Friends of the Savannah Coastal Wildlife Refuges and the Westin Savannah Harbor Golf Resort and Spa present "Reptiles Alive!" on Saturday, October 21, 2017.  Come help us celebrate the alligators, snakes, turtles & lizards of Coastal GA & SC on Reptile Awareness Day.

Reptile Awareness Day was initiated several years ago by a group of reptile enthusiast to help improve the public image of these fascinating animals.  Here along the coast we have a great variety and abundance of reptiles, and this event will enable you to get to meet many of these creatures up close and personal.

This all-day event will feature multiple exhibitors displaying many different species of reptiles in the Reptile Showcase at the Ben Tucker Pavilion at the Westin.  This will be a chance for you to see reptiles up close, get your reptile "selfies" taken, and have your questions answered by knowledgeable reptile fans.

There will also be several prepared talks by local reptile experts emphasizing how important reptiles are to the environment and dispelling many of the myths people still hold about our reptilian neighbors.  Seats are limited for these presentations.

10:15 AM:  Dr. Chris Jenkins (The Orianne Society); “Reptiles of the Long Leaf Pines”

11:45 AM: Dr. Kathryn Craven (Armstrong State University TERPS) and Dr. Joe Pfaller (The Caretta Research Project): “GA Turtles—From Diamondbacks to Leatherbacks”

1:15 PM: Tony Mills (The Lowcountry Institute): ”Reptiles of the Savannah River Basin” 

2:45 PM:  P.J. Perea (The Savannah River Ecology Lab):”Venomous Snakes and their Lookalikes”

The event is free and open to the public.  Refreshments will be available to purchase at the Champions Bar and Grill.  A raffle will be held for a variety of prizes.  Raffle tickets will be available at the door for $5 per ticket or five for $20.

This will be a "50/50" raffle.  That means that First Prize will be 50% of the money raised by selling tickets.  Other prizes include:

• A round of golf for four at the Westin Golf Resort ( 2 of these donated by the Westin))
• Lunch for four at Champions Grill (2 of these donated by the Westin)
• Two nights of free camping at Skidaway Island State Park (donated by the park)
• Four hours of bike rental at Skidaway Island State Park (donated by the park)
• Set of four ceramic mugs with the Savannah River Ecology lab logo (donated by SREL).
• One copy of "Reptiles and Amphibians of Georgia"  published by UGA Press (donated by The Gator Hole)
• A membership in The Orianne Society
• Various shirts and hats from our exhibitors

Unfortunately, the Laurel Hill Wildlife Drive sustained damage from Hurricane Irma and will not be available for tours.  Therefore, the VIP passes have been eliminated.

For the latest event flyer, click HERE.