![]() ![]() ![]() In much of the continental United States, these cold-blooded creatures aren’t likely to fare well outdoors should they escape or be set free. These shows represent but a tiny sliver of the live-reptile trade, a loosely regulated industry that spans the globe and generates an estimated $1.2 billion in revenue annually, according to the United States Association of Reptile Keepers. Roughly 60 Repticons take place each year, from Phoenix to Oklahoma City to Baltimore, attracting an estimated 200,000 visitors. Another man, who has a three-foot-long lizard slung across his chest like a bandolier, is at a nearby booth admiring a young boa constrictor that’s twirling around his girlfriend’s fingers. A guy strolls by wearing a “Snakes Lives Matter” t-shirt. Others are selling Asian water monitors, gargoyle geckos, yellow rat snakes, and bearded dragons. One vendor’s table is covered in flimsy plastic catering trays that are filled with ball pythons. Some have woken early to trek out to the Florida State Fairgrounds to get first crack at the animals of Repticon, a weekend-long extravaganza that’s similar to a baseball card convention, except instead of mint-condition Mickey Mantles and Pete Roses there are green anacondas and meat-eating lizards. It’s a sweaty morning last June on the outskirts of Tampa, and droves of reptile enthusiasts are streaming into an air-conditioned expo center. ![]()
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