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SUMMARY:
The page features the text 'MY STUDY : REPTILE HOUSE.'

CONTENT:
MY STUDY : REPTILE HOUSE

Plans for the modification of an enclosure to be filmed in a scene in the film Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone .

SUMMARY:
Clippings report on the Zoo’s teguexin lizard being treated and moulting, the arrival of saw-bill ducks in the Waders’ Aviary, and renovations and handling practices in the Reptile House with notes on crocodilians’ temper. Articles are from The Daily Mail and The Times.

CONTENT:
The Daily Mail
LIZARD'S NEW SUIT.
ZOO CURATOR MAKES
HIM FIT TO BE SEEN.

The Zoo's new Teguexin has seen
trouble recently—trouble fore and aft.
This fine big snake-killing lizard from
South America had a badly swollen jaw
when he arrived, and while this was
gently being dressed he lashed out with
his long, slender tail and snapped off the
tip.
This made it necessary to bandage up
the tail in the hope of saving the
damaged portion. Eighteen inches of
plaster of paris swathed in lint did not
add to the Teguexin's smartness on
parade, and he also blackened his record
by biting the curator of reptiles through
the finger-nail while his injuries were
being attended to. Sympathetic hand-
ling won him over to better behaviour,
and he has grown quite tame in these
last few days.
His moulting-time was overdue and it
was most interesting to see the curator
remove his old skin-overalls. They were
shiny at the seams and very frayed
round the hem, but gaps in the material
showed a promise of better things in the
background.
When the curator started to peel away
the old suit the great lizard's attention
was distracted with a beaten-up egg in
a bowl. He lapped it up with his long,
flat, forked, pink tongue, while his rags
were coming off with a sound of silky
rustling. As the overalls ripped away
from the back you glimpsed a smart
check suit in black and ivory, and when
his old socks and gloves were also re-
moved the improvement was astonish-
ing.
From a horrid-looking tramp he had
been changed into a little gentleman.
L. G. M.

JANUARY 16, 1924.

THE TIMES,
SAW-BILL DUCKS AT
THE ZOO.

THE WADERS' AVIARY.
The Waders' Aviary at the Zoological
Gardens has been enriched by the addition
of six ducks with serrated bills, purchased
from Holland. Four of these are goosanders,
the largest of the British "saw-bills," and two
are smews, or "nuns," the smallest of the
mergansers which visit us in winter. The
goosander reaches the length of 26in., and the
males are brilliant birds with blood-red bills,
glossy bottle-green heads and necks, the
under parts white with a tinge of salmon-
pink, the upper back and scapulars black.
The female is a dull, washed-out imitation
of the male. The male smew has a slate
blue bill and the general colour of the plumage
is in strongly contrasting bands and markings
of black and white.
The goosander and the smew visit our
estuaries and inland waters in the cold season,
sometimes remaining as late as May. The
goosander nests in Sutherland and many parts
of the Highlands, but most of those seen in
this country are visitors from Europe. The
smew nests close to the Arctic circle. Both
species prefer hollow tree stumps for breeding,
but have also been found in clusters of roots,
in hollows in peat, and even on sheltered
rocky ledges. They are fishing birds and
their elongated, narrow bills are armed with
a short down-turned "nail" at the tip, and
with transverse saw-like ridges along the
sides. The goosander in particular does
much damage to fishing streams, and there
is a conflict of interest between owners of
fishing rights, who justly regard these fine
birds as vermin, and bird lovers generally,
who with equal justice wish to protect these
attractive winter visitors.
The Diving Birds' house is now nearly
reconstructed, two large aviaries with pools
and rockwork having been provided for
delicate waders. The very beautiful scarlet
ibis, snowy egrets, and several other semi-
tropical waders will be on view there again
in a few days.
Two of the large lizards known as teguexins,
which have been on deposit at the Reptile
House, have now been purchased. They are
forest-living creatures from Trinidad and
tropical South America, reaching a total
length of nearly four feet. The head is very
large, and passes almost without change of
size into the neck and body. The cheeks
have pouches which are inflated with air
when the lizard is angry. The markings are
beautiful, the ground colour being olive-brown
with transverse bars of black. When they
arrived the teguexins were in poor condition,
the mouth of the larger one being badly
affected with a kind of canker. At first they
were wild and very shy, and as they not only
bite severely but use their powerful rounded
tails as weapons, they were not easy to treat.
The new Curator of Reptiles succeeded in
taming them, inducing them to take raw
eggs until they became sufficiently docile to
be handled, and to submit under not more
than reasonable protest to dressings. They
are now in good condition and, with some
assistance, have sloughed off their old skins,
so that they are extremely beautiful.

