The door handle to the center is an Eastern Rat Snake sculpture. Rat snakes have special scales on their bellies that allow them to climb vertical surfaces.
The Eastern Rat Snake is also one of the reptiles that you can find in the herpetarium.
The Timber Rattlesnake is one of three venomous snakes that are native in Pennsylvania. The snakes in the herpetarium are in glass enclosures, if you were to see a snake like this in the wild it is best to leave it alone.
There are other snakes to see such as the Copperhead. The Copperhead is also a venomous snake.
Turtles are also reptiles and this Eastern Box Turtle is one type of turtle that lives here. You can find this species of turtle in deciduous woodlands and fields, especially after heavy rainfall.
With a behind the scenes peak we can find some animal ambassadors target training a box turtle. They show the turtle a orange ball on a stick…
…and when the turtle walks over to the target, they pull out the ball and give the turtle a snack.