Video: Slithery Snakes in Shelton

With slithering snakes and a banana-eating lizard, it wasn't your typical story time at Wednesday night.

Kids aged three and up gathered and shrieked excitedly as special guest Jay Kaplan brought out four different snakes to admire, including a boa constrictor, California kingsnake, Brazilian rainbow boa and Pueblan milk snake, as well as a large lizard.

Kaplan is the director of the Roaring Brook Nature Center in Canton. He made a visit to Shelton for a program that taught children and their caregivers about colorful, scaly reptiles. The event was quite popular, with registration filled and about 120 people in attendance.

Pointing out the differences between lizards and snakes, Kaplan encouraged the young crowd to borrow books from the library to learn more. "Maybe when some of you grow up, you'll be paleontologists and study this stuff," he said.

Kaplan also advised the families to keep in mind that, if considering getting a snake as a pet, they can live for over 20 years. "Don't buy snakes unless you know what you're getting into," he said. "A lot of times a little kid about five years old will want one, but then they go off to college when they're 18 and the parents don't want to care for it anymore."

When it came time to hold and touch the animals, the kids showed little fear, letting Kaplan wrap the boa around their necks and slide on their arms."It was all slithery around my neck with its tail! It was kind of creepy but I liked it," said Vinoy, a nine-year-old who attended with his mother.

Some parents, however, were less than enthusiastic about getting close. Nonetheless, a good time was had by all.

"The program was excellent! I'm glad my son suggested coming here," said Janet Waugh. "We had a very nice time, and I didn't realize there were so many different snakes that lived here in Connecticut."