JANUARY 19, 1924.

CHANGES AT THE ZOO.

THE TEMPER OF
CROCODILES.
In this cold weather the Reptile House,
which was supplied with a new heating
system last autumn, is one of the pleasantest
resorts at the Zoo. Nearly all the fish which
were formerly exhibited there have now been
transferred to the Aquarium tanks and the
new Curator has had the opportunity of
making many changes which will give the
snakes, lizards, crocodiles, and terrapins
better accommodation. The high spirits in-
duced by the more genial temperature add
to the health and appearance of the reptiles,
but also increase the risk of handling them.
The poisonous snakes are not the most
difficult to tackle, as few of them are
specially strong or specially irritable.
Most trouble has been given by a
giant python, which, with a mate, occupied
one of the large cages. It was desired to
move it to a smaller adjoining cage in order
that its own compartment might be cleaned
out and provided with a more suitable bath
and sliding partitions for convenience in shut-
ting it off for cleaning purposes. Force could
not be used as it would have required a
dozen strong men to hold it, and the first
few who entered the den would have had
to face alarming trouble. It was deprived
of its bath but seemed contented with the
empty tank; the substitution of cold for
warm water only made it sulky. Its prey
(freshly killed rabbits and fowls), was
dangled in its view in the cage into which it
was to be lured, but it either took no notice
or was so quick as to get the food and retreat
again to its old home. After some weeks it
was shifted by a steady spray of warm water
with an unpleasant disinfectant, and now its
house is being refitted.
The crocodiles, alligators, and gharials show
a marked difference of natural disposition.
The gharials, now in the Tortoise House, are
quick, savage, and cunning. They appear to
take no notice of the keeper, but their alert
little eyes are watching him unceasingly, and
if there seems the slightest chance, their
narrow and well-armed jaws are shot out at
him. Alligators even of large size are
dangerous only in a blundering way; they
might mistake a hand or arm for food and
snap at it by mistake. But young alligators
become tame very easily, and can be handled
and petted with safety. Adult crocodiles are
always treacherous, and baby crocodiles in
good health have always bad tempers. Pond
nurseries have been made for the young
crocodilians, which have to be carefully
graded in size, as the smaller ones are fre-
quently attacked and always bullied by their
larger relatives.
P.C.M.

SUMMARY:
Satirical notes from Punch comment on the Downing Street barricades and Mr. Lloyd George, peace at Lausanne, and Surrey defeating Kent at Blackheath. It also remarks on the appointment of a lady as Curator of the Reptile House at the Zoo as a feminist advance since the days of Eve.

CONTENT:
AUGUST 1, 1923.] PUNCH, OR THE LONDON CHARIVARI. 97

CHARIVARIA.

We gather from a statement of the
FIRST COMMISSIONER OF WORKS that
there is no intention of removing the
barricades from Downing Street at pre-
sent. But surely he must know that
Mr. LLOYD GEORGE escaped from No. 10
many months ago.

Peace has been signed at Lausanne,
and Surrey has at last defeated Kent
at Blackheath. Somebody might now
tell us what else there is to do.

A lady has been appointed Curator
of the Reptile House at the
Zoo. In feminist circles
this is regarded as marking
a splendid advance since
the days of Eve.

SUMMARY:
Magazine clipping from The Sketch featuring photographs and captions about Miss Joan B. Procter’s appointment as Curator of Reptiles at the "Zoo," succeeding Mr. E. G. Boulenger, with notes on her work at the British Museum and aquarium design. A note states the photos were published without her permission.

CONTENT:
Sketch
Aug. 29, 1923
Fond of Snakes:
THESE PHOTOS WERE
PUBLISHED WITHOUT
MY PERMISSION
The New Reptile Curator at Home.
DURING THE
SUMMER HOLIDAYS!

