Post by Patrick Kubeja on Jun 29, 2006 8:39:26 GMT -5
Lizard didn't leap away; he was stolen
Thursday, June 29, 2006
Suzanne Hively
Plain Dealer Garden Editor
One minute he was there, the next he couldn't be found.
What a chameleon.
No, really. The 15-inch long reptile lived in the Cleveland Botanical Garden's Eleanor Armstrong Smith Glasshouse. Until Sunday, that is, when garden officials and University Circle police say he was stolen.
Employees working in both the Madagascar and Costa Rican biomes said the chameleon was there one moment and gone the next.
"He doesn't move that fast," Cynthia Druckenbrod, glasshouse manager, said.
An employee noticed a man and woman in their 20s sitting on a bench close to the chameleon, according to University Circle police. The couple left to purchase a tote bag in the gift shop, where they were captured on surveillance tape. They returned to the glasshouse, and when they left again, the chameleon was missing.
The Oustalet's chameleon - Spot was his name - was allowed to roam free in the Madagascar exhibit where he would turn various shades of brown. The 18-month-old was valued at $200.
These chameleons, which grow up to three feet long, are not pets, said Druckenbrod, and require daytime temperatures of 80 degrees or warmer. They also need access to ultraviolet light, space to roam and a special diet.
Able to help with his safe return? There's a reward: a full behind-the-scenes tour of the glasshouse with Druckenbrod. You can look plenty, but don't take.
www.cleveland.com/search/index.ssf?/base/living/1151570348122510.xml?lxoth&coll=2
Thursday, June 29, 2006
Suzanne Hively
Plain Dealer Garden Editor
One minute he was there, the next he couldn't be found.
What a chameleon.
No, really. The 15-inch long reptile lived in the Cleveland Botanical Garden's Eleanor Armstrong Smith Glasshouse. Until Sunday, that is, when garden officials and University Circle police say he was stolen.
Employees working in both the Madagascar and Costa Rican biomes said the chameleon was there one moment and gone the next.
"He doesn't move that fast," Cynthia Druckenbrod, glasshouse manager, said.
An employee noticed a man and woman in their 20s sitting on a bench close to the chameleon, according to University Circle police. The couple left to purchase a tote bag in the gift shop, where they were captured on surveillance tape. They returned to the glasshouse, and when they left again, the chameleon was missing.
The Oustalet's chameleon - Spot was his name - was allowed to roam free in the Madagascar exhibit where he would turn various shades of brown. The 18-month-old was valued at $200.
These chameleons, which grow up to three feet long, are not pets, said Druckenbrod, and require daytime temperatures of 80 degrees or warmer. They also need access to ultraviolet light, space to roam and a special diet.
Able to help with his safe return? There's a reward: a full behind-the-scenes tour of the glasshouse with Druckenbrod. You can look plenty, but don't take.
www.cleveland.com/search/index.ssf?/base/living/1151570348122510.xml?lxoth&coll=2
