Showing 9 results

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
325

SUMMARY:
Clippings announce E. G. Boulenger’s promotion to Director of the new aquarium and Joan B. Procter’s appointment as Curator of Reptiles, outlining her background and expertise. Additional coverage describes progress and features planned for the new aquarium.

CONTENT:
THE TIMES, THURSDAY, JULY 19, 1923.

Mr. E. G. Boulenger has been appointed
Director of the new Aquarium at the Zoo,
and Miss Joan B. Procter has been appointed
Curator of Reptiles. (p. 9)

WOMAN CURATOR OF
REPTILES.

APPOINTMENTS AT THE
ZOO.

Mr. E. G. Boulenger, at present Curator of
Reptiles at the Zoological Gardens, has been
appointed Director of the new Aquarium.
He will continue to exercise a general super-
vision over the reptiles, but for some time he
has been very fully occupied with superintend-
ing the construction of the aquarium, and
when the tanks are ready for occupation it is
anticipated that his time will be almost com-
pletely engaged by his new duties. Mr.
Boulenger is a son of Dr. G. A. Boulenger,
F.R.S., for long chief of the Department of
Reptiles, Batrachians, and Fishes at the
British Museum of Natural History. Since
Mr. Boulenger has been Curator at the Zoo
the reptile-house has been greatly improved,
and the collection made one of the finest in
the world. During the war he served in
France with the balloons.

Miss Joan B. Procter, F.Z.S., F.L.S., has
been appointed Curator of Reptiles, and will
assume her duties in late autumn. She was
educated at St. Paul's School for Girls, and
since 1916 has worked in the Reptile Depart-
ment at the British Museum, 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 batra-
chians. At present Miss Procter is still carry-
ing on the work of the Reptile Department
at the Museum, but is also engaged in design-
ing the rockwork for the aquarium tanks at
the Zoo.

Cutting from the Hull Daily Mail
Address of Publication.
Issue dated. 20.7.25

Miss Joan Procter, F.Z.S., F.L.S., an Englishwoman
of 25, has been appointed curator
of reptiles at the Zoo. She will have com-
plete charge of dozens of venomous cobras,
deadly pythons, boa constrictors, alligators,
and crocodiles. Miss Procter, unknown to the
world at large, is famous among zoologists as
one of the greatest snake experts of the day.

THE EVENING STANDARD.

ZOO AQUARIUM
PROGRESS.

NEW CURATOR ON WONDERS OF
COMING ATTRACTIONS.

£50,000 COST.

HOW LONDONERS WILL SEE
SEALS UNDER WATER.

Mr. E. G. Boulenger, the curator of rep-
tiles at the Zoological Gardens, who has
been appointed director of the new aquarium
which is expected to be completed at the
end of the year, gave some interesting de-
tails in an interview to-day of the progress
of the work.

Mr. Boulenger is a son of Dr. G. A.
Boulenger, F.R.S., formerly chief of the de-
partment of reptiles and fishes at the British
Museum of Natural History, South Kensing-
ton.

One of the Finest in the World.

"We began building the aquarium," he said,
"at the beginning of December. When it is
finished—we hope before the end of the year—
the aquarium should be one of the finest in
the world. It is being built under Mappin Ter-
races, and the tanks have been supervised by
myself and Miss Joan Procter, who has just
been appointed Curator of Reptiles, and is
taking over my duties in the autumn.

"The aquarium will be for fresh water and
marine animals, and the tanks will be faced
with plate glass 1¼ inches thick. This glass is
very expensive, and is a big item in the total
cost of £50,000.

"We are getting our sea-water from the Bay
of Biscay, and it will be brought in the ballast
tanks of large vessels to the docks and trans-
ferred there to barges, which will bring it up
along the Regent's Canal to the Zoo. It will be
piped from the barges into the tanks by means
of long fire hoses.

"Mr. Compton Mackenzie has given us a
quantity of shell sand from the Island of Herm
which he owns for some of the tank floors. This
shell sand is remarkable, for every grain is a
tiny shell.

Open Trout Pool.

"We will have an elaborate system of reser-
voirs, filtering arrangements, and plant for
heating, lighting, and ventilating, and the
aquarium, which will be 400ft. long, will be
divided into three parts.

"The fresh-water hall will have 25 tanks, the
marine hall 20, and the tropical hall 40. We
will have an open trout pool, a big octagonal
tank for marine turtle, and a tank for seals
under water.

"We will have a wonderful collection of
tropical fish brilliantly coloured and equal to the
finest in the world.

"Not even the New York Aquarium will sur-
pass it in the beauty of its contents."

The new aquarium, when it is completed, will
probably prove one of the biggest attractions at
Regent's Park.

Miss Procter, the new Curator of Reptiles,
was educated at St. Paul's School for Girls,
and since 1916 has worked in the Reptile De-
partment at the British Museum, first as volun-
tary assistant to Dr. Boulenger.

SUMMARY:
Press clippings report Miss Joan Procter’s appointment as Curator of Reptiles at the London Zoo, her work caring for reptiles, and an appeal for ‘golden’ cockroaches to feed chameleons, followed by a note on a chameleon’s recovery. A brief Manchester Guardian reference dated 3 November 1927 also appears.

CONTENT:
Thursday, November 1, 1923.
THE EVENING STANDARD.
WOMAN GUARDIAN
OF REPTILES.
ANIMATION IN THE ZOO AT HER
ARRIVAL.
NURSING THE SICK.
Miss Joan Procter, the newly appointed
Curator of reptiles at the Zoo, took over
for duties there to-day.

