Western bearded anole
Anolis barbatus Garrido, 1982

A lizard of curious character, which enjoys contact with its carer when in captivity. The word
“bearded” in its name refers to the characteristic ragged skin on the dewlap. It is native to
Cuba. It prefers high humidity (ca. 70%) and temperatures between 27 and 34 Celsius
degrees. It is more and more often seen on trunks and in crowns of fruit trees as well as on
coffee plantations. Its active time falls during the day, but it uses most of it to “rest”. Its
appearance may seem inconspicuous because of the grey-brown colouring, but it is capable
of slightly changing it to white-brown with blueish shine to its round scales. The anole can
climb on vertical, smooth surfaces (including glass), owing to the specific build of its fingers.
It can move its eyeballs independently of each other (like chameleons).
Female specimens tend to be smaller than males. The sex of an anole can be told already a
few days after hatching, thanks to two discs at the base of the male’s tail, which grow
together with the lizard. Anoles usually hunt snails, which they crush and spit out the shell,
but they are keen on insects as well. In a captive situation, the size of the snail it is fed
should be adequate the size of the anole.

Body length: up to 30 cm (including tail)
Body weight: 100 g (male)

Green tree python
Morelia viridis Schlegel, 1872

An arboreal snake from the Pythonidae family, which can reach a length of as much as 250 cm! As the name suggests, it’s a light green boid. It is native to the rainforests of New Guinea and northern Australia. In captivity, such conditions should be created that resemble equatorial and subequatorial climate as closely as possible (high temperature and humidity). Python’s head is clearly defined from the rest of its body. It has vertical pupils and its teeth are curved towards the back of the jaw. One of its characteristics are the pits on the head, which are lined with thermoreceptors, used when hunting and localising its prey. To make meal-finding easier, the python tends to move its tail in order to attract little mammals. Thenit shoots towards the prey from an S-pose and wraps itself around it. The green tree python is active at night. It spends most of the day on a tree branch with its head between the coiled body. The greatest threat for this species is poaching as snakes often die in the process of being smuggled. The green tree python is included in Appendix II of the list of species protected by CITES, which means that it must be registered by anyone who owns it.

Body length:
male: 150–180 cm
female: up to 200 cm

Body weight:
male: 1100–1400 g
female: up to 1600 g

Madagascar giant day gecko
Phelsuma grandis Gray, 1870

A lizard that belongs to the Gekkonidae family. The designation “day gecko” isn’t accidental – Phelsumas lead diurnal lives. It’s native to Madagascar, where it can be encountered in tropical and subtropical forests in the northern part of the island.
Its body is green (sometimes blue-green) with red spots on the back as well as stripes spanning between nostrils and eyes. Whereas the spots may not be there in some specimens, the stripes on the head are always present. The bottom part of its body is cream white; lighter than the rest. This lizard’s skin may darken a little as a result of stress. Day geckos are territorial and can be aggressive towards other specimens of the same sex in the area. If a male accepts another gecko in his vicinity, it’s sure to be a female, never another male. In their natural environment, Phelsumas feed on insects and other invertebrates. They also lick pollen off flowers and even eat soft fruit. They reach sexual maturity after about a year; this is when males, as a form of courtship display, nod their heads intensively and make specific sounds. This species is listed in Appendix II of the list of species protected by CITES, which means that anyone owning it must register their pets.

Body length: 30 cm