1. THE GREAT LADY REPTILE EXPERT: MISS JOAN B. PROCTER, F.Z.S., F.L.S., AND FRIEND.
2. A STUDY IN MISS PROCTER'S HOUSE: PUSSY, THE KYLON AND THE REPTILE.
3. THE LADY WHO HANDLES SNAKES WITH PLEASURE: MISS JOAN B. PROCTER, WHO HAS BEEN APPOINTED CURATOR OF REPTILES AT THE "ZOO."
4. ON THE FRIENDLIEST TERMS: MISS PROCTER AND A MEMBER OF HER PRIVATE COLLECTION.

Miss Joan B. Procter, F.Z.S., F.L.S., who has been appointed Curator of Reptiles at the "Zoo," in succession to Mr. E. G. Boulenger, who has been appointed Director of the new Aquarium, is the greatest woman expert on reptiles of the day, and will assume her duties in the late autumn. She was educated at St. Paul's School for Girls, and since 1916 has worked in the Reptile Department at the British Museum—first as voluntary assistant to Dr. Boulenger, and, since his retirement, as the expert in charge. She is the author of a large number of papers on the anatomy, classification, and habits of reptiles and batrachians, and owns a private collection of living specimens. Miss Procter is still carrying on the work of the Reptile Department at the Museum, but is also engaged in designing the rockwork for the aquarium tanks at the "Zoo."

PHOTOGRAPHS SPECIALLY TAKEN FOR "THE SKETCH" BY ALFIERI.

SUMMARY:
Press clippings announce Miss Joan B. Procter's appointment as Curator of Reptiles at the Zoological Gardens/London Zoological Gardens, noting her work at the British Museum and her private reptile collections. Articles reference Mr. E. G. Boulenger, Dr. Boulenger, Prof. Huxley, and the new aquarium under the Mappin Terraces.

CONTENT:
Miss Procter
No.
From The General Press Cutting
Association, Ltd.
ATLANTIC HOUSE,
45-50, HOLBORN VIADUCT, E.C. 1.
TELEPHONE HOLBORN 4815.
Cutting from the Illustrated London News
Address of Publication
Issue dated 28. 4. 23

Miss Joan Procter, F.Z.S., F.L.S., who is to be Curator of Reptiles at the "Zoo,"
is already known to readers of "The Illustrated London News" through her
work on the tanks for the new Aquarium, illustrations of which were given in
our issue of July 14 last. She is twenty-five.

THE ZOO'S NEW CURATOR OF
REPTILES: MISS JOAN PROCTER.

Cutting from the Times Weekly Edition
Address of Publication
Issue dated 26. 4. 23
A Woman Zoologist.

The position of Curator of Reptiles at the
Zoological Gardens would not appear, at first
sight, to be one likely to appeal to a woman,
but Miss Joan B. Procter, F.Z.S., F.L.S., who
has been appointed to succeed Mr. E. G.
Boulenger in that office, is a recognized autho-
rity on the subject. She has worked in the
Reptile Department at the British Museum
since 1916, first as voluntary assistant to Dr.
Boulenger, and, since his retirement, in
charge. She is the author of a large number
of papers on the anatomy, classification, and
habits of reptiles and batrachians, and for
many years has kept a private collection of
living snakes and batrachians. At present
Miss Procter is still carrying on the work of
the Reptile Department at the Museum, but
is also engaged in designing the rockwork for
the aquarium tanks at the Zoo. Mr.
Boulenger has been appointed Director of the
new aquarium which is under construction.
He has made the reptile collection at the Zoo
one of the finest in the world.

Cutting from the Camberwell & Peckham Times
Address of Publication
Issue dated 28 / 4 / 23

Miss Joan Procter, a young lady of 23
years, who is entitled to write goodness only
knows how many initials after her name, has
been appointed curator of reptiles at the Zoo.
Her charges will include cobras, pythons, boa
constrictors, alligators and crocodiles. We
don't know that we should care about the
job. But then, woman always was a charmer.
Even man, the most deadly of reptiles, suc-
cumbs to her charms.

Cutting from the Daily Mail
Address of Publication
Issue dated 28. 7. 23
GIRL SNAKE EXPERT.
TO TAKE CHARGE OF ZOO
REPTILES.

