Reptile World Serpentarium, St. Cloud

About Reptile World Serpentarium

Reptile World Serpentarium in St. Cloud is a working venom facility housing over eighty species of snakes from around the world. Visitors walk through a darkened corridor lined with glass-fronted enclosures displaying everything from the familiar to the exotic and deadly, including a King Cobra, Black Mamba, and all four of Florida's venomous snakes. The facility also keeps a 14-foot male alligator named Pete, a Nile Crocodile, iguanas, and a pond of turtles. The main attraction is the twice-daily venom show at noon and 3 p.m., where the owner moves behind protective glass to extract venom from six species of cobra and eleven kinds of rattlesnakes. Visitors stand just feet away as snakes are coaxed to sink their fangs through membranes stretched over collection glasses. Beyond the public displays, hundreds of venomous snakes are maintained behind the scenes for venom extraction used in medical and herpetological research. The attraction opens Tuesday through Sunday.