'Fester' at Ireland's reptile zoo likes rats

Animal feeding time in Co Kilkenny normally involves leading contented dairy cows out to lush green pasture while their "fussy-eater", brand-conscious offspring munch from a bucketful of Glanbia's "Startacalf Muesli". But something odd is afoot in Avonmore country. A 6ft long, 30lb (14kg) Black-Throat Monitor, to be precise, writes Michael Parsonsinat Gowran Reptile Village

The giant lizard from Tanzania, affectionately nicknamed "Fester", has taken up residence in Gowran village and prefers a diet of dead rats, rabbits and freshwater fish.

The creature is one of the star attractions at Ireland's first - and only dedicated - reptile zoo. Gowran Reptile Village opened on what some might regard as the inauspicious date of March 17th last year and houses a collection of some 70 species including snakes, lizards and crocodiles.

Owner and founder, Kilkenny man James Hennessy (32) grew up in the village of Callan and has a lifestyle straight from the pages of The Dangerous Book for Boys. After school, and a stint with the Royal Marines in Plymouth, he taught adventure sports like rock climbing.

He travelled extensively in the tropics cultivating a passion for reptiles and bears the scars of close shaves: he's been bitten by a Mangrove Snake in Indonesia; scratched by Incredible Komodo Dragons and snapped by crocodiles. Three years ago he and his wife Susan visited a sacred crocodile pool in The Gambia where a shrine to the crocodile god "Sobek" is reputed to enhance fertility. They now have a two-year-old daughter, Katelyn.

Over the years he gradually built up a private collection of reptiles which attracted so much public curiosity he was persuaded "to take the next step" and set up the zoo which has been officially licensed by the Department of the Environment. He's currently working on a major project with National Geographic to research anacondas and will travel to Venezuela next spring to radio-tag some of the giant man-eating snakes.

Gowran Reptile Village features some 100 animals (including the only anacondas on display in Ireland) and has already attracted over 10,000 visitors. Recent hothouse arrivals include 19 "baby" Boa Constrictors born last May. These particular snakes have an especial claim to fame as their grandfather achieved international notoriety by appearing on stage draped around the neck of 1970s American rocker Alice Cooper, best known for the teenage rebel anthem School's Out.

Other highlights include 20ft long Burmese Pythons; "Jesus" lizards (so named as they can walk on water); the rare Crested Gecko (thought to be extinct but rediscovered in New Caledonia in 1994); Cayman crocodiles; and a terrfiying Goliath Bird-Eating Tarantula from South America which "grows to the size of a car steering-wheel"; and exquisite, one-inch long Costa Rican "poison-dart frogs" whose striped black and amber bodies are surely destined to become mascots for Kilkenny's team.

The displays will thrill and delight children of all ages who are allowed to touch and interact with the non-venomous creatures such as iguanas. Feeding time can be spectacular. The Yemen Veiled Chameleon's appetite for specially imported live locusts drew complaints from a local cereal farmer who feared Kilkenny risked a biblical plague which would ruin the harvest if the insects escaped. Mr Hennessy eventually restored calm with the reassuring claim that the locusts - like the rest of the tropical creatures - would "die in 10 minutes" if exposed to the Irish climate.

Gowran Reptile Village is an ideal venue for families visiting or passing through the southeast and perfect for a rainy day. But be warned: Fester's walkabouts will scare the living daylights out of most adults. This reporter made his excuses and left. Though not before a revelation of gratifying schadenfreude. Mr Hennessy, despite his Crocodile Dundee swagger, suffers from arachnophobia.

Gowran Reptile Village is located just off the N9 about eight miles from Kilkenny city.