Maude Brockelsby, wife of Reptile Gardens founder Earl Brockelsby, died on 11 December 2011 at the age of 95.

Maude (Wagner) Brockelsby was born Nov. 2, 1916, in Lake Andes, S.D., the granddaughter of immigrants from Germany and Ireland.  Her family lived in the Lake Andes area until 1929 when they moved to Wood, S.D.  These were the dust-bowl days of the Great Depression, and times were hard – Maude often said she didn’t like to think about the “old days”!

After graduating from Wood High School, Maude moved to Rapid City where she met an ambitious young entrepreneur named Earl Brockelsby who, in 1937, had the crazy idea of starting a tourist attraction showcasing reptiles. Maude and Earl were married in 1940.

In the early days of the Reptile Gardens, Maude made rockwork souvenirs, but she played an important part in the success of the business in another way.  After Earl returned from World War II, he was spread thin by the several very different businesses he owned. It was Maude who encouraged him to devote his energies to the Reptile Gardens.  Earl always gave her credit for helping him to focus his efforts on that business, which became one of the leading tourist attractions in the Midwest.

Maude was known, to all who knew her, for her kindness and generosity. She loved to take care of her large extended family. Her chocolate chip cookies were arguably the best ever. For many years, Maude served as the “Goodwill Ambassador” for the Reptile Gardens. Up until the end she was always interested in how things were going at the Reptile Gardens and never failed to ask how business was when any one of us stopped for a visit.

Animal appreciation starts with education.

Rapid City, S.D. — Education through entertainment is at the center of Reptile Gardens’ animal conservation efforts.

To achieve this goal, Reptile Gardens donates money and auction items to charitable organizations like the Galapagos Conservancy and Idea Wild.

“Research in the Galapagos is one of our primary focuses,” said Joe Maierhauser, Reptile Gardens’ CEO. “We know that our funding isn’t lost in some huge pool and that our money is making a real difference.”

Maierhauser said Reptile Gardens donates money to the project each year. This year their donation was in honor of Methuselah, the Gardens’ giant tortoise who died in July 2011.

Reptile Gardens’ efforts are not all global. They donate to other local charities like the United Way. A local organization even sponsors a vortex coin collection machine that is located on the grounds. The exhibit provides extra monetary donations with half going to the local charity and half to the Galapagos Conservancy.

Through this fundraiser Reptile Gardens was able to donate more than 8-thousand dollars to Idea Wild, a conservation charity that donates equipment to scientists in need.

Another major aspect of animal conservation comes from educating the public —something that Reptile Gardens does quite well.

“People don’t have an appreciation unless they are educated about the animal,” said Terry Phillip, Curator of Reptiles at Reptile Gardens.

Phillip hopes that through education people will realize that they can make a global impact by practicing animal conservation techniques locally. This includes not killing the next snake that crawls through your backyard or shooting birds out of season.

Reptile Gardens utilizes conservation teaching through a variety of shows like the bird and alligator show.

Becky Beaton is Curator of Birds at Reptile Gardens. One of her primary duties is to educate people about native birds and how their role in the food chain is crucial to sustaining biodiversity.

“Some people have never seen a bird up close,” Beaton said. “You need to have some form of a personal connection in order to start thinking about saving them.

Phillip explains that every animal has its place in the food chain.

“You take out any one thing and you’re affecting everything … from the predator at the top to the little guy at the bottom.”

Whether it’s through donations, entertaining, educating or being actively involved in the community, Reptile Gardens continues to be a firm advocate of animal conservation.

Their goal is to be fun but also impart education. This is one way to elicit the community and show that a little effort and a lot of passion can go a long way.

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Rapid City, S.D. – Reptile Gardens wants to reach customers where they’re at–their mobile devices.

Over 93 percent of adults in the United States own a cell phone and the demand for mobile access to Internet has skyrocketed. Twenty percent of households are mobile-only, and 11 percent of mobile phone owners make purchases through their phones. By January 2012, 50 percent of all cellular phones will be smartphones.

Statistics like this are the reason Reptile Gardens CEO, Joe Maierhauser, decided that now was a good time to go mobile.

“The mobile website provides an overview of the many different things to see and do in the park,” said Maierhauser. “This is helpful to new guests looking for information about the park.”

The mobile website provides all the essential business information at a glance. It is designed to load quickly, and be easy to read and navigate through.

Anytime someone searches for Reptile Gardens or types in reptilegardens.com, they are welcomed by a dashboard containing different buttons to click on instead of the traditional website, which is difficult to view on a small smartphone screen. The dashboard resembles an application except there is no downloading required.

Mobile websites allow customers to view vital information from the company’s site quickly. They are designed to have less content and be formatted specifically to fit all different mobile devices.