This is the first time that a woman has under-
taken such work, but Miss Procter has a special
instinct for the handling of such unpleasant
things as poisonous snakes, snappy monitors, and
those miniature alligators that look almost harm-
less, but could bite off a careless finger without
much difficulty.

"One of my principal duties," Miss Procter
said to-day, "will be to
look after the health of
the inmates of the rep-
tile house. All the new
arrivals have to be
examined, and as a
general rule are put in
quarantine in the sana-
torium for some time,
among parrots, squir-
rels, or whatever new-
comers there may be,
until they are found
permanent quarters.

"There is no room
for them all in quaran-
tine, but we can deal
with the suspects.
What Snakes Suffer.
Miss Joan Procter.
"Sickness," Miss Procter went on, "is quite
common among the reptiles, and it is chiefly
caused by parasites. The snakes are very sub-
ject to diseases of the mouth, although we do
not quite know why. They get a sort of ulcera-
tion, and if not properly attended to they will
die. Our method of cure is to bathe them with
a disinfectant as strong as they can stand.

"When treating the poisonous varieties for
sickness one has naturally to be very careful
not to be bitten, and in the case of mouth disease
it is practically impossible to give them a wash.

"The keepers are expert at handling them
for the usual sores on the body, but if the mouth
had to be treated it would be necessary to hold
them in such a way that they would be almost
sure to bite."

In a visit to the reptile house to-day one could
almost detect a stir among the specimens as if
in excitement over the arrival of the new
mistress. One of the crocodiles was observed to
move his head twice in the course of fifteen
minutes, which betokens unusual animation in
such undemonstrative creatures.

NOVEMBER 2. 1923.
FRIDAY, The Daily Mail
ZOO'S NEW WOMAN
CURATOR.
HUNT FOR THE "GOLDEN"
COCKROACH.
Miss Joan Procter, F.Z.S., F.L.S.,
took up her appointment yesterday as
Curator of Reptiles at the London Zoo-
logical Gardens.

In spite of her youth, Miss Procter is
a recognized authority in this branch of
science, and till now has been in charge
of the Reptile Department at the British
Museum of Natural History.

In the midst of "moving" troubles
yesterday one of her first anxieties may
be instanced as showing her attitude to
her new charges. "I have lost my
supply of golden cockroaches," she said,
"and I would be grateful if any of your
readers could tell me where they can be
found in any numbers."

These yellow or "golden" cock-
roaches are the finest food for many rare
reptiles, including chameleons. Miss
Procter was able to obtain them from
the basement of a certain public build-
ing until a catastrophic spring-cleaning
with limewash wiped out the whole
colony.

Chameleons, with their wonderful
"lashing" six-inch tongues, select
them as targets even should there be
only one cockroach among 50 blue-
bottles, and the best hope of nursing
such creatures through the coming win-
ter is to find the "golden cockroach"
at once.

Should anyone know of a colony of
these small yellow insects a post-card ad-
dressed to Curator of Reptiles, Zoo-
logical Society's Offices, Regent's Park,
N.W., would be much appreciated—
especially by the chameleons. The ordi-
nary black cockroach is too big, tough,
and indigestible as a diet.

the Manchester Guardian
Publication
3.11.27.

NOVEMBER 8, 1923.
THURSDAY, The Daily Mail
ZOO CHAMELEON
ENDS ITS FAST.
WILL TO LIVE RESTORED
BY NEW DIET.
The Zoo's Basilisk chameleon desires
to thank the Daily Mail reader who
saved his life by collecting and forward-
ing a tin of "golden" cockroaches.

Last Friday it was stated in these
columns that meal-worms and the big
black cockroaches had failed to tempt
the chameleon to go on living. Only the
small "golden" cockroach could save
him, but no supply of these insects had
been found.

It was quite a pathetic bedside scene
before the post brought the life-giving
insects. Showing evidences of his six
weeks' fast, the chameleon had scarcely
the strength to turn
black in the face
when the same old
mealworms were
offered at break-
fast-time. Billows
waves of yellow
mottled skin when
an ordinary mag-
got was served up
as an alternative.
He turned a shabby
green and began to squint. The
chameleon is the world's most gifted
squinter. His eyes work quite indepen-
A Chameleon.
dently of each other. One eye may
be seen riveted on the ceiling while the
other idly swivels round like the second
hand of a watch going the wrong way.
Then the golden cockroaches arrived.
He unpacked his elastic tongue with its
sticky tip, and slashed it out for a full
six inches. The first cockroach vanished.
In ten minutes 21 insects went the same
way.

This was "hearty" for a chameleon
in a decline, and no further bulletins will
be issued.
L. G. M.

THE NEXT FEW DAYS
BROUGHT ME ABOUT
THE WHEREABOUTS OF
GOLDEN ROACHES ALSO

Miss Joan Procter, F.Z.S., the
girl snake expert, has started
duty as curator of reptiles at the
London Zoo,

SUMMARY:
Newspaper cuttings report record attendance at the Zoological Society's Gardens, the near-completion of the Aquarium, and staffing changes including Miss Joan Procter becoming Curator of Reptiles. Articles from The Times, Cape Argus, Sunday Mail (Brisbane), and Yorkshire Post highlight new zoo arrivals and Procter's expertise with reptiles.

CONTENT:
THE TIMES, SATURDAY,
DECEMBER 29, 1923.

THE ZOO IN 1923.