Miss Joan B. Procter, F.Z.S., who has
been appointed Curator of Reptiles to the
London Zoological Gardens, has been in-
terested in such creatures since she was
seven years old.
At that age she had a crocodile as a pet,
which she cared for during its two years
of life. At present Miss Procter is carry-
ing on the work of the Reptile Depart-
ment of the British Museum, but she by
no means confines her observations to
preserved specimens.
Her present collection of living rep-
tiles includes a Brazilian house snake,
which is very keen on being handled and
petted. These bene-
volent serpents are
used instead of
cats in some parts
of South America,
and are most effec-
tive in keeping a
place clear of rats
and mice. Miss
Procter has also
some axolotyls, and
in the past has
succeeded in trans-
forming one of
them from a water-
creature to a land
salamander by
scientifically reduc-
ing its allowance
of water. Prof. Huxley's thyroid-gland
experiments produced the same re-
sults.
Some lizards and a small python are
also included in her collection, while at
the British Museum she has a fire-bellied
toad which she has owned for the past
10 years.
Miss Procter, who is 25, is succeeding
Mr. E. G. Boulenger, F.Z.S., at the
Zoo's Reptile House in the autumn. Mr.
Boulenger is in charge of the £50,000
aquarium which is now being con-
structed under the Mappin Terraces at
the Zoo.

• SUMMARY:
  Newspaper clippings from July 20, 1923 report Miss Joan Procter/Procter’s appointment as Curator of Reptiles at the Zoo, outlining her lifelong interest in reptiles and her keeping of snakes, a crocodile, lizards, and axolotls. Articles also note her work at the British Museum, experiments transforming axolotls, and Mr. E. G. Boulenger’s move to oversee the new aquarium at the Mappin Terraces.

CONTENT:
THE EVENING STANDARD
Friday, July 20, 1923.

JOAN & HER QUEER
PALS.

BOA CONSTRICTOR & CROCODILE
AS PLAYMATES.

YOUNG ZOO CURATOR.

TRANSFORMATION FROM WATER
TO LAND CREATURE.

Miss Joan Proctor, the young girl who has
been appointed curator of reptiles at the Zoo,
is somewhat shy to talk about her life work,
which has been the study of creatures from
which the average person turns with a
shudder.

A slightly built, smiling girl, with a pleasant
expression, she was busily engaged to-day in the
new aquarium in course of construction at the
Zoo.

It was with reluctance that she admitted her
identity. Asked when
she began to be inte-
rested in snakes, she re-
plied:

"I never did begin.
I have always been inte-
rested in them. I have
worked among them
since the time I left
school. I have been at
the Natural History
Museum so far, and I
aim coming to my new
post here in November.

Miss Joan Proctor.
"Yes, I have kept a
great many pets of all
sorts" she continued.
"Which is the most
unusual? Oh, they are
all considered unusual. Among them was a boa
constrictor. It is in the reptile house now—
five feet long, and perfectly tame. I kept
it at home and usually had it loose. It was
shut up only at night. Of course, I did not
allow it to be about in the same room with
the cat. It would have eaten pussy.

"I have also had a crocodile, an alligator, and
all sorts of snakes and lizards. I have never
had the slightest trouble with them. They were
all great pets and quite tame."

When asked if she had trained any of her
peculiar pets to do tricks, Miss Proctor merely
smiled and said she did not want anything
theatrical to be said about her and her pets.

She thinks, however, that the reptile house is
one of the most popular places in the Zoo, es-
pecially with children.

"Children," she said, "are not afraid of the
reptiles."

Transformation.

Miss Proctor's own collection of animals, it
may be added, is a considerable one. The croco-
dile to which she referred was her playmate
when she was quite a little girl of seven years
old. It, however, only lived two years.

To see her making friends with a Brazilian
house snake, which is one of her favourites at
present, would scare the ordinary girl. A small
python is also one of her present possessions,
and she has a number of lizards.

Recently she succeeded with certain experi-
ments in regard to axolotls. She managed
to change the habits of one of them by scientifi-
cally reducing his allowance of water, and
transformed it from a water creature to a land
creature.

FRIDAY, The Daily Mail JULY 20, 1923.

WOMAN'S REPTILE
PETS.

SNAKES, LIZARDS, AND
A TOAD.

Miss Joan B. Procter, F.Z.S., who has
been appointed Curator of Reptiles to the
London Zoological Gardens, has been in-
terested in such creatures since she was
seven years old.

At that age she had a crocodile as a pet,
which she cared for during its two years
of life. At present Miss Procter is carry-
ing on the work of the Reptile Depart-
ment of the British Museum, but she by
no means confines her observations to
preserved specimens.

