Wasatch Reptile Expo draws crowds to Utah State Fairpark
May 4, 2025, 4:34 PM | Updated: 6:13 pm
A ball python is displayed by breeder Joseph Nelson at the Wasatch Reptile Expo on May 4, 2025. Nelson said this snake is referred to as the Yellow Belly Dreamcicle. (Kennedy Camarena/KSL NewsRadio)
(Kennedy Camarena/KSL NewsRadio)
SALT LAKE CITY — The Wasatch Reptile Expo attracted thousands of people to the Utah State Fairpark between May 3 and May 4.
According to Guy Versluis, the organizer of the event, between 5,000 and 6,000 people attended.
“We have thousands and thousands of reptiles, amphibians … We have the manufacturers that make the enclosures for them. Pretty much everything to take care of any reptile, amphibian, arachnid, [or] insect,” Versluis said.
Versluis told KSL NewsRadio the Wasatch Reptile Expo has been running for 26 years. It began in the 1990s, when he and a friend were breeding snakes and taking them to shows across the U.S., but Utah didn’t have one.
“You get treated pretty poorly in a lot of a lot of events. And so when we decided to do this show, we wanted to make sure it was different,” Versluis said.
This year, the show welcomed 73 vendors. They featured live animals, dead specimens, and supplies people may need to care for their reptilian pets.
Wasatch Reptile Expo vendors display dead and living animals
The owner of Flocken’s Nekroparlor Jordan Flocken,works to preserve animal remains.
“I do wet specimens. I do skeletal articluations. I do the process called diaphonization,” Flocken said.
Diaphonization is the process of turning a specimen’s flesh transparent, then staining bones and cartilage a different color. It allows examination without dissection.
Diaphonized specimens are displayed at the Wasatch Reptile Expo at the Utah State Fairpark on May 4, 2025. (Kennedy Camarena/KSL NewsRadio)
Flocken explained that he has a colony of flesh-eating beetles that help him remove the flesh from skeletons. After they’ve done most of the work, he cleans the bones up to enhance their white appearance.
“I have a degree in biology and a chemistry minor,” Flocken said. “It’s always been my passion.”
He explained that his work is also an outlet for his artistic side.
“I am no good at any traditional art. I don’t paint, I don’t draw,” he said. “But this was a great outlet not only for my weird artistic side but also my passion for biology and chemistry.”
Although he understands his work isn’t for everyone, Flocken encouraged people to visit the Wasatch Reptile Expo the next time it happens. The 2025 event ended at 4 p.m. on May 4.
Another vendor, Joseph Nelson, breeds ball pythons. He owns Fire Ball Pythons.
Ball python breeder Joseph Nelson displays one of his snakes at the Wasatch Reptile Expo on May 4, 2025. Nelson said this snake is referred to as the Yellow Belly Dreamcicle. (Kennedy Camarena/KSL NewsRadio)
“We create different genetic combinations, which are called morphs of ball pythons, by breeding a specific male to a specific female to create those,” Nelson said.
During the event, he showed off one of his snakes, which he called the Yellow Belly Dreamcicle.
He said they make beautiful snakes that people love to look at and keep as pets.
Nelson said he enjoys interacting with other vendors. However, his favorite part of the Wasatch Reptile Expo is seeing people smiling.
“Obviously, we’re here to make money… but I just love seeing people with joy,” Nelson said.
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