RECENT ADDITIONS.
Although there is still the attendance on
Sunday and the attendance and gate money
of Monday to be placed to the credit of the
year, 1923 has already established a "record"
in the history of the Zoological Society. The
number of visitors has been over 1,600,000—
that is to say, larger than the total of 1920,
which until now was the largest attendance in
any one year. The gate money has increased
in proportion also, and the total number of
Fellows, as well as the number of new Fellows
elected, and the receipts from subscriptions,
are also the largest in the history of the
Society.
There have been, too, an unusual number
of important additions to the collection, so
that now there is an exceptionally fine display
of mammals, birds, reptiles, and batrachians.
Among the additions of special interest are a
young African elephant presented by Sir
Horace Byatt, two young giraffes, purchased
from the Sudan and South Africa respectively,
two great anteaters, purchased from South
America, and the recently acquired walrus.
There have been important changes of staff.
Mr. R. I. Pocock, formerly superintendent,
has retired on pension on attaining the age
of 60, and has been replaced by Dr. G. M.
Vevers; Mr. D. Seth Smith, formerly Curator
of Birds, has been promoted to be Resident
Curator of Mammals and Birds; Mr. E. G.
Boulenger has left the Reptile House to be-
come Director of the new Aquarium, and has
been succeeded by Miss Joan B. Procter, who
was formerly in charge of the reptiles and
batrachians at the British Museum. The staff
of keepers has been subjected to careful sur-
vey, and there have been rewards and promo-
tions for the more competent, while some of
the older men have been retired on pension.
The Council and the Garden Committee
have made great efforts to improve the general
condition of the animals and of the gardens,
and much more than has been possible in
recent years has been done to improve the
general hygienic conditions and to repair and
redecorate houses and enclosures. The largest
and most expensive work of the year has been
the construction of the Aquarium. This is
now practically completed, only minor details
of lighting and decoration being still in hand.
The difficult business of stocking has begun,
and it is anticipated that it will be opened
to Fellows and the public in the first fort-
night of April.

ZOO VISITORS: A RECORD.
During 1923 the visitors to the Zoological
Society's Gardens, Regent's Park, numbered
1,613,125, an increase of 185,276 as compared
with 1922.
The number of visitors last year was the
largest in the history of the Society.

from the Yorkshire Post
of Publication Leeds
Dated. 24.12.29
HOLIDAYS IN LONDON.

HOW TO ENTERTAIN THE
CHILDREN.

(FROM A CORRESPONDENT.)
"NO," the clerk in a large theatre
office told me, "they don't dare
to try new Christmas plays in the
West End. The old favourites are good
enough for them. You must go to the
theatres further out if you want something
new in the way of plays for the children
this Christmas."

The morning is often a difficult time to
entertain children in London, but the Zoo is
always open, and several new and interest-
ing inmates have arrived since last holidays.
Small boys frequently have a liking
for creepy beasts, and the new reptile
house, presided over by that young snake
charmer, Miss Joan Procter, should give
them the necessary thrills. Baby animals
to rejoice the heart of the motherly little
girl are also plentiful at the Zoo this
Christmas. There is Percy, the six-
months-old pigmy hippopotamus, already
becoming quite friendly with visitors,
while in a pen close by is the slightly older
African baby elephant. It is amusing to
see Andy, the youthful walrus, being fed,
for, although he is five months old, he has
not a single tooth, and his food—cut up
strips of cod fish—is placed in his mouth
by his attendant. For sheer grace and
agility, the baby antelopes surpass any-
thing I have ever seen, and one can under-
stand their having an audience round their
cage quite as enthusiastic as that which
greets the Fairy Queen in the pantomime.

Telephone No. Central 7980.
International Press-Cutting Bureau

14. New Bridge Street, London, E.C.4.

Extract from
CAPE ARGUS
CAPE TOWN.

Date

13. DEC 1923

Girl Curator of Reptiles.—The new
Curator of Reptiles at the London Zoo-
logical Gardens is a young woman. Miss
Joan Procter, F.Z.S., F.L.S., is a
recognised authority in this branch of
science: in fact, she is said to know
more about snakes and reptiles than
any woman in the world. Until now
she has been in charge of the Reptile
Department at the British Museum of
Natural History. Miss Procter has a
special instinct for the handling of
poisonous snakes. She has not the
slightest dread of any kind of reptile.

International Press-Cutting Bureau,

Extract from
SUNDAY MAIL
BRISBANE.

Date 4 NOV 1923

CURATOR OF REPTILES

Woman Appointed

Miss Joan Procter, F.Z.S., F.L.S., an
Englishwoman of 25, has been appointed
curator of reptiles at the Zoo in London.
She has complete charge of dozens of
venomous cobras, deadly pythons, boa
constrictors, alligators and crocodiles.
Miss Procter, unknown to the world
at large, is famous among zoologists as
one of the greatest snake experts of the
day. The large, tiny room in the base-
ment of the Museum of Natural History,
South Kensington, in which she works
is filled with deadly snakes, some bottled
and some alive.
"Her interest in the subject is pro-
bably hereditary," said her mother
a Press correspondent. "Her grandfather
was a famous entomologist."
Miss Procter opened a glass cage in
her drawing-room and six beautiful
Brazilian snakes, which were sent to her
daughter as a gift, she allowed them to
climb and wriggle and coil around her arm.
"At the age of ten my daughter had
her first snake as a pet." Mrs. Procter
added. "She also kept many lizards, most
of them remarkably tame. One day she
received a large and valuable crocodile
as a present, and we took it to Dr. G. A.
Boulenger, the famous chief of the de-
partment of reptiles at the Natural
History Museum at South Kensington.
"He was astonished at my daughter's
knowledge of ophiology, and offered to
train her on the subject when she left
St. Paul's School. She became his assis-
tant when she was 18, and when he re-
signed she was appointed to his post.
Scientists in South Africa and South
America have sent Miss Procter rare and
deadly reptiles from jungles and swamps.
Occasionally a crate for them has been
overturned on arrival, and they have
been spilled on the floor. Miss Procter,
without the slightest fear, has collected
the poisonous creatures from their hiding
places.
She read her first paper on "The Pygmy
Snake," before the Zoological Society at
the age of 19. She was made a Fellow of
the society at 20. She was elected a
Fellow of the Linnaean Society, one of
the foremost scientific organisations in
the world, last August. She is also a
Fellow of the Zoological Society of Bom-
bay, and last year was offered a remu-
nerative post by the Zoological Society of
New York.

