Dragon gets new den

A five-year-old Chinese water dragon, called Glen, has moved into our new-look Reptile House – just three days after it was officially opened by BBC1’s The One Show presenter Mike Dilger.

Keeper Sam Grove – pictured above with Glen – said: “He’s a friendly chap and is settling in well.

“The species can grow up to one metre long, although their tails make up most of that length, and they are native to East and Southeast Asia.”

The dragons sport diagonal stripes of bright green or turquoise on their body with pastel-coloured throats. 

Our Reptile House was officially re-opened on Easter Saturday following a £15,000 refurbishment which saw Members of DZG’s Development Team remodelling individual enclosures, installing timber flooring and cladding to walls around the public-viewing corridors and constructing a new glazed dual entrance.