By Herp News A snake moves without legs by the scales on its belly gripping the ground. It generates friction at the points needed to move forwards only and prevents its scales from being worn off by too much friction. Researchers of KIT have found a way to transfer this feature to components of movable […]

By Herp News Exposure to road salt, as it runs off into ponds and wetlands where it can concentrate — especially during March and early April, when frogs are breeding — may increase the size of wood frogs, but also shorten their lives, a study by biologists concludes. Go to Source …read more Read more […]

You’re low crawling through the underbrush, geared up, M4 rifle in hand, helmet hanging low over your brow, and sweat dripping into your eyes. Then you see it. Right in your path. A snake. From the jungles of the Philippines and Vietnam to the deserts of Iraq and Afghanistan, members of the armed forces have […]

By Herp News In what conservationists are hailing as a major breakthrough in efforts to protect Sumatra’s fast-dwindling lowland rainforests, the Indonesian government on Wednesday finally approved an ecosystem restoration license for more than 44,000 hectares (110,000 acres) of forest bordering Bukit Tigapuluh, a national park renowned for its rich wildlife.After WWF map showing the […]

By Herp News No piece of conservation hardware has received more attention in the media than drones, a.k.a. Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) or Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV), yet there is disagreement about their applicability to various conservation applications. The use of drones for enhancing anti-poaching is perhaps the most controversial application, with little empirical data […]

By Herp News [dropcap type=”4″]W[/dropcap]hen you count off the cat species that roam Africa – leopards, lions, cheetahs – you could be forgiven for not listing the African golden cat (Caracal aurata). This small, elusive forest dweller easily slips by unnoticed, and until very recently, failed to show up on the radar screens of most […]

By Herp News On August 11, the eve of World Elephant Day, a group of 250 scientists from varied backgrounds, disciplines and organizations around the world sent a letter to Barack Obama urging for the closure of commercial ivory trade in the United States.The letter, according to Wildlife Conservation Society, was conceived and circulated by […]

By Herp News Two traders of beaks from the helmeted hornbill were arrested in Sumatra, Indonesia, on June 12. During the arrest, authorities confiscated 12 beaks and the two suspects, known only as ZMS and ALB, confessed to selling over 120 beaks within the preceding six months. The pair is thought to have organized an […]

A new week brings a first breath of air for this Honduran milksnake (L.t.hondurensis) from Central Nicaragua in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user sballard ! Be sure to tell sballard you liked it here! Upload your own reptile and amphibian photos photos at gallery.kingsnake.com, and you could see them featured […]

The day when I purchased my first book of snakes and reptiles and saw the picture of Leith’s sand snake Psammophis leithi , I paused for a minute and stared at the picture for a while and I felt in love with this stripped reptilian fellow. Whenever I used to meet any new snake rescuer […]

Ever thought of starting an alligator farm? In your basement? In Canada? Rescuers had their hands full in Canada this week when a reptile hobbyist with an affectation for crocodilians decided he could no longer care for his charges properly, and “donated” them to a zoo – all 150 of them. The list includes crocodiles, […]

By Herp News See and be seen. In the elaborate game of seeking and attracting a mate, male anole lizards have a special trick — they grab attention by perching on a tree limb, bobbing their heads up and down, and extending a colorful throat fan, called a dewlap. The dramatic ‘glowing’ effect, according to […]

Frogs and toads, already under enormous pressure from the ravages of the Chytrid fungus, have a new threat to contend with. Scientists in the U.K. have discovered a new parasite that attacks tadpoles. Protists, single-celled microorganisms that store genetic information in a nucleus, act as a parasite for tadpoles, entering into their livers, and killing […]

This sun loving Nile Croc helps us look towards a wonderful weekend with a smile in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user CDieter ! Go out and find some beauty this weekend and share it with us! Be sure to tell CDieter you liked it here! Upload your own reptile and […]

U.S. District Judge Kurt D. Engelhardt sentenced Illinois resident Keith Cantore to 41 months incarceration, to be followed by three years of supervised release and $100 special assessment as well as $41,000 in restitution after he attempted to purchase 100 North American Wood Turtles for $40,000. “The poaching of Wood Turtles has had a significant […]

It was early morning (about 0715) and the temperature was just about 70 F. A least bittern — always an avian photographic nemesis for me — had just flown across the gravel road and landed in a patch of cattails about 30 feet ahead of me. I slowed, not that I was walking all that […]

Gotta love the smile from this Monkey Tail Skink in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user sreps ! Go out and find some beauty this weekend and share it with us! Be sure to tell sreps you liked it here! Upload your own reptile and amphibian photos photos at gallery.kingsnake.com, and […]

Researchers have named a brightly colored new flat lizard Platysaurus attenboroughi, after broadcaster and naturalist Sir David Attenborough. Attenborough is known worldwide for his numerous documentary films on natural history, many involving reptiles and amphibians. “We thought it fitting the lizard be named after the world-famous naturalist after he made famous a closely related flat […]

This isn’t our forefathers Af Rock! This beautiful patternless African Rock shines in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user MEIER21288 ! Go out and find some beauty this weekend and share it with us! Be sure to tell MEIER21288 you liked it here! Upload your own reptile and amphibian photos photos […]

As far as snakes go, the racer is in large found on the African and American continents, but racers also commonly found found in suburbs of India. These snakes are common enough that I should have written about racers earlier, but due to lack of photographs I wasn’t able to do so. Luckily my dearest […]