SUMMARY:
Mixed Italian and English newspaper clippings report Miss Joan Procter’s appointment as Curator of Reptiles at the London Zoo, succeeding Mr. E. G. Boulenger, with notes on her lifelong interest in reptiles and Boulenger’s work on the new aquarium under the Mappin Terraces. Items include pieces from various UK papers and Corriere della Sera.

CONTENT:
Corriere della Sera, 22 Luglio 1923

La governatrice dei serpenti
al giardino zoologico di Londra

Londra, 21 luglio, matt.
Miss Jane Procter è stata messa a capo del
dipartimento dei rettili al giardino zoologico
di Londra, ciò che significa che ella dovrà
governare una orribile folla di cobra, di vi-
pere, serpenti a sonagli, di boa, di coccodril-
li, ecc. ecc. La nomina interessa il pubblico
non solo perchè gli viene rivelato che miss
Procter, benchè non abbia che 25 anni, è re-
putata nel mondo scientifico come una delle
maggiori competenze in fatto di rettili, ma
anche perché, dopo il peccato originale, si
sperava o si credeva vi fosse una incompatibilità
fra la donna e i serpenti. Invece a dieci
anni, quando le ragazzine di solito si diver-
tono con le bambole, miss Procter aveva un
serpente e varie lucertole come trastullo fa-
vorito. Un giorno le fu regalato un cocco-
drillo: accompagnata dalla mamma essa lo
portò dal dott. Boulenger, allora capo del di-
partimento dei rettili al museo di storia na-
turale al giardino zoologico. Il dottore fu col-
pito dalla competenza della giovanetta in fat-
to di rettili e le promise di prenderla seco ap-
pena avesse finito le scuole. Così fu: a 18
anni miss Procter era sua assistente.

Ora il dott. Boulenger deve dedicare tutta
la sua attività alla direzione del nuovo ma-
gnifico acquario che si sta costruendo nel
giardino zoologico, e i rettili sono stati messi
sotto il governo di miss Procter, la quale
maneggia senza timore e con meravigliosa
sicurezza gli esemplari più velenosi e mali-
gni. Arrivano al museo serpenti da ogni par-
te del mondo, e qualche volta avviene che al
momento di aprire le ceste le bestie scappino
o si nascondano dove possono. Miss Procter
è famosa per snidarli e rimetterli in gatta-
buia.

Ma pare che questa sia una qualità di fa-
miglia. Neppur sua madre ha ribrezzo per i
serpenti: ad un giornalista che andò a casa
sua ha fatto vedere sei bellissime serpi bra-
siliane che sono tenute nel salotto in un co-
fano di vetro. La signora ha sollevato il co-
perchio e si è fatta attorcigliare i serpenti
intorno alle braccia mentre il giornalista cer-
cava con la coda dell'occhio una possibile
via di ritirata.

WOMAN'S REPTILE PETS.
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.
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 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 Mappin
Terraces at the Zoo.

From the Paris Daily mail.
Saturday July 21st

Cutting from the Blackpool Gazette
Address of Publication
Issue dated.
21.7.20

Miss Joan Procter, F.Z.S., F.L.S., an
English girl of twenty-five, has been ap-
pointed curator of reptiles at the London
Zoo. She will have complete charge of
dozens of venomous cobras, deadly pythons,
boa constrictors, alligators, and crocodiles.

from the Staffordshire Weekly Post
of Publication
21 7 29

WOMAN CURATOR OF REPTILES.
Mr. E. G. Boulenger, at present Curator of
Reptiles at the Zoological Gardens, has been
appointed Director of the new Aquarium. He
will continue to exercise a general super-
vision over the reptiles. Mr. Boulenger is a
son of Dr. G. A. Boulenger, F.R.S., for long
chief of the Department of Reptiles,
Batrachians, and Fishes at the British
Museum of Natural History.
Miss Joan Procter, F.Z.S., F.L.S., has been
appointed Curator of Reptiles, and will assume
her duties in 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, in
charge.

Cutting from the Evening Express
Address of Publication
Issue dated.
21.7.27

Woman Curator of Reptiles.
Miss Joan B. Procter, F.Z.S., F.L.S., has
been appointed Curator of Reptiles at the
London Zoo, to succeed Mr. E. G. Bou-
lenger, who becomes director of the new
Aquarium. Since 1916 she has worked in
the Reptile Department, at the British
Museum, 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 collec-
tion 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.

SUMMARY:
Press cuttings profile Miss Joan Procter/Proctor as Curator of Reptiles at the Zoological Gardens of London, noting her expertise, refusal of a New York offer, and her design work for the new aquarium. Items also mention E. G. Boulenger’s appointment to direct the aquarium and related details.

CONTENT:
Snake Expert.
THE AMERICAN
AUG. 1923

Photo by Kadel & Herbert.
MISS JOAN PROCTOR.
Not an ordinary snake charmer
is Miss Proctor, F. Z. S. F. L. S.,
but Curator of Reptiles at the
Zoological Gardens of London.
She is an English girl, twenty-five
years of age, and regarded the
greatest authority on snakes in
the world. She recently refused
an offer from the New York
Zoological Society.

