By Herp News

Tortoise Energy Independence Fund, Inc. today announced that as of Sept. 30, 2014, the company’s unaudited total assets were approximately $483.3 million and its unaudi

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By Herp News

Tortoise MLP Fund, Inc. today announced that as of Sept. 30, 2014, the company’s unaudited total assets were approximately $2.4 billion and its unaudited net asset valu

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By Herp News

Tortoise MLP Fund, Inc. today announced that as of Sept. 30, 2014, the company’s unaudited total assets were approximately $2.4 billion and its unaudited net asset valu

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By Herp News

Tortoise Power and Energy Infrastructure Fund, Inc. today announced that as of Sept. 30, 2014, the company’s unaudited total assets were approximately $266.6 million an

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By Herp News

Tortoise Power and Energy Infrastructure Fund, Inc. today announced that as of Sept. 30, 2014, the company’s unaudited total assets were approximately $266.6 million an

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By Herp News

Tortoise Pipeline & Energy Fund, Inc. today announced that as of September 30, 2014, the company’s unaudited total assets were approximately $482.9 million and its

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By Herp News

Tortoise Energy Infrastructure Corp. today announced that as of Sept. 30, 2014, the company’s unaudited total assets were approximately $4.6 billion and its unaudited n

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By Herp News

Brooks Hays WASHINGTON, Oct. 1 (UPI) — A newly discovered species of ant, called mirror turtle ants, locates food sources by assuming the identity of its neighbors and following them to their spoils.

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By Herp News

Writing this from a hotel room in Indonesia’s second-largest city, Surabaya, I realize that I am filled with trepidation as I wait for the phone next to me to ring. When it does, the voice on the other end will tell me it’s go time; the culmination of many years of work towards ending the global trade in manta ray gills.

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By Herp News

A sailor on the Shediac Bay freed a 300-kilogram leatherback sea turtle from lobster trap lines last week as sightings of these large reptiles entangled in nets are growing in southeastern New Brunswick. Mark Daggett was enjoying an afternoon on his sail boat in Shediac Bay last week, when he came across a leatherback turtle that was trapped in the ropes attached to buoys. “We knew she didn't …

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Lizards thought to be extinct in the wild have been reintroduced into Welsh sand dunes after breeding and care from experts.

From the Daily Post:

Herpetology keeper Ruth Smith said: “Sand lizards are the UK’s rarest lizard and populations in some areas are so low that we can’t just rely on protecting the site, we have to help breed them to boost their numbers.

“Surveys have shown that sand lizard numbers have significantly improved in the locations where they have been released before and it’s proven that those bred in the likes of zoos have a higher chance of survival than those that hatch in the wild.

“That’s because we’re able to give them plenty of food and intensive care in their vital early days and build them up for around four to six weeks, giving them a great head start.

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By Herp News

This notice provides stockholders of Tortoise Power and Energy Infrastructure Fund, Inc. with information regarding the distribution paid on Sept. 30, 2014 and cumulati

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By Herp News

Studies in conservation biology often focus on rare, threatened species faced with impending extinction, but what about common animals of least concern? Could they too help conservationists fine-tune their approach? Doctoral researcher Laurel Yohe not only claims that they can, but demonstrates how in a new study. She and five other researchers compared ranges of five babblers with development across Vietnam.

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By Herp News

The human cost of war is horrendous. However, while most attention is focused on the suffering caused to people—and rightly so—an understudied element is the impact on wildlife conservation. This is worrying given that many of the world’s conflict zones are situated in biodiversity hotspots.

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By Herp News

New research has for the first time provided evidence that reptiles could be capable of social learning through imitation. The ability to acquire new skills through the ‘true imitation’ of others’ behavior is thought to be unique to humans and advanced primates, such as chimpanzees.  

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Photographer Mike Korostelev spent some one-on-one time with a crocodile, resulting in remarkable underwater photos.

From the Daily Mail:

But far from being scared, Mr Korostelev was delighted with his deadly encounter.