Her present collection of living reptiles
includes a Brazilian house snake, which
is very keen on being handled and petted.
These benevolent serpents are used in-
stead of cats in some parts of South
America, and are most effective in keep-
ing a place clear of rats and mice. Miss
Procter has also some axolotls, and in
the past has succeeded in transforming
one of them from a water-creature to a
land salamander by scientifically reduc-
ing its allowance of water. Prof. Hux-
ley's thyroid-gland experiments pro-
duced the same results.

Some lizards and a small python are
also included in her collection, while at
the British Museum she has a fire-bellied
toad which she has owned for the past 10
years.

Miss Procter is succeeding Mr. E. G.
Boulenger, F.Z.S., at the Zoo's Reptile
House in the autumn. Mr. Boulenger is
in charge of the £50,000 aquarium which
is now being constructed under the Map-
pin Terraces at the Zoo.

For
DURRANT'S PRESS CUTTINGS,

St. Andrew's House, 32 to 34 Holborn Viaduct,
and 3 St. Andrew Street Holborn Circus, E.C. 1.
TELEPHONE

• CITY 4963.

The Westminster Gazette
104 Shoe Lane, E.C.1.

Cutting from issue dated 20 JUL 1923

WOMAN CURATOR.

Miss Proctor is to be Curator of Rep-
tiles at the Zoo in succession to Mr.
Boulenger, who becomes Curator of the
new Aquarium now in process of comple-
tion.

Miss Proctor, educated at St. Paul's
School for Girls, has worked in the Rep-
tile Department of the British Museum
since 1916, and was at one time Mr.
Boulenger's assistant,

SUMMARY:
Clippings report new arrivals at the Regent's Park Reptile House—Hardwick's Mastigures, a pigmy chameleon, a blue-tongued lizard, and several snakes—and note their behaviors and origins. Another article from the Public Ledger (Philadelphia) announces that Miss Joan Proctor has been chosen to take charge of the reptile house at the London Zoo in 1933.

CONTENT:
NEW REPTILES AT
THE ZOO.
LIZARD'S TONGUE LIKE PIECE
OF BRIGHT BLUE CLOTH,
PIGMY CHAMELEON.

Within the last few days the collection ex-
hibited in the Reptile House at Regent's
Park has been enriched by the arrival of a
number of new lizards and snakes of great
interest, which still further add to the many
attractions offered by this popular section of
the Zoo.
Of the lizards, the curious and strangely-
named Hardwick's Mastigures are among the
most noteworthy, both by reason of their un-
usual appearance and characteristic habits.
These reptiles belong to a group known as
Spiny-tailed lizards, all the members of which
are provided with thick, rather short though
well-developed tails, bearing numerous sharp
spines arranged in a series of rings.
The head is very short and rounded, while the
teeth, instead of being small and conical as in the
better-known lizards, are few in number and
united into broad grinding or cutting surfaces.
Vegetable Feeders.
The reason for this special modification is that
the Spiny-tails are all vegetable feeders, where-
as the typical lizards subsist, for the main part
at least, on animal food in the form of insects,
worms, etc.
These sombrely coloured and rather grotesque
creatures present a strange appearance as they
recline lazily on the sand of their cases, placidly
munching oats or maize, their unhurried move-
ments and benign expression being well in keep-
ing with their gentle and inoffensive disposition.
In a state of nature the Hardwick's Mastigure
occurs in the desert region of Baluchistan and
Northern India, where it lives in burrows, from
which it is dislodged only with the utmost diffi-
culty. When attacked it will cling firmly to
the walls of its retreat with its limbs, hanging on
with remarkable pertinacity, at the same time
blocking the entrance to the burrow with its
stout, spiny tail.
Changing Colour.
A pigmy chameleon is another newcomer, and
though of very diminutive stature—its body ex-
clusive of the tail measuring but little more than
three inches—has many features to recommend
it to public notice.
Like the larger species, this bizarre little crea-
ture possesses the faculty of changing colour in
an extraordinary degree, and even within the
confines of its comparatively small case is not
easily recognised, so closely does the hue of its
skin harmonise with whatever object the reptile
may choose as a resting place.
The deception is still further assisted by the
laterally compressed body and the attitudes
assumed by the animal, which will remain quite
motionless for hours together, only exhibiting
evidence of life by rolling its globe-like eyes, each
of which is kept in constant movement inde-
pendently of the other.
Unlike the majority of chameleons the pigmy
species gives birth to living young, as many as
twelve little ones—perfect miniatures of their
parents—being produced at a single birth.