Le Matin (Paris)

11. Aug.

ÉCHOS ET PROPOS

L'ECOLE DE LA TENTATION. —
C'est une femme, une jeune fille même,
la frêle, délicate et gracieuse miss Procter qui
est chargée, au jardin zoologique de Londres,
de la section... des serpents.

Et je constate que les serpents et les fem-
mes ont décidément des affinités dont la pru-
dence masculine devrait commencer sérieuse-
ment à prendre ombrage.

Chacun connaît l'entente extrêmement cor-
diale qui existait entre notre mère Eve et l'an-
cêtre des serpents, et chacun sait aussi ce qui
en est résulté.

Seulement, voilà, du temps de notre mère
Eve, il y avait un paradis à perdre.
Tandis que maintenant...
Rosine

Cutting from the Nottingham Express
Address of Publication.
Issue dated

4. 9. 23

HER REPTILIAN FAMILY.

The second of the lady curators appointed by
the Zoological Society, Miss Joan Procter, will
take over her duties in charge of the reptiles at
Regent's Park during the autumn. Miss Procter
has plenty of practical experience of these strange
pets, for, apart from work which she has fulfilled
in the reptile department of the museum at South
Kensington, she has for several years kept a private
collection of live snakes and batrachians. She has
designed the whole of the rockwork for the new
aquarium at the Zoo.

Extract from
THE ENGLISHMAN
CALCUTTA.
Date
10 AUG 1929

WOMAN CURATOR OF
REPTILES

APPOINTMENTS AT THE LONDON
ZOO

Mr. E. G. Boulenger, at present
Curator of Reptiles at the Zoological
Gardens, London, has been appointed
Director of the new Aquarium. He
will continue to exercise a general super-
vision over the reptiles, but for some
time he has been very fully occupied
with superintending the construction of
the aquarium, and when the tanks are
ready for occupation it is anticipated
that his time will be almost completely
engaged by his new duties. Mr. Boulen-
ger is a son of Dr. G. A. Boulenger,
F.R.S., for long chief of the Department
of Reptiles, Batrachians, and Fishes at
the British Museum of Natural History.
Since Mr. Boulenger has been Curator
at the Zoo the reptile-house has been
greatly improved, and the collection
made one of the finest in the world.
During the war he served in France
with the balloons.

Miss Joan B. Procter, F.Z.S., F.L.S.,
has been appointed Curator of Reptiles,
and will assume her duties in 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, 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 de-
signing the rockwork for the aquarium
tanks at the Zoo.

MAKING THE ZOO'S NEW AQUARIUM. Finishing one of the two hundred tanks
which are to form the new aquarium under the Mappin Terraces at the Zoo. Some of
the tanks will hold thirty tons of water. (Daily Mirror photograph.)
OCTOBER 6, 1923

SUMMARY:
International newspaper clippings from 1923 report Miss Joan Procter's appointment as Curator of Reptiles at the London Zoological Gardens, noting her expertise, early career, and work on the new aquarium. Articles also mention related appointments of E. G. Boulenger and her training under Dr. C. A. Boulenger.

CONTENT:
Telephone No. Central 7989.
International Press-Cutting Bureau
14, New Bridge Street, London, E.C. 4.

Extract from
NEW YORK WORLD
NEW YORK.
19 August. 1923.
Her Specialty Is Snakes.
MISS JOAN PROCTOR, a London
girl, has a job which few women,
and few men for that matter,
would care to hold except in the most dis-
tinct of purely honorary capacities. She
has just been elected curator of reptiles
at the famous London Zoo, after refusing
a cabled offer of a similar position at our
own Bronx Zoo at a much higher salary.
Miss Proctor is only 25 years old, but
is recognized as one of the greatest liv-
ing authorities on serpents. Her reputa-
tion indeed is already worldwide among
naturalists.

Joan Proctor.
She will not only have charge of all the
reptiles in the great collection in London,
but she will also have complete charge of
the new aquarium and its denizens. In
fact she has been responsible for the de-
signing and construction of this zoolog-
ical watering place.

Miss Proctor's grandfather was a fa-
mous entomologist, and she herself has
kept lizards and snakes as pets since her
tenth birthday. When in her very early
'teens she astonished the chief of the
reptile department of the South Kensing-
ton Museum by her knowledge of ophi-
ology and when she was only 18 she
succeeded to his post on his resignation.
At 19 she read her first paper before the
Zoological Society and later was elected
a fellow of the Linnæan Society, one of
the foremost scientific organizations in
the world.

Apparently failing to see enough of
snakes at the Zoo she keeps six Brazilian
reptiles in a glass cage in her drawing
room. They were sent to her as a gift,
for noted scientists in South America
and South Africa, knowing her interest,
frequently send deadly serpents to Eng-
land for her, and she keeps most of them
in her own home.

International Press-Cutting Bureau.
Extract from
NEW YORK HERALD.
New York, U.S.A.
Date 29 JUL 1923
LONDON NAMES WOMAN
CURATOR OF REPTILES
Miss Joan Procter One of
World's Leading Experts.

Special Cable to The New York Herald.
Copyright, 1923, by The New York Herald.
New York Herald Bureau.
London, July 28.
Miss Joan Procter, regarded by zoolo-
gists as one of the greatest snake ex-
perts in the world, has been appointed
curator of reptiles for the London Zoo.
It is the first time that a woman has
been appointed to a place of such re-
sponsibility at the Zoo. Miss Procter,
although only 25 years old, has for
some time shown conspicuous ability in
her chosen profession. Her grandfather
was a great entomologist.