The skies opened and the deluge began. There was no easing into it. Within minutes, the afternoon sun in which anoles and tortoises had been basking had been obliterated by leaden clouds. Thunder rumbled and lighting speared the heavens. Torrential rains were falling – 2 and a half inches in just under one hour. By […]

Just hanging out in the wilds of Allen Cay, this gorgeous C.figgisi stages the cake in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user jf! Go out and find some beauty this weekend and share it with us! Be sure to tell jf you liked it here! Upload your own reptile and amphibian […]

Just hanging out in the wilds of Allen Cay, this gorgeous Cyclura cychlura figginsi stages the cake in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user jf! Go out and find some beauty this weekend and share it with us! Be sure to tell jf you liked it here! Upload your own reptile […]

The Argentinian Black and White Tegu, Salvator merianae, has been a problem in Southeast Florida for a while now, the lizard has established populations in Miami-Dade, Hillsborough and Polk County, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, but it is now spreading to the Southwest region, particularly Collier County. “This is public enemy […]

Frankie is on the road to recovery. Strike that. Frankie is doing much better. Strike that. Frankie is making it very plain that he is just fine and quite babying him, Mom! I think he knows it’s his birthday so I will forgive just about anything. Almost anything. Frankie antics in just the last 24 […]

Frankie is on the road to recovery. Strike that. Frankie is doing much better. Strike that. Frankie is making it very plain that he is just fine and quite babying him, Mom! I think he knows it’s his birthday so I will forgive just about anything. Almost anything. Frankie antics in just the last 24 […]

Faced with a disease that could wipe out native salamander species scientists are calling for a ban on the import of the amphibians from outside the United States in an effort to prevent the disease from establishing a foothold here. Already threatened by the chytrid fungus, also called Bd, this new fungus appears to only […]

By Herp News Scientists have found that a newly identified and highly infectious tadpole disease is found in a diverse range of frog populations across the world. The discovery sheds new light on some of the threats facing fragile frog populations, which are in decline worldwide. Go to Source …read more Read more here: herpetofauna.com […]

By Herp News A lizard lineage which has evolved over the last 19 million years has helped scientists to re-think one of the most important concepts of modern biology: adaptive radiation. Go to Source …read more Read more here: herpetofauna.com No products found. Amazon Auto Links

Mondays are rough even for this Woma in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user Tkrush12 ! Go out and find some beauty this weekend and share it with us! Be sure to tell Tkrush12 you liked it here! Upload your own reptile and amphibian photos photos at gallery.kingsnake.com, and you could […]

By Herp News [dropcap type=”2″]A[/dropcap] wildlife trafficker was arrested in a sting in Indonesia’s Aceh province after trying to sell three baby Sumatran orangutans through Facebook.Authorities apprehended the 29-year-old man, a student at a local state-run university, after conservationists from the Centre for Orangutan Protection engaged him on the social media platform and learned where […]

By Herp News Carl Safina has created a literary career writing books about the ocean, whether tracing the life of an albatross named Ameila, chasing after sea turtles in the Pacific, or following the seasons at his beachside home on Long Island.But his newest book, Carl Safina. Photo by: Michael Lutch. Employing the newest science, […]

I think I really don’t need to describe how much a snake lover is fascinated by albino snakes because, all my reptile lover friends reading this blog know that awesome feeling very well when we see an albino snake. In a country like India, where you can’t keep reptiles as pets, it is very rare […]

A fatal fungal disease that has been running rampant in snake populations on the east coast and has been found as far west as Illinois has now been identified in at least nine states. The disease can cause crusty scabs and lesions, sometimes on the head. Although it affects a number of species, it’s especially […]

Dumping unwanted reptile pets will just lead to more intrusive laws regulating keeping them. From the Long Island Press: A “very aggressive” three-foot-long crocodile was found inside a cardboard box left in the parking lot of a Melville office building Tuesday, officials said. The unusual discovery was made at about 11 a.m. at 25 Melville […]

Reptile collector Gerard Kruse plead guilty in a New York Federal Court to 13 violations of the Lacey Act for his role in illegally collecting and transporting native snakes. Arrested as part of a sting dubbed “Operation Kingsnake” Kruse admitted to the illegal collection, transport and receipt of 59 snakes that were collected from and […]

For the past 2 weeks Milwaukee WI has been under siege with a rumored lion running wild on the streets. As yet only one video has emerged of the lion that is plausible and the media and police blotter are reporting different things. Adult female African lion, Juvenile male African Lion, adult Mountain Lion, some […]

This stunning grayband helps us kick off the weekend in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user trevid ! Go out and find some beauty this weekend and share it with us! Be sure to tell trevid you liked it here! Upload your own reptile and amphibian photos photos at gallery.kingsnake.com, and […]

Although many frogs and toads are known to be poisonous, i.e. deadly if their toxins are ingested, two frogs from Brazil are now known to be venomous as well, delivering their toxins through spines and spikes on their heads, a first for the four legged amphibians. Scientists that made the discovery said calculations suggest that […]

By Herp News It’s no surprise that some frogs secrete poison from glands in their skin. But researchers have discovered the first two species of frog, both living in Brazil, that are actually venomous. Not only do the frogs produce potent toxins, but they also have a mechanism to deliver those harmful secretions into another […]