A CHAMELEON.

Blue-tongued Lizard.
A blue-tongued lizard, with a tongue like a
piece of bright blue cloth; Indo-Chinese and
Indian rat snakes, well known in India as valu-
able vermin destroyers; a rare spot-ringed snake
from Brazil, and some Indian cobras are also
included among the animals which have just
arrived at the Gardens.
E.R.D.

PUBLIC LEDGER—PHILADELPHIA
SATURDAY MORNING, JULY 21, 1933

Girl Chosen to Take Charge
of Snakes at London Zoo

Member of Noted Scientific Societies Has
Made Reptiles Her Hobby Since
Early Childhood

Public Ledger Foreign Service
Copyright, 1933, by Public Ledger Company
London, July 20.—(By Wireless.)—
Miss Joan Proctor, who at twenty-five
years of age already sports two sets
of initials after her name, has realized
the ambition of her life. She has become
the world's greatest snake charmer,
and within a few months will assume
her new duties as mistress of the reptile
house at the London Zoo. She was
busy preparing models for the rock-
work which is to adorn the new home
now being built for her charges today.
Joan has been on intimate terms with
snakes since early girlhood. She has the
utmost contempt for those of her sex
or mere males who prefer almost any
other creature to a snake for a pet.
Collecting snakes, lizards, frogs, toads
and other members of the reptile fam-
ily has been her hobby since she was
ten years old—a tendency possibly in-
herited from her grandfather, who was a
distinguished entomologist.
Joan became assistant to the curator
of reptiles at the Zoological Gardens
when she was eighteen. She read her
first paper on snakes before the Zoologi-
cal Society a later and at twenty
became a fellow of that society. Two
weeks ago she was elected a fellow of
the Linnean Society of London, one of
the world's foremost scientific bodies.
But Joan has equipment other than
mental for her work. She looks like a
snake charmer—diminutive, sinuous,
with the jet black hair and beady, glit-
tering eyes. She is fully impressed with
the dignity of her new position. Today
she declared her intention to heed
closely the unwritten ethics of her pro-
fession.
"I really cannot grant an interview,"
she said, and then disappeared as mys-
teriously as one of her charges.

SUMMARY:
Newspaper cuttings (1921–1927) report Miss Joan Procter’s appointment and work as Curator of Reptiles at the Zoo, highlighting her background at the Natural History Museum and her early interest in reptiles. Articles also note her education at St. Paul’s School for Girls and collaboration with Dr. G. A. Boulenger, as well as her design work for new aquarium tanks.

CONTENT:
Cutting from the Children's Newspaper
Address of Publication
Issue dated 4.8.21

FRIEND OF THE CRAWLY
THINGS
Miss Procter of the Zoo
Ladies who are afraid of mice, spiders,
beetles, newts, snakes, and such un-
familiar things may shudder at hearing
that Miss Joan Procter has been ap-
pointed curator of the reptiles at the Zoo
in London.
Miss Procter does not shudder at any
kind of animal, for they are her familiars,
especially snakes. She began keeping
snakes as pets when she was ten. When
she was eighteen she became an assistant
in the reptiles' department at South
Kensington.
Now, at 25, she goes to the Zoo to be
the friend of all the crawly and cold-
blooded things, as she is the friend of the
collection she keeps in her home.

Cutting from the Schoolmistress
Address of Publication
Issue dated 2.8.27

CURATOR AT THE ZOO.
Miss Joan B. Procter, F.Z.S., who, on
account of her writings and research work
in zoology, was recently made a Fellow of
the Linnean Society, has been appointed
curator of reptiles at the Zoological
Gardens. For several years Miss Procter
has been a worker in the Reptile Depart-
ment of the Natural History Museum at
South Kensington, and she hopes to keep
on with her research work there, in addition
to taking charge of the reptile houses and
the tortoises at the Zoo. At present she is
engaged on designing the decorative rock-
work for the new aquarium tanks at the
Zoo. She makes models of the tanks on a
scale of two inches to a foot, and the work-
men carry out her designs. The largest of
the tanks will be 30 ft. in length. The
tanks are being made partly of natural
rocks, such as Cornish granite, and partly of
Portland cement.