Her mother, speaking of Miss Proc-
ter's work, said: "At 10 my daughter
had her first snake as a pet. She also
kept many lizards and some of them
were remarkably tame. One day she
received a large crocodile as a present,
and we took it to Dr. C. A. Boulenger,
famous chief of the department of rep-
tiles at the Natural History Museum
in South Kensington. He was aston-
ished at my daughter's knowledge of
ophiology and offered to train her in
the subject when she left St. Paul's
School. She became his assistant when
she was 15 years old, and when he re-
signed she was appointed to his post."
Miss Procter read her first paper on
snakes before the Zoological Society at
the age of 19. She was a fellow of the
society at 20 and was elected a fellow
of the Linnaean Society, one of the fore-
most scientific organizations in the
world only a fortnight ago. Last year,
it is said, she was offered a post by
the New York Zoological Society.

Extract from
THE FRIEND
BLOEMFONTIEN.
Date Sep 1st

Miss Joan Procter, an English
girl, aged 25, has been appointed
curator of reptiles at the London
Zoological Gardens. Her grand-
father was a famous entomo-
logist. Miss Procter had her
first pet snake when she was
aged 10. One day she received a
crocodile as a present, and took
it to Dr. Boulenger, head of the
department for reptiles in the
National History Museum, South
Kensington. He was astonished
at her knowledge, and offered to
train her. She became Dr.
Boulenger's assistant when 15,
and is now one of the greatest
snake experts in the world, and
is a Fellow of the Zoological and
Linnean Societies.

Extract from
CHARLOTTETOWN GUARDIAN
Charlottetown, Canada.
Date
WOMAN CURATOR
OF ZOO REPTILES

LONDON, Aug. 15.—Mr. E. G.
Boulenger, at present Curator of
Reptiles at the Zoological Gardens,
has been appointed Director of the
new Aquarium. He will continue to
exercise a general supervision over
the reptiles, but for some time he
has been very fully occupied with
superintending the construction of
the aquarium, and when the tanks
are ready for occupation it is an-
ticipated that his time will be al-
most completely engaged by his
new duties. Mr. Boulenger has been
Curator at the Zoo, F.R.S., for long
chief of the Department of Reptiles,
Batrachians and Fishes at the Brit-
ish Museum of Natural History.
Since Mr. Boulenger has been Cur-
ator at the Zoo the reptile-house
has been greatly improved, and
the collection made one of the finest
in the world. During the war he
served in France with the balloons.

Miss Joan B. Proctor, F.Z.S., F.L.S.,
has been appointed Curator of
Reptiles, and will assume her duties
in late autumn. She was educated
at St. Paul's School for Girls, and
since 1916 has worked in the Rep-
tile Department at the British Mu-
seum, first as voluntary assistant
to Dr. Boulenger and, since his re-
tirement, in charge. She is the au-
thor of a large number of papers on
the anatomy, classification, and
habits of reptiles and batrachians,
and for many years has kept a pri-
vate collection of living snakes and
batrachians. At present Miss Proc-
tor is still carrying on the work of
the Reptile Department at the Mu-
seum, but is also engaged in de-
signing the rockwork for the aqu-
arium tanks at the Zoo.

MADRAS MAIL.
MADRAS.
14 AUG 1923
THE WAY OF THE
WORLD

Miss Joan B. Proctor, F.Z.S., F.L.S., has
been appointed Curator
Woman Zoo of Reptiles at the London
Curator Zoological Gardens, and
will assume her duties in
the 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 retire-
ment, 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 batra-
chians. At present Miss Proctor 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.

SUMMARY:
A Public Ledger feature profiles Joan Proctor, curator of reptiles at the London Zoological Gardens, detailing her compassionate methods for handling snakes and her role in designing a new reptile house. The article shares anecdotes about boas and king cobras, feeding challenges in zoos, and public reactions to her work.

CONTENT:
PUBLIC LEDGER—PHILADELPHIA, SUNDAY MORNING. SEPTEMBER 23, 1923

Her Playmates are Ugly King Cobras!

Miss Proctor finds a handker-
chief useful for securing a grip
on the tail of a poisonous snake
friend that might become too
playful

Miss Joan Proctor,
Curator of Reptiles
in the London
Zoological Gardens,
Tells How She
Overcomes Her
Serpentine Pets With
Sheer Kindness

THE first woman in the world was on
sociable terms with a serpent, and
the world knows what came of that.

But here is one of Eve's youngest
daughters handling, petting and caring
for innumerable descendants of that wily
snake of old. Her name is Joan Proctor
and her official title is curator of reptiles
of the London Zoological Gardens.

The feeling that soft, purring, cuddly
little kittens awaken in other small girls
came to Joan when, as an inquisitive
ten-year-old, she first made the acquaint-
ance of a shining, wriggling green
garter snake, and that strange fondness
for the first enemy of man has grown
and grown until her greatest joy in life
is playing foster-mother to all the alli-
gators, toads, turtles and reptiles in
London's famous Zoo.

The family in which Joan belonged
didn't exactly favor the predilection of
its youngest member for crawling things,
when that first slimy, glassy-eyed
creature was introduced into their happy
home. But Joan was a positive little
person. She made it plain that her mot-
to was "Love me, love my snakes!"
and presently the whole Proctor clan
progressed from abhorrence to indiffer-
ence. They could put their hands into
a presumably empty vase on the living
room table, touch the cold coil of a snake
and not fall in a faint.

From indifference, the Proctors went
on until they began to share Joan's un-
canny affection for creeping things, and
now her home would not be home with-
out at least three boa constrictors
draping themselves about the furniture.

