Our Mascots
Our mascots, Monty the Ball Python, Charles Darwin the Bearded Dragon, and Doc the African Grey Parrot travel everywhere we go! (Well, except Doc - he's still a baby. However, he'll join us on our outreach adventures very soon!) Take a look at our boys, and learn a bit about them!
Monty the Ball Python
Monty the Python is the Massachusetts Academy of Sciences official mascot. You can see Monty at any event that MAS attends.
Facts about Monty:
- Monty is a ball python (Python regius).
- Monty is about 3-5 years old. He is still considered a juvenile.
- Monty is 3 feet long. When he is fully grown he'll be about 5-6 feet long.
- Monty was donated to MAS by Dr. Al Richmond, a herpetologist at the University of Massachusetts Amherst.
Is Monty a male or female?
We don't actually know. There are some physical characteristics that may indicate the gender of a snake, such as bluntness of the tail, but with ball pythons looks can be deceiving. There is an invasive procedure that involves probing the snake, which we don't feel is necessary. Monty is our pet, and we do not intend to breed him, so we're just happy to assume that he's male.
Facts about Ball Pythons:
- Ball Pythons get their name because they coil up into a ball when they are frightened.
- They are native to West and Central Africa
- Ball Pythons are constrictors, they subdue their food by coiling around them and suffocating them. Since constrictors use their bodies to kill their prey, and they don't chew their food, they have reduced teeth that aren't very strong or sharp.
- Ball Pythons are very docile snakes and make excellent pets.
More Information About Ball Pythons:
Troubleshooting Guide to Ball Pythons
Melissa Kaplan's Herp Care Collection
Wikipedia
Charles Darwin the Bearded Dragon
Meet Charles, another MAS mascot! Charles accompanies Monty to any event that MAS attends.
Facts about Charles Darwin:
- Charles is a 3 year old male.
- Charles is a bearded dragon.
- We have had him since he was a baby.
- Charles' favorite foods are lettuce, crickets, meal worms, corn, and strawberries.
Is Charles really a male?
There are several ways to differentiate between male and female bearded dragons. Males have larger heads, smaller abdominal girth, and darker beards. Male lizards also have larger pores around their anal region. For dragons that are older than six months you can check for the hemipenile bulges. You hold the bearded dragon in your hand ,stomach up, and bend the tail up toward the back at a 90* angle. Be vary careful that you do not bend the tail too far. You could break a vertebrae at the base of the tail. If there are two bulges on either side of the tail base it is a male. If you see one centered bulge or no bulge it is female. Because it is so easy to check, we are sure that Charles is a boy.
Facts about Bearded Dragons:
- Bearded dragons are omnivorous. They will eat both insects and vegetables. Adult dragons will also eat pinky mice, baby lizards and anything else they find tasty. They tend to do best on a varied diet based primarily of vegetables.
- Bearded dragons make a great pet lizard. They don’t get too large, eat a wide variety of foods, are active during the day, and are gentle animals. Bearded dragons are captive bred, have limited care requirements, readily available, and inexpensive. A bearded dragon can be a great addition to your family.
- They can be categorized as mid-size pet dragon. Male can grow up to about 24 inches long, and female is about 20 inches. Their tail is about half of the body length.
- The bearded dragons have rough skin on the back and side of the body but soft along the belly part.
- The lifespan of the bearded dragons is about 7 years or more.
More Information About Bearded Dragons:
http://www.beardeddragonguide.com/
http://www.beardeddragoncare.net/
http://www.oaklandzoo.org/animals/reptiles/bearded-dragon*/
Doc the African Grey Parrot:
Say hello to our newest MAS mascot! Doc recently joined the MAS and we are excited to bring him to our events, but since he is still very young, he'll have to wait a bit before making his debut!
Facts About Doc:
Doc is a Congo African Grey Parrot.
As a young bird, Doc is in the early stages of training. He is just beginning to develop his language skills. So far he is able to say a few words, including “Hello” and “Good Boy.” In addition to his ever-increasing vocabulary, Doc is also being trained to respond behaviorally using the clicker training method. The basic principle of this method is to give positive reinforcement (rewarding Doc with a raspberry, his favorite treat!) at the same time as making a clicking sound after he correctly drops one of his toys into a bowl. Doc will eventually learn that when he drops his toy where we want him to, he will hear the clicking sound and receive a treat. This method will then be used to train Doc to do more complex tricks! Our goal is to train Doc so that he can be a social, well-mannered bird who can star in our outreach programs!
Facts About African Greys:
There are two subspecies of African Congo Grey Parrots: The first one is the Congo African Grey parrot, ''Psittacus erithacus erithacus'' - these are larger birds (about 12 inches long) with light grey feathers, deep red tails and black beaks. The second is the Timneh African Grey parrot, ''Psittacus erithacus timneh'' - these are smaller in size, have a darker charcoal gray coloring, a darker maroon tail, and a light, horn colored upper mandible.
African Grey parrots have a high intelligence and they are generally thought to be the best mimics of all parrots. Pet owners often refer to their relationship with their hand reared pet African Greys as being "like having a five-year-old child".
African Greys require a lot of stimulating toys due to their high intelligence and to avoid boredom. Three to five toys at a time are typically enough to satisfy African Greys, but too many toys can crowd the cage. Toys should be rotated and switched regularly to keep the stimulation constant and diverse.
African Greyshave special dietary requirements and should be fed with calcium and Vitamin A rich foods such as leafy greens like mustard greens, broccoli etc., almonds or little amount of cheese. It is usual to give African grey parrots carefully calculated quantities of calcium and vitamin supplements. An excess of these added vitamins and minerals in an African Greys diet can lead to health problems.
How Do We Know Doc's a Boy?
Most African parrots can be easily sexed after they have molted once. While it is not advisable to determine the sex visually for breeder pairs, identifying the sex of a pet for an owner (without DNA sexing or surgical sexing) will make owners happy. African grey parrots (Psittacus erithacus erithacus) are usually easy to sex. Males have a solid red tail on the underside (the secondary retrices), while those of the hen are tipped in silver. While examining proven pairs, this has proven to be accurate in over 95% of the pairs. Also, with male greys, the underside of the wings is very dark, while those of the hen are lighter grey.
More Information about African Greys:
http://www.africancongogrey.com/
http://www.avianweb.com/africangreys.htm
http://www.birdtricks.com/AfricanGreyParrots/
