Excitement filled the air on July 11 as more than 30 children gathered in the Cinnaminson library meeting room to learn more about reptiles and amphibians from all over the world.
“I am a lizard. I live in a hot place in the sand,” said Silly Billy (aka Billy Harkowsky), one of the Lizard Guys at the Lizards at the Library program. He pointed to Australia on a colorful world map on the floor before showing the youngsters a 10-year-old bearded dragon lizard.
The children shrieked with delight as Silly Billy walked around the semi-circle with lizard in hand, explaining that bearded dragons eat strawberries, blueberries and apples. “They also eat bugs.”
“Eew,” the youngsters responded.
“They eat worms and crickets too,” he added.
“Eew,” they repeated, even louder.
“He smells with his tongue,” Silly Billy explained of the lizard. “Who’s really brave? With two fingers, you can gently touch and feel his dry skin. They are scales.”
Most of the children touched the bearded dragon and felt its texture, as did some of their parents and relatives who accompanied them to the demonstration.
Native to Australia, bearded dragons usually live in arid outback areas and regulate their body temperature by changing colors. When approached by a predator, Silly Billy noted, the reptiles “puff out underneath their chin and it turns black.”
Lizards at the Library is a popular, interactive educational program that introduces children to a variety of reptiles and amphibians.
The next creature Silly Billy brought out of his cooler was a tiny, 11-month old African bullfrog that easily fit into the palm of his hand.
“This is an amphibian, and it lives in the mud,” he told the kids. “He is zero years old.”
The little creature did not move after being placed on the map.
Silly Billy then brought out a 2-year-old bullfrog, and it was huge. The children shrieked with amazement at its size.
A male African bullfrog grows to be about 10 inches long and can weigh as much as four pounds. They live in the grasslands of central and southern Africa and go underground in the mud when the weather becomes harsh during the dry season.
The eyes of the children lit up when Silly Billy walked around the semi-circle with the bullfrog, which they were not allowed to pet. Yet, there were fascinated by its size and actually seeing the creature for the first time.
The Lizard Guys began in 1995 to offer entertaining presentations for children and adults alike using live animals in New Jersey and New York at libraries, camps, daycares and schools. The youngsters at the Cinnaminson library responded with awe and excitement to Silly Billy.
Children gasp with delight as Silly Billy shows them a bearded dragon during Lizards at the Library on July 11.