When Joan was seventeen she read
her first paper about snakes before the
Royal Zoological Society—a paper that
attracted serious attention. A few years
later, she became the unsalaried assistant
of the curator of reptiles at the
British Museum of Natural History—
truly a labor of love. In the museum
laboratory she worked and studied amid
hundreds of jars and bottles containing
creeping things. And all the time at
home she watched over the boas, the
bushmasters, the asps and the black
snakes that succeeded each other at
home as the darlings of her heart.

SO IT was that when the council of
the Royal Zoological Society found
it necessary to engage a new custodian

Eve in the Garden of
Eden was the first woman
on friendly terms with
the serpents, and so it has
come to pass that in this
day, many years after the
creation, there are daugh-
ters of Eve who do not
find it so distasteful to
train serpents and care for
them tenderly

Miss Proctor believes a daily "air-
ing is good for any household
pet. Here she is with a pet rep-
tile which she has taken for a
walk through the grounds of her
London home

for its great collection of living reptiles,
Joan, whose paper on snakes read be-
fore that august body so early in her
career had made such an impression,
was unanimously decided upon as the
logical recipient of the honor,

"It's a very simple thing to get on
with reptiles of any sort," says the
new curator, illustrating her point by
using one of her favorite poisonous-
tongued friends as a neckpiece. "By
using a handkerchief to make sure of
my grip on his tail, he can't get too
playful, you see. The dear things do
love to twist themselves about people's
necks, and then sometimes they squeeze
too hard." Which, it may be clearly
seen, is not so good for the neck.

"Kindness and real understanding are
back of success with snakes," decrees
the only woman occupant of a position
of such scientific note in Great Britain.
So great is the confidence reposed in
this young woman by those who know,
that she is not only to care for the huge
creeping things of the jungle, but has
been empowered to design the new home
for reptiles at the London Zoological
Gardens, and is now engaged in deciding

The neck of a human being is just the sort of a
"warmer" that a tropical snake
loves to coil about—and
squeeze—so Miss Proctor
adopts the simple "Safety
First" measure of holding the
head and tail securely as she
handles this small but surpris-
ingly powerful boa

When, as a ten-year-old girl, Joan
introduced her first creeping pet
into the Proctor household, her
parents were not at all inclined to
approve the strange friendship,
but Joan's persuasive powers over-
came that difficulty. Snakes of
varying lengths and colors have
since established friendly relations
with all members of the Proctor
household. Here is Joan's mother
demonstrating the innocent inten-
tions of a twelve-foot boa

constrictor just then draped about her
neck.

A neck, Miss Proctor explains, is
an ideal "warmer" for a tropical
snake. There's nothing he likes better
than to coil about it. Coping with Mr.
Boa in this case means keeping a firm

—usually expensive and difficult to ob-
tain—and that only will they swallow.
How to combat this suicide tendency
in reptiles will probably engross Miss
Proctor as it engrosses most curators
of these temperamental creatures. Ray-
mond L. Ditmars, of the New York Zoo,
reports that a continual offender in this
regard is the bushmaster.

King cobras are another variety of
Miss Proctor's charges likely to become
obnoxious at times. Or, at least, that
has been the experience of other cura-
tors.

When this monarch among snakes
arrived at the Bronx Zoo, he registered
his dislike of the institution and his
objection to remaining in it by refusing
to eat at all. As he is a cannibal, he
was offered every species of crawling
thing the authorities had ever heard of
a cobra eating. But no! Nothing
doing! Never in this world, so said the
cobra in question, if his expression mir-
rored his thoughts.

At length a "coach whip," a nice, five-
foot appetizing morsel, was sent in for
the rebel's breakfast. That hit the spot.
The king cobra ate it and demanded
more of the same. And there the scheme
struck a snag, for coach whips cost
three dollars each and aren't to be had
at all times for a striking monarch's
fastidious taste.

What was to be done? The diet of
coach whip had been kept up while the
curator engaged in thought, and now
long, thin strips of beef were cut in the
length of the favorite food, and each
strip covered with one of the old skins
the coach whip had shed. The skin
was tied about the beef at intervals and
the strips were offered to his majesty
for the next meal. And he ate them.

Diplomacy, as will be seen, belongs
not alone to court and political circles.

Snakes are not the only pets to be found in Miss Proctor's home. Pussy jumped upon a
table to see what this tricky boa was doing. The boa turned its head away as if it had not
the slightest interest in the cat's presence. The photographer snapped just before the lightning-
swift strike that was sad news for pussy

just where, what and how big the quar-
ters for her favorites shall be,

"Woman snake-charmer!" shrieked
local newspaper headlines, when this
announcement was made.

"I'm not!" contradicted Miss Proctor,
showing a surprising little glint in her
eyes—a glint that may be the secret
of her power over the descendants of
that serpent that tempted Eve.

"You might call me a 'snake-keeper,

if you will, but not a snake-charmer.
Do you know what a snake-charmer
is? Some queer voodoo sort of person with
supernatural powers. Of course, I'm not
that! It's so easy to get on with snakes.
Why, if you've learned the way to deal
with a two-foot garter snake, you know
how to cope with an eight-foot python!
They are all so much alike." The foster-
mother of London's reptiles caressed the
fine head of the amazingly powerful boa

grip on head and tail so that his en-
thusiasm for the human eater doesn't
carry him too far.

"There are many problems for this
little woman with the big nerve to solve,
for snakes who come from other lands
as captives are likely to behave er-
ratically as human beings under similar
circumstances. They go on hunger-
strikes. They commit suicide. They
demand one certain kind of food

THERE are about one thousand species
of snakes in the world and a goodly
portion of them are represented in Miss
Proctor's collection. There is, for in-
stance, a twenty-foot python, weighing
three hundred pounds, and a mere
specimen of burrowing snake but five
or six inches long and no thicker than
a goose quill. And there is a squatty,
flat-headed viper and an enormously
elongated tree snake—and goodness
knows how many more.

