It’s always a gas to check out M and R’s dart frog collection; just as exciting and interesting: they are doing some bird breeding. There are Gouldian finches and an araçari named Lance in the store – other birds, too, but theses two enclosures (Lance especially) captivated me.

Dendrobates leucomelas Guyana Banded. Love these guys. Black Jungle’s banded leucs seem pretty bold – most others I’ve seen have been very shy.

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Dendrobates auratus. When I first got interested in dart frogs I was lukewarm on auratus. No longer.

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The tadpole room.

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M and R had the folks from The Creature Teachers down as well. They had some great critters with them.

Elliot the Umbrella Cockatoo. Elliot has more personality than some people I’ve met. He is an extrovert – within a couple minutes of him stepping onto my hand he and I were talking to each other, bobbing around and having a great time (at least I was – if Elliot wasn’t, he fakes it well).

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He thought that posing for photographs was pretty weak tea after our Soul Train session; the people looking at Sarracenia might want to have some fun, perhaps?

Skoochee the Coati, so named because he puts his front paws out through the door of his crate and Flintstones himself around the room. For folks who are unfamiliar with Coatis – they are cousins of the raccoon from Central and South America. Long canines, amazing double-jointed nose, inquisitive – a favorite creature of mine.