CategoriesNews by

The Great Aviva Roadtrip

 Just a few more days until The Great Aviva Road Trip kicks off, with the winners coming to visit us at Secret Valley Wildlife Park. Aviva in partnership with Citroën has given the lucky winners the opportunity to travel across Ireland and experience some fantastic home-grown family fun, all in an eco-friendly hybrid vehicle to see the sights of the Emerald Isle up close. We can’t wait to welcome the winners to the Secret Valley Wildlife Park and to let you know what they get up to. Stay tuned! Visit Aviva.ie, rated 4.5/5 stars by their car insurance customers.

The Great Aviva Road Trip journeyed to the Sunny South East this week at Secret Valley Wildlife Park, with the winners coming to visit us. Aviva in partnership with Citroën has given the lucky winners the opportunity to travel across Ireland and experience some fantastic home-grown family fun, all in an eco-friendly hybrid vehicle to see the sights of the Emerald Isle up close. Here at Secret Valley, the family loved getting to feed the goats for the first time, and helping to give Toby the Turtle a bath! They’re already planning a return visit to see our lovely animals again, and hopefully catch Toby in another escape attempt! Visit Aviva.ie, rated 4.5/5 stars by their car insurance customers

CategoriesMammals by

Rhesus Macaque

Origin-Rhesus macaques are native to India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Nepal, Myanmar, Thailand, Afghanistan, Vietnam, southern China, and some neighboring areas. They have the widest geographic ranges of any non-human primate, occupying a great diversity of altitudes throughout Central, South, and Southeast Asia

Lifespan- About 25 Years

Diet-Rhesus macaques have an omnivorous diet that includes roots, seeds, fruit and bark. They also consume insects and have been observed eating bird eggs. Rhesus macaques live in troops which may contain as many as 10-80 individuals.

Description- The rhesus macaque is brown or grey in color and has a pink face, which is bereft of fur. It has, on average, 50 vertebrae, a dorsal scapulae[clarification needed] and a wide rib cage. Its tail averages between 20.7 and 22.9 cm (8.1 and 9.0 in). Adult males measure about 53 cm (21 in) on average and weigh about 7.7 kg (17 lb). Females are smaller, averaging 47 cm (19 in) in length and 5.3 kg (12 lb) in weight. The ratio of arm length to leg length is 89%.

Conservation- The rhesus macaque is a species of Old World monkey. It is listed as least concern in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species in view of its wide distribution, presumed large population, and its tolerance of a broad range of habitats.

CategoriesRodent by

Rats

The fancy rat is a domesticated brown rat specially bred as pets since the 18th- and 19th-century in Europe.

Domesticated rats are physiologically and psychologically different from their wild relatives, and they pose no more of a health risk than other common pets. A fancy rat’s lifespan is usually about 2-3 years, Training your pet rat is very tedious but in the end is well worth it, as pets fancy rats are the most intelligent, affectionate and responsive of all the small rodents[/fusion_text]

CategoriesAnimals by

Giant African Land Snails

-The giant African land snail is native to the forest areas of East

-The largest species of snail found on land and generally grow to around 20 cm in length. .

-Life expectancy is commonly five or six years in captivity, but the snails may live for up to ten years.

-Giant African land snail lay around 6 clutches of eggs every year, laying an average of 200 eggs per clutch.

-They are nocturnal (active at night) and spend the day buried underground.

-They are herbivorous, feeding mostly on the leaves of trees and shrubs

CategoriesInsects by

Hissing Cockroaches

-Largest species of cockroach, reaching 2 to 3 inches at maturity.

-They are from the island of Madagascar

-In captivity, these insects can live 5 years

-They feed primarily on vegetable material.

-Madagascar hissing cockroach is characterized by its hissing sound, produced when they force air through the respiratory openings (spiracles) found on each segment of their abdomen.

CategoriesInsects by

Giant African Millipede

  • They are found in various countries in Africa.
  • Giant millipedes have an expected lifespan of about 7-10 years.
  • Millipedes usually have between 100-400 legs (2 sets of legs per body segment). Each time they moult, they add more segments
  • Adult size is about 10 inches long.
  • They eat fruit and vegetables along with rotted oak leaf litter and wood.
  • They have two main modes of defence if they feel threatened: they curl into a tight spiral, and they secrete an irritating liquid from pores on their body.
CategoriesInsects by

Chilean Rose Tarantula

Origin– The natural habitat of Grammostola rosea is the desert and scrub regions of northern Chile, Bolivia, and Argentina. While previously thought to be wanderers in nature, large numbers have been observed living in burrows in their natural habitat. They generally do not burrow in captivity. They are usually active in the evening or at night.

Family– Theraphosidae.

Lifespan– Females live up to 20 years in human care, significantly longer than males.

Diet– This tarantula has a diverse diet, including grasshoppers, crickets, moths, beetles, cockroaches, mealworms, small lizards, and mammals. When tarantulas are kept as pets, the best food that can be provided for them are crickets that have been gut-loaded on vegetables, as this is the best source of hydrated nutrition for the tarantula.

The Chilean rose tarantula (Grammostola rosea), also known as the rose hair tarantula, the Chilean fire tarantula, or the Chilean red-haired tarantula (depending on the color morph), is probably the most common species of tarantula available in American and European pet stores today, due to the large number of wild-caught specimens exported cheaply from their native Chile into the pet trade. The species is also known from Bolivia and Argentina.[1]

G. rosea is a common pet of tarantula hobbyists. Females have been known to live as long as 20 years, but due to the limited time they have been available on the market (and hence for extensive study), they may live considerably longer than 20 years. Considerable confusion exists between this species and Grammostola porteri, with some arguing that many of the “G. rosea” in the pet trade actually are G. porteri.