M Miss Procter No.

From The General Press Cutting
Association, Ltd.
ATLANTIC HOUSE,
45-50, HOLBORN VIADUCT, E.C. 1.
TELEPHONE: HOLBORN 4015.

Cutting from the Suffragette Telegraph
Address of Publication
Issue dated 10.8.23

The newest profession for women is an extra-
ordinary one, in which there will be little
competition. Few women would care to spend
their working hours among reptiles, yet it is a
lady, Miss Joan Procter, who has been appointed
Curator of Reptiles at the Zoo. Miss Procter
was educated at St. Paul's School for Girls, and
has worked in the Reptile Department as assis-
tant of Mr. Boulenger, who now becomes
Curator of the New Aquarium.

M Miss Joan Procter No.

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Address of Publication
Issue dated 3.8.23

Woman Curator of Reptiles.
Miss Joan Procter, F.Z.S., F.L.S., will take
up in November the position of curator of rep-
tiles at the Zoological Gardens. Miss Procter,
who was educated at St. Paul's School for
Girls, worked for some years with Dr. G. A.
Boulenger, who is relinquishing the position.
She has been interested in reptiles and frogs
since her school days and keeps a collection in
her Kensington home.

SUMMARY:
Magazine clipping profiling Miss Joan B. Procter’s appointment as Curator of Reptiles at the London Zoological Gardens, noting E. G. Boulenger’s move to direct the new aquarium and her prior work at the British Museum of Natural History. It also discusses the appeal and design of aquariums, referencing examples at Monaco and New York.

CONTENT:
THE
WORLD'S
WORK
SEPTEMBER 1923
MEN AND WOMEN OF
TO-DAY

A CURATOR OF REPTILES
ON the appointment of Miss Joan B.
Procter, F.Z.S., F.L.S., to be a
Curator of Reptiles at the London
Zoological Gardens the funny men,
from "Mr. Punch" downwards, had a great
day. There were any number of weak jokes
about the modern snake-charmer; and "Mr.
Punch" opined that the opportunity had at
last arrived for Woman to be revenged upon
the Serpent.
But, seriously, her assumption of this office
adds another to the many strange occupations
which are now open to, and have lately been
taken up by, women of to-day. Miss Procter
succeeded to her position because Mr. E. G.
Boulenger, who has been Curator of Reptiles,
has been appointed Director of the new
aquarium. For some time to come he will
exercise a general supervision over reptiles;
but he has of late been fully occupied by the
construction of the new aquarium; and when
the tanks are ready for occupation it is
anticipated that his new duties will leave
him little opportunity for work elsewhere.
Mr. Boulenger's family has long been asso-
ciated with Natural History, for he is a son
of Dr. G. A. Boulenger, who was for many
years Chief of the Department of Reptiles,
Batrachians and Fishes at the British Museum
of Natural History. It is due to his son that
the reptile house at the Zoo has been so
greatly improved, and that it contains one of
the finest collections in the world.
But, to go back to our subject, Miss Procter
will assume her duties in the late autumn.
She was educated at St. Paul's School for
Girls; and since 1916 has worked in the
Reptile Department at the British Museum
of Natural History first as a voluntary
assistant to Dr. Boulenger, and, since his
retirement, in charge of the department.
There is no doubt whatever of her ability
and efficiency. She has written a large
number of papers on the anatomy, classifica-
tion and habits of reptiles and batrachians;
and has for a long time kept a private collec-
tion of living snakes and batrachians.
Although she is still working in the Reptile
Department in the Museum of Natural History
as its chief, she has also been assisting at the
Zoo in designing rockwork for the aquarium
tanks, which promise soon to be such an
attractive feature of London life.
No one familiar with the exceedingly
beautiful aquariums in the Oceanographical
Museum at Monaco or on the Battery at
New York can fail to realise the possibilities
of these institutions. Those who have not
seen them cannot imagine the beauty of
properly designed and decorated tanks set
in windows through which the light plays
not only upon gorgeously coloured fishes
and marine monsters in all shades of red and
grey, gold and silver, but also upon masses
of coral branches, deep-sea weeds and grasses
and shells of all shapes and sizes, both with

MISS JOAN B. PROCTER
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