He said: ‘It was not an accidental meeting, the main purpose of my trip was to capture an American crocodile in its natural environment.

‘I met this crocodile underwater face to face. When it swam close to me, the only thought I had was about how great it was that I could take great pictures.

‘It nuzzled into the camera several times and sometimes it touched me with its tail.’

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By Herp News

The tooth of a 220-million-year-old semi-aquatic phytosaur has been found embedded in the thigh bone of a terrestrial rauisuchid. Both are giant prehistoric reptiles distantly related to the modern crocodile.

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By Herp News

A turtle expert in Windsor, Ont., says because it's illegal to import turtles without a permit into Canada the high demand for the shelled reptiles may be pushing smugglers to bring them into the country. A Windsor man was charged in both Canada and the United States last week, after he was found with 51 turtles strapped to his body trying to enter through the Detroit-Windsor tunnel in early …

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By Herp News

The bite of a slow loris can be painful, and sometimes even lethal. After all, this cute-looking YouTube sensation is the only known ‘venomous’ primate in the world—a trait that might have strangely evolved to mimic spectacled cobras, according to a recent paper. Mimicry in mammals is rare. But anecdotal evidence and studies in the past have noted the uncanny cobra-like defensive postures, sounds, and gait in slow lorises.

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By Herp News

After warmer winters, wood frogs breed earlier and produce fewer eggs, a researcher has found. The same study also found that frogs produce more eggs during winters with more rain and snow.

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By Herp News

SAN DIEGO and SHANGHAI, Sept. 29, 2014 /PRNewswire/ – Turtle Beach, the leading audio brand in the video games industry, today announced the XO Four and XO Seven officially-licensed Xbox One gaming headsets are now on sale in China. Turtle Beach is the gaming audio brand of Turtle Beach Corporation (HEAR). The Turtle Beach XO Four and XO Seven gaming headsets are being sold individually and in …

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By Herp News

It's been over a full month since hacker collective 'Lizard Squad' rose to notoriety for taking down Sony's PlayStation Network, Xbox Live and other gaming servers, but above all else attracting the FBI's attention for tweeting out a bomb threat to a Sony executive's American Airlines flight, which grounded the plane and launched a nationwide hunt for the group.

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Owners who purchased a property overrun with copperheads used to kill one hundred of the snakes each year, but when they learned how important snake venom is to medical research, they had a change of heart.

From Click2Houston:

“We were supposed to come out on a Friday the first time,” said Swanson. “We ended up being delayed by a day because he was burying his aunt, who had just died from breast cancer the day before. When he found out that we were out here to collect these snakes to try to use them for cancer research, it changed their whole outlook on it.”

It changed the Hubbards’ outlook so much that they plan to turn part of their property into a conservation area so people can view the creatures in their natural habitat. They’re hoping to open up the eco-tourist venture by sometime next summer.

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By Herp News

Byline: Children from Landewednack School at The Lizard have recently requested the help of The Lizard Lifeboat in their quest for winning new musical instruments for the school. Page Content: The children have entered a competition run by James Rhodes & The Great Instrument Amnesty and have produced a video which has been uploaded to You Tube. Other schools have also been involved in the …

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By Herp News

Byline: The Lizard Lifeboat Station has received another very generous donation from a visitor who is currently on route from Lands End to John O'Groats. Page Content: James Alty is currently undertaking a mammoth sponsored bike ride on a single speed bicycle to raise money in aid of the Buwan Kothi International Trust. This is a charity which raises funds to help families educate their children …

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By Herp News

A bright orange poison dart frog with a unique call has been discovered in Donoso, Panama. Because this new frog species appears to be found in only a very small area, habitat loss and collecting for the pet trade are major threats to its existence. The authors recommend the formulation of special conservation plans to guarantee its survival.

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By Herp News

Cute kids get into a fight, a hungry lizard eyes up his dinner and the secrets of tattooing are revealed.

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Check out this video “Caiman Lizard unboxing,” submitted by kingsnake.com user Minuet.
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By Herp News

The biggest factor determining species diