The Little Ones
Upon hearing Penang Butterfly Farm, I am sure you would think that we are only about butterflies and caterpillars. Actually, apart from dealing with butterflies, we are also doing the breeding and husbandry of other animals in our farm, such as beetles, lizards, frogs and even snails. During the special month of parents’ day, interestingly there are some new born “babies” in our farm as well. So, let’s meet the babies:
Oriental Whip snake
Group photo!
Hi, we are Ahaetulla prasina. We were born on 15th May 2012. Usually, people will call us Oriental Whip snake. We like to stay on tree branches and sleep but we can be very active during daytime. Our body may be a dull colour now but when we grow up, our colour will change to completely green. We like this green colour because we can use it to hide among the leaves on the trees and it is such an elegant colour. Besides that, we like to eat small lizard. When we grow bigger, we will be able to eat other food like frogs and crickets. Our mama is able to produce 4 to 10 of us at a time. That is why we love our mama so much. Because there are many of us, we have to stay separately from our mama. People usually think that we are dangerous but actually we are just slightly venomous and not very harmful to people.
Great Angle Head lizard
I am enjoying my sun basking!
I am Gonocephalus grandis. I hatched from my egg on the 2nd week of May. I am the youngest and I have a brother who hatched a day earlier than me. People call me the Great Angle Head because of my cranial shape when I grow. It is difficult to differentiate me and my cousins, the Bell Angle Head lizard when we are babies. I like sunny day because I can climb up to a tree and enjoy sun basking. In addition, I am an intelligent boy because I have colour-changing ability to camouflage. Sometime, people say that my family is the most aggressive species of the genus. Because of this, I have to stay separately with my parents. But I am not alone because my brother is staying with me. Sometime, I don’t like being photographed, so, I will run around when I see anyone coming.
Cat gecko
Zzzz...
I may be called cat gecko, but I am not a cat. I prefer you call me Aeluroscalabotes felines, it sounds more high class. Do you know that I am the only species within the Aeluroscalabotes genus? I was born on 27th May. I am the youngest gecko in Penang Butterfly Farm. Do you know why they call me cat gecko? It is because when I sleep, I will curl up my tail like a cat. I like to sleep in cool shaded place that is why temperature is very important to me. I sleep in the daytime and I’m active at the night, so you may not see me much during daytime. I have some vertebral striping on my rich coffee-colored brown and bold rust coloration skin. They feed me with the small crickets. Some people ask me why is mama much bigger than papa, I am not sure why, myself but I love them both very much.
Giant Asian Pond turtle
Hello world!
We share the same surname with the Great Angle Lizard – grandis but obviously we are a different genus which is Heosemys grandis. There are 8 of us who hatched out of our eggs on 8th May in the incubation box. We like to eat plant leaves and small aquatic invertebrates. Usually, we use our front leg to tear up the food after we bite them. Do you know how to differentiate if we are a boy or a girl? The boys have slightly concave plastron (lower shell) and longer, thicker tails while the girls have flat plastrons and shorter tails. Due to the high demand of our shell and meat, we are being poached and over-exploited. Therefore, now we are classified as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List and also listed on Appendix II of CITES. Hopefully, if you stop supporting these products, our species will continue to exist.
Fire snail
I am smaller than the five cent coin!
See how big mommy is!
Can you see me? I am very tiny and I am only around 5mm. I just hatched on the 3rd week of May. I have a lot of siblings and all of us look alike. I am Hemiplecta tweediei. You can call me Platymma tweediei too or Fire Snail if the other two names are too difficult. I am a terrestrial snail and I am one of the mountain species. Generally, I live in high humidity area because I do not like dry area. When you keep me as a pet, you have to make sure that my house is very humid. Usually when I am hungry, I will creep slowly to chew my food like leaf, fungus but mostly I feed on the sweet potatoes. Do you know why people call us Fire Snail? Not because we are hot but because when we grow up, we have bright brick-red colour, just like the colour of fire. Mommy and Daddy’s coal black shell can be as big as 3 inches in diameter! As for me, I am still small, transparent and shy. When I am frightened or when I need to sleep, I will hide in my shell.
Lastly, you have met our cute babies of the month. We hope that they will encourage you to appreciate the beauty of nature and also your parents! Any plans for your parents during this special Parents’ Day? Whether they are near or far do not forget to appreciate them. Lastly, we wish all parents a big “Happy Mother’s Day and Happy Father’s Day.” Hope to see you soon in Penang Butterfly Farm.
Posted in Latest News, Photos, Reptiles