The outline for Reptile Gardens’ new mobile website can be viewed here: http://www.reptilegardens.mobi. The mobile site includes the following convenient navigation icons:

• Things to See and Do
• Deadliest Snakes
• Gardens
• Shows
• Find Us
• Rates and Hours
• Reptiles & Amphibians
• Facebook
• Phone

Mobile users who wish to view the complete Reptile Gardens website can still switch to the full-site version with just one click.

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About Reptile Gardens

Reptile Gardens is a reptile park located in Rapid City, South Dakota. To learn more about Reptile Gardens’ hours, admission costs, and season pass specials, call (605) 342-5873 or (800) 335-0275 or visit their website at reptilegardens.com.

Methuselah brought joy to many across the world.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

July 13, 2011—Rapid City, S.D.—Though the shock of Methuselah’s death is still present, the team at Reptile Gardens is looking to the future.  Plans are underway to establish a memorial for the beloved mascot and hopefully raise enough funds to bring another Galapagos tortoise to the reptile park.

Named after the Biblical figure, Methuselah, who was recorded as the oldest person whose age, 969 years, is mentioned in the Hebrew book of Genesis, the Galapagos Tortoise has been recognized as the oldest creature to have lived in the state of South Dakota.

His death was sudden and surprising—having just celebrated his 130^th birthday on June 12, the reptile appeared to be in excellent health and spirits.  Just two weeks later, his level of activity declined and Public Relations Director John Brockelsby knew that it would be only a matter of days before he passed.

“It was sad to see him go,” Brockelsby commented.  “I’d known him since I was three years old.  Methuselah was the last of the original tortoises my dad had brought to the facility back in the 1950s and 60s.”

Although the Giant Tortoise Yard at Reptile Gardens has lost its star, it’s still home to two other important residents—Tank and Quazi, two endangered Aldabra Tortoises from the Seychelles islands east of Africa.

“No creature will ever be able to take his place,” remarked Brockelsby, “but eventually we hope to bring another giant tortoise to our facility so we can continue to educate the public about these animals and raise support for conservation programs.”

Galapagos Tortoises generally reach over 500 pounds (250 kg) and their shells can grow as large as 59 inches (150 cm).  The land-based, slow-moving reptiles are known for their gentle demeanor and extremely long life span, many living between 100 and 150 years.  Among the oldest Galapagos tortoises recorded in history was Harriet, an Australian zoo resident who died of heart failure in 2006 at an approximate age of 170 years.

Tortoises like Harriet and Methuselah gain such high publicity and prestige due to the dire condition of their species.  When the Galapagos Islands off the coast of South America were first discovered and explored, no one understood the implications of human interaction with the delicate ecosystem of the archipelago. Whalers and colonists frequently slaughtered tortoises for their meat, and the introduction of invasive and predatory species as well as the destruction of their natural habitat reduced tortoise populations to scarce amounts.

Nearly one hundred years after Charles Darwin first visited the Galapagos Islands to study the flora and fauna, the Ecuadorian government finally declared the area a wildlife preserve.  The Galapagos National Park was officially formed in 1959. The crucial turning point arrived too late for some species though; 3 of the 14 known types of tortoise had been completely exterminated.

In 1965, with the formation of the Charles Darwin Research Station, scientists and researchers launched a crucial tortoise conservation program.  Tighter controls and regulations imposed by the Ecuadorian government regarding tourism and resource allocation have made it possible for CDRS members to incubate tortoise eggs and eventually repatriate juveniles to their native islands.

Despite their recent rise in population, Galapagos Tortoises are still endangered—poachers and feral animals, like the black rat, are still problematic for the reptiles.  And the CDRS will need continued financial support in order to maintain its operations.

For more than 30 years, Brockelsby and Reptile Gardens have been proud supporters of the Charles Darwin Foundation, an organization aimed at protecting the fragile Galapagos ecosystem.  In fact, Reptile Gardens President Joe Maierhauser and Vice President Tom Lang actually visited Methuselah’s birthplace, the Galapagos, in 1987.

Speaking of his uncle, Reptile Gardens founder Earl Brockelsby, Maierhauser said “Earl would travel all over the world and bring the most amazing things back to show us when we were kids.  His dream, when he created the Gardens, was to share his love of exotic plants and reptiles with the public as well.”

To learn more about Reptile Gardens’ hours, admission costs, and Season Pass specials, call (605) 342-5873 or (800) 335-0275 or visit their website at www.reptilegardens.com.

About Reptile Gardens

Founded in 1937, Reptile Gardens is a reptile park located in Rapid City, South Dakota. Their mission is to educate the public on important environmental issues, while working closely with many major zoos worldwide to promote species survival. Housing a large variety of unique reptiles, and exotic plants, this reptile zoo is actively involved within the local community and provides wildlife education for people of all ages.

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