Children got to meet giant bugs, an enormous tortoise and a Burmese python measuring over 11 feet during the Reptile Show at the North Riverside Park Mall on Wednesday, Aug. 12.
With over 150 guests registered for the event, a crowd of young children gathered in front of Mike Levins, co-owner of Crosstown Exotics, who taught them about various bugs, reptiles and amphibians. The animals tended to get larger as the event went on, starting with bugs and ending with a giant snake.
Of course, as the animals got larger, cheers and screams from the crowd got louder, as children raised their hands for a chance to pet the next animal.
“A lot of kids don’t get to get up close,” Levins told the Landmark. “Going to the zoo is cool, but a lot of the time you don’t get to pet a tortoise or snake at the zoo.”
Children were invited to come up and pet or hold various animals, such as a giant cockroach and an African bullfrog. At the end of the event, all the visitors could line up and pet Mr. Cuddles, an 11.5-foot-long albino Burmese python.
Jeanne Heller, the director of marketing for the North Riverside Park Mall, called the event an “educational way to celebrate [the] back to school [season].”
The mall started collaborating with Crosstown Exotics four years ago, after Heller’s son had seen them at an event, she said. Heller pointed to the company’s emphasis on dispelling fears about animals like snakes and cockroaches as a reason the mall hosts the event.
“They’re really pro teaching kids about where animals come from,” she said. “[Those animals] serve a purpose.”
Some of the animals Levins presented date back to prehistoric times, like Alfred the alligator snapping turtle. Alligator snapping turtles, the largest freshwater turtles in North America, lived alongside dinosaurs during the late Cretaceous period, 100 million years ago.
Guests were invited to interact with most of the animals, but the snapping turtle was off-limits. While not generally aggressive, they can bite with a lot of force.
“Part of the job is making sure everyone leaves with all their fingers,” Levins joked.
Among other animals, the event also featured a millipede, a frog, a toad and an iguana — which visitors were allowed to come up and meet.
Levins said he hopes events that allow kids to interact directly with reptiles might make them more inclined to protect nature.
“It gives [children] an opportunity to see something that they might normally be nervous or afraid of,” he said. “Once you get to interact with one of those [animals], you’re more likely, maybe, to not run one over with your lawnmower.”
The reptile event is one of 40 family- friendly events the mall hosts every year. Next month, the mall is hosting a Touch a Truck event with the Village of North Riverside, which will feature live music and display vehicles from local businesses.