Pages
Connect Social
About the publication
Category archive
Explore the world of reptiles — cold-blooded, scaly vertebrates including snakes, lizards, turtles, crocodilians, and the tuatara, found across deserts, rainforests, and oceans worldwide.
531 stories
If you’re picturing a green iguana lounging in a terrarium in Sioux Falls or Rapid City, the legal picture is more complicated than a quick internet search suggests.
Zanzibar is famous for its turquoise waters, spice plantations, and coral-stone architecture—but beneath the canopy and along the sun-warmed walls of Stone Town, an entirely different world is waiting for you to notice it.
If you are picturing a green iguana lounging on a driftwood branch in your Connecticut living room, you are not alone in wondering whether that picture is even legal.
If you’re eyeing a ball python for your next terrarium, Maryland’s laws are more forgiving than you might expect.
You’ve probably seen viral videos of pet alligators lounging on someone’s living room floor, and you might wonder whether you could legally do the same thing in Montana.
Yes, you can own a turtle in Delaware—but the answer changes fast depending on which species you have in mind, how big it is, and whether it came from a pet store or a nearby creek.
The Yucatán Peninsula is one of the most biologically rich corners of the Americas, and the moment you step outside — whether you’re wandering ancient Maya ruins, hiking a jungle trail, or simply sitting on a hotel patio — lizards are everywhere.
Most people assume that finding a snake in the yard means they’re free to deal with it however they see fit.
Pennsylvania’s exotic pet code names bears, wolves, and big cats by species, but it never mentions the green iguana.
Illinois Conservation Police confiscate roughly a dozen crocodilians from illegal owners every single year, and that number hasn’t budged much despite the state’s clear stance on the issue.
Not every snake in your backyard requires a call to Game and Fish, but knowing which ones do is where most New Mexico homeowners get into trouble.
If you’re wondering whether you can own an iguana in Hawaii, the short answer is no, and state officials have enforced that rule for years.
If you’re wondering whether you can own a turtle in Nevada, the short answer is yes, but the details depend entirely on which species you have in mind.
If you’ve ever wondered whether you can own an alligator in Pennsylvania, the answer surprises most first-time researchers: the Commonwealth has no statewide ban and no state permit requirement for keeping one.
If you’re wondering whether you can own a python in Pennsylvania, the short answer is yes for most species, but the full picture involves three separate layers of law: federal, state, and local.
If you’re wondering whether you can own a turtle in North Dakota, the short answer is yes for most common species, though the exact rules shift depending on where the turtle came from and what kind it is.
Alaska is the only U.S.
In October 2025, a truck hauling 21 rhesus monkeys overturned on Interstate 59 near Heidelberg, Mississippi, sending several animals loose into the surrounding countryside and forcing a multi-day search involving local law enforcement and wildlife officials.
Finding a snake in your yard or attic in Mississippi does not automatically give you free rein to trap, relocate, or kill it however you see fit.
You can legally keep an iguana in Oregon without applying for a special state wildlife permit — a fact that surprises plenty of new reptile owners, especially anyone who moved from Florida, where the same lizard is now banned from the pet trade.
