Australia's leading live reptile show makes an appearance at the Glenferrie Festival at Hawthorn (Melbourne) next Sunday (1 May 2005).

Headed by Australia's most respected reptile expert Raymond Hoser, will be a show featuring Australia's deadliest snakes, including the legendary "Monster Tiger Snakes", as well as other spectacular animals such as Red-bellied Black Snakes, Copperheads, Death Adders and more.

Between the deadly snake shows, the public can get up close and personal by handling non-venomous snakes, lizards, crocodile and tortoises.

Hoser says that the animals don't bite, but he's trying to train them to defecate on people he doesn't like.

Raymond Hoser has been known as the snakebuster since the 1980's and his snakebusters troupe is sought after across Australia and elsewhere.

Hoser has done presentations across Australia and even been a keynote speaker at the largest specialist reptile gathering in the world in Florida in 1993.

He is presently working on an updated version of his "bible" the book, Australian Reptiles and Frogs, that was published in 1989 and is now out of print.

The new book will have over 2000 photos and be several hundred pages in length.

Progress on the book's preparation has been suspended due to several unforseen matters in 2005-6.

It had been hoped the book would be published early this year (2005), (it is written and all photos have been scanned), but the publication date has been put back at least 12 months.