There were some big snakes at Polk Museum of Art today. And I mean big. Like sixteen feet and 140 pounds big. There were a couple of smaller ones too, but that big one is the one that caught everyone's attention.

Bruce Shwedick from Reptile Discoveries was here today to talk about snakes and show off a few of them. We figured that since the current exhibition, Robert Stackhouse: Swimmers & Floaters, has so much snake imagery in it, having someone bring some live ones to talk about would be great. And it was!

Shwedick discovered his love of reptiles as a young boy growing up in Maryland. He and his brother shared this passion, and spent most of their childhoods learning about snakes, crocodiles, lizards and turtles. So they have dedicated their lives to caring for and teaching about reptiles. Not only does Shwedick give lectures for students and children, he also helps teach US military doctors and medics about poisonous snakes and what to look for in snake bites. And, at one point, he was in charge of the reptile habitat at Cypress Gardens.

He gave everyone a lot of good information and interesting facts about snakes in the wild and in captivity. But the things that kept everyone enthralled were his stories and his snakes as he brought them out of their custom made boxes. One of the most interesting things I learned was that a snake's head can continue to bite - and inject venom - for several hours after it has been decapitated! So don't just cut its head off and assume you're safe.

So, if you missed it, you missed a great show! The kids in the audience all got a chance to hold one of the snakes, a 4 foot long Royal python named Bashful. Everyone walked away with a little more knowledge about these beautiful reptiles.