What's the good of snakes if you don't
happen to love them for themselves
alone, as does Miss Proctor?

California says they're good for ex-
terminating gophers that destroy the
crops on the Pacific Coast. Australia
applauds reptilian efforts to help them
get rid of the vermin plague, result of
accumulation of stocks of wheat because
of non-shipment during the war. Green-
wich, Connecticut, urges that snakes be
used to keep mole-infested lawns in
order. And the departments in Wash-
ington point out that rats are the great-
est destroyers of wheat the world ever
knew, and snakes live on rats to a great
extent!

So Miss Joan Proctor is not alone in
her opinion that snakes are well worth
cultivating.

SUMMARY:
A 1923 Toronto Star feature profiles Miss Joan Proctor, curator of reptiles at the London Zoological Gardens, highlighting her methods of handling venomous snakes through kindness and understanding. The article notes her role in designing a new reptile house and references Raymond L. Ditmars of the New York Zoo.

CONTENT:
1923.
Toronto Star

Her Pets Are Ugly King Cobras
Deadly Reptiles Won By Kindness

Miss Joan Proctor, Curator of
Serpents in London Zoo-
logical Gardens, Tells How
She Overcomes Her Terri-
ble Playmates.

THE first woman in the world was on sociable
terms with a serpent, and the world knows
what came of that.
But here is one of Eve's youngest daughters
handling, petting and caring for innumerable de-
scendants of that wily snake of old. Her name
is Joan Proctor and her official title is curator
of reptiles of the London Zoological Gardens.
The feeling that soft, purring, cuddly little
kittens awaken in other small girls came to Joan
when, as an inquisitive ten-year-old, she first
made the acquaintance of a shining, wriggling
green garter snake, and that strange fondness
for the first enemy of man has grown and grown
until her greatest joy in life is playing foster-
mother to all the alligators, toads, turtles and
reptiles in London's famous zoo.
The family in which Joan belonged didn't ex-
actly favor the predilection of its youngest mem-
ber for crawling things when that first slimy,
glassy-eyed creature was introduced into their
happy home. But Joan was a positive little per-
son. She made it plain that her motto was "Love
me, love my snakes!" and presently the whole
Proctor clan progressed from abhorrence to in-
difference. They could put their hands into a
presumably empty vase on the living-room table,
touch the cold coil of a snake and not fall in a
faint.
From indifference, the Proctors went on until
they began to share Joan's uncanny affection for
creeping things, and now her home would not be
home without at least three boa constrictors
draping themselves about the furniture.
When Joan was seventeen she read her first
paper about snakes before the Royal Zoological
Society—a paper that attracted serious attention.
A few years later she became the unsalaried as-
sistant of the curator of reptiles at the British
Museum of Natural History—truly a labor of
love. In the museum laboratory she worked and
studied amid hundreds of jars and bottles con-
taining creeping things. And all the time at
home she watched over the boas, the bushmasters,
the asps and the black snakes that succeeded each
other at home as the darlings of her heart.
So it was that when the council of the Royal
Zoological Society found it necessary to engage a
new custodian for its great collection of living
reptiles, Joan, whose paper on snakes read before
that august body so early in her career had made
such an impression, was unanimously decided
upon as the logical recipient of the honor.

"It's a very simple thing to get on with rep-
tiles of any sort," says the new curator, illus-
trating her point by using one of her favorite
poisonous-tongued friends as a neckpiece. "By
using a handkerchief to make sure of my grip
on his tail, he can't get too playful, you see. The
dear things do love to twist themselves about
people's necks, and then sometimes they squeeze
too hard." Which, it may be clearly seen, is not
so good for the neck.
"Kindness and real understanding are back of
success with snakes," decrees the only woman
occupant of a position of such scientific note in
Great Britain.

So great is the confidence reposed in this
young woman by those who know that she
is not only to care for the huge creeping things
of the jungle, but has been empowered to design
the new home for reptiles at the London Zoological
Gardens, and is now engaged in deciding just
where, what and how big the quarters for her
favorites shall be.
"Woman snake-charmer!" shrieked local news-
paper headlines, when this announcement was
made.
"I'm not!" contradicted Miss Proctor, showing
a surprising little glint in her eyes—a glint that
may be the secret of her power over the descend-
ants of that serpent that tempted Eve.
"You might call me a 'snake-keeper,' if you
will, but not a snake-charmer. Do you know
what a snake-charmer is? Some queer voodoo
sort of person with supernatural powers. Of
course, I'm not that! It's so easy to get on with
snakes. Why, if you've learned the way to deal
with a two-foot garter snake you know how to
cope with an eight-foot python! They are all so
much alike." The foster-mother of London's rep-
tiles caressed the flat head of the amazingly
powerful boa constrictor just then draped about
her neck.
A neck, Miss Proctor explains, is an ideal
"warmer" for a tropical snake. There's nothing
he likes better than to coil about it. Coping
with Mr. Boa in this case means keeping a firm
grip on head and tail so that his enthusiasm
the human heater doesn't carry him too far.
There are many problems for this little wo-
man with the big nerve to solve, for snakes who
come from other lands as captives are likely to
behave as erratically as human beings under
similar circumstances. They go on hunger strikes.
They commit suicide. They demand one certain
kind of food—usually expensive and difficult to
obtain—and that only will they swallow.
How to combat this suicide tendency in rep-
tiles will probably engross Miss Proctor as it en-
grosses most curators of these temperamental
creatures. Raymond L. Ditmars, of the New
York Zoo, reports that a continual offender in this
regard is the bushmaster.

TORONTO
STAR
PRESS