Practical Reptile Keeping

Practical Reptile Keeping is the only monthly herp care magazine published in English. Launched in 2009, it attracts an international readership and is packed with advice on how to look after and breed snakes, lizards, tortoises, turtles, amphibians and bugs. As well as stunning photography, each issue features technical help, product information and health care advice to keep your animals in tip-top condition, plus breeding details and the latest news relating to this group of creatures from around the world.

Welcome

The toad and the eagle

New bearded dragon insights

Black mambas serve as pollution monitors

Slingshot tongues under study

The curse of the seaweed snare

Unrecognised benefits

A rare discovery in war-torn Syria

A unique fossil find

Starting out with chameleons • Ranking as one of the most attractive and fascinating groups of lizards, chameleons have established a dedicated following with specialist keepers. Here expert enthusiast Tim Zedi explains their basic requirements and the best species to keep, as an introduction to the family.

The world of the marsupial frog • One of the strangest frogs in the world is now available to amphibian breeders, thanks to a novel conservation breeding programme, as Don Harper explains.

Advice on hibernation • Summer has gone for another year, and the time for hibernation has returned. David Alderton explains the background to hibernation, and practical steps to ensure that your pet passes safely through this period.

Lighting for large enclosures

REPTILE FOCUS • Saltwater crocodile (Crocodylus porosus)

Key facts about frozen foods • James Brereton MSc investigates the world of frozen mice and similar foods, their nutritional values and how best to use them, when it comes to feeding snakes and similar pets.

Keeping mountain horned dragons • Interest in these lizards is growing, as more becomes known about them and their needs, increasing the possibility of breeding them successfully. James Brereton and Mark Myhill report on their experiences with this species in the public collection at Beale Wildlife Park in Berkshire.

Out of Africa Life in water

Go natural with plants! • With the increasing trend towards naturally planted vivariums, John Courteney-Smith, MRSB, FLS of Arcadia Reptile outlines what is involved in creating a successful set-up of this type, and the benefits.

The emperor rules • Scorpions are survivors. They've been on the planet for at least 430 million years, and can be found in a variety of habitats, from baking deserts to tropical rainforests. They're adaptable too - there is even a colony of yellow-tailed scorpions (Euscorpus flavicaudis) established at Sheerness dockyard on the Isle of Sheppey in Kent, probably having been introduced here on ships from Italy nearly 200 years ago. One species more than any other is popular with invertebrate keepers however, as Alan Richards explains.

TALES FROM THE REPTILE HOUSE George and the dragon • Having worked for many years as the curator of a zoological collection in Scotland, Bill Lowe sometimes encountered various rather domineering females in the Reptile House. Here he reports on a bearded dragon who seemingly knew exactly what it took to keep her partner in his place.

Practical Reptile Keeping