there are increasingly fewer references to this distinction in relevant state and federal legislation. Unfortunately, this is more a result of increased restrictions imposed upon the activities of public zoos - than a liberalization of the activities allowed in private zoos. The system of achieving unanimous approval of each of the numerous committees comprising the VPC would seem to be blatantly unfair, if not illegal, since a single intransient voting member of a committee can (and does) stop commercial activities in another state – where there may have been no objections to the proposed work. It is improbable that 100 widely sourced Australian bureaucratic committee members – largely drawn from the public service, will unanimously agree on any given day what direction the sun will next rise – and increasingly untenable to presume that unanimous support for any application involving a mixture of issues including reptiles, pest potentials, disease potentials, and private ownership of zoos is achievable. Many of the ambitions of the ARAZPA Reptile Taxon Advisory Group are held back by the inability of not only privately-funded zoos, but government-owned zoos participating in the objectives of the group.

To overcome the difficulty of obtaining non-indigenous reptiles, the Reptile Park has devoted an enormous amount of effort since the loss of nearly its entire collection of reptiles in a devastating fire on 17 July 2000. Apart from the inherently irresolvable VPC system, the legislative bodies – at both state level (New South Wales Non-indiginous Animals Advisory Committee [NIAAC]) and the federal level (Environment Australia; AQIS) have, for the most part, been extremely fair. With an eye on the genuine issues, without the historic emphasis upon the ‘non-government’ status of the Reptile Park, an AQIS approved quarantine facility has recently been established at the Park to enable the direct importation of species for which approved collection status is held. The first importation – of four juvenile king cobras from a US zoo, has been approved by all relevant government bodies, and is scheduled for the very short term. This will be the first importation of non-indigenous reptiles by a privately funded zoo in 20 years, and of course, a very exciting time at the Reptile Park. The king cobra project is one of a number of Reptile TAG priority species projects that the Park is now hopeful of participating in during the next 20 year period.