Animals on Display

Birds: Rosy Bourke Parakeet Cockatiel Budgie Parakeet Button Quail Ring-necked Dove Australian Bourke's Parakeet Red-tailed Hawk Great-horned Owl Insects & Spiders: Indian Walking Stick Madagascar Hissing Cockroach Salmon Pink Bird Eater Tarantula Giant Brazilian Rain Forest Tarantula Curly Hair Tarantula Chilean Flame Tarantula Snakes: Eastern Hognose Snake Common Kingsnake Common Boa Corn Snake Gopher Snake Other Reptiles: 3-Toed Box Turtle Red-eared Slider Snapping Turtle Sulcata Tortoise Blue Tongued Skink European Legless Lizard Desert Tortoise Green Anole Mammals: Chinchilla Amphibians: Tiger Salamander Eastern Gray Tree Frog American Toad Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4	3-toed Box Turtle (Terrapene carolina)	This species of box turtle is found in southern United States. Box turtles differ from other turtles because of their ability to almost completely enclose themselves in their shells by means of a hinged plastron. They are almost completely terrestrial, feeding on a variety of plants and invertebrates.
	Common Boa (Boa constrictor)	Common boas come from the tropical forests of Central and South America. Big Bo was hatched in February of 1990, one of 11 young hatched in captivity. As with all boas, he is a constrictor, killing his prey by suffocation. He is fed small white rats. Center visitors enjoy this snake because he is very gentle and easily handled. Many people overcome their fear of snakes after a visit to HSC. A younger boa, named Little Bo, is also available to visitors.
	Tiger Salamander (Ambystoma tigrinum)	Tiger salamanders are amphibians that breed in early spring in temporary pools and wetlands in eastern North America. Following a larval stage, when they breathe with gills, they become mostly terrestrial for the remainder of their lives. They are commonly seen in the Bemidji area, especially in the evening after rain. They eat earthworms and other invertebrates.
	Salmon Pink Birdeater Tarantula (Acanchoscurria sp.)	Tarantulas are among the largest of the spiders. Captive females have lived for over 20 years; males have shorter life-spans. These spiders are sensitive to vibrations and use their sense of touch for finding prey, usually at night. They live in shallow burrows. This species is found in the rain forest of Brazil and Chile, preying on small mammals, birds, reptiles and insects.
	Red-eared Slider (Trachemys scripta elegans)	These turtles are found throughout the United States east of the Rockies. They spend much of their time in the warm waters of their native habitat. While they are strong underwater swimmers, these sliders spend much of the warmer hours of the day hauled out on logs or rocks (or, when very small, on marsh weeds and other aquatic plants) basking in the sun. All of the sliders are omnivores, eating both animal protein and vegetable/plant matter.
	Red-tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis)	This is a common hawk of open land and sparse woodlands, often seen perched on utility poles or fence posts. They hunt mainly for rodents and other small mammals and are considered very beneficial. There are many color variations, although the red tail is diagnostic for identification, except for immatures which have a barred tail.
	Common Kingsnake (Lampropeltus getula)	The kingsnake has the largest natural geographical range of any land snake. The common kingsnake, with a number of subspecies, occurs across the United States and northern and central Mexico, from the Pacific coast to the Atlantic coast to the Gulf coast. Exceptionally adaptable for a reptile, it makes itself at home in a diversity of habitats, ranging from desert basins to riverine wetlands, from valleys to rolling hills, from coastal estuaries to grasslands, from shrublands to forested mountain foothills. Secretive, they often seclude themselves in dense vegetation, under rocks and beneath fallen logs and inside rodent burrows.
	Eastern Hognose Snake ((Heterodon platirhinos))	This is a thick-bodied, slow-moving snake with a flattened, upturned "nose" and a length of up to 40 inches. Color is variable, some have dark spots and blotches on a yellow, orange, or brown background, but other specimens are solid black, brown, or olive with little or no visible pattern. Often identified by defensive behavior when threatened, they puff up with air, flatten their necks and bodies, and hiss loudly. If this act is unsuccessful, they will writhe about, excrete a foul smelling musk, and then turn over with mouth agape and lie still, as though dead. Despite this intimidating behavior, they are harmless to humans. This snake inhabits open, sandy woodlands The upturned snout is used to burrow after toads, a favorite food.