Kenyan Sand Boa

We are continuing our blog series “The Hidden World of African Rift Valley,” where we introduce you to special animals who take the “hidden world” part quite literally.

This time, we’ll focus on Kenyan sand boas.  These beautiful snakes live in east Africa and are fossorial, which means they like to burrow underground. They do this to hide from predators (large birds, monitor lizards and jackals), to thermoregulate (cool off or stay warm), and to ambush their rodent prey.

Kenyan sand boas are a small boa species.  In this species, females are larger than their male counterparts, generally reaching about two feet long.  As is true with all boa species, Kenyan sand boas are not venomous. Instead, they are constrictors and kill their prey by suffocating it.

Guests can see our Kenyan sand boas bury themselves into the sand during our keeper talks held daily at 11:30 & 2:30 throughout the summer months in African Rift Valley.

Next time, we will meet another reptile from east Africa that is especially good at hiding.

The Hidden World of African Rift Valley

Abyssinian Ground Hornbill

Meet Petrie, our handsome male Abyssinian ground hornbill. Petrie spent a lot of time with zookeepers when he was a chick and because of that, and he now seems to forget he is a hornbill at times! He likes to “share” his food with us, his current keepers, like hornbills do for each other as a pair bonding exercise. He also likes to hang out with us to watch what we do. We have to be extra careful not to accidentally leave scrub brushes or hose nozzles too close to his enclosure as his long bill is especially handy for snatching shiny objects, which he then carries around like a treasure! In the wilds of East Africa, a hornbill’s bill is used to forage for food, flipping over rocks and sifting thru leaf litter looking for insects and small vertebrates.

Come see Petrie fly over the giraffe exhibit in African Rift Valley at our Wings of Africa Bird Show at 1pm daily starting on Memorial Day.

Next time we will introduce you to our beautiful female Abyssinian ground hornbill who also stars in our bird show.

The Hidden World of African Rift Valley

Ever wonder what lives beneath the giraffe barn in African Rift Valley? Or perhaps you didn’t realize there is a lower level to the building? Most people do not realize there is another world of animals that call African Rift Valley home, and these animals are not always visible to guests. From mischievous hornbills, to curious tortoises, to large African millipedes, we are going to introduce you to some unique animals with personalities as large as a giraffe.

Next time we will introduce you to some birds with huge bills and a knack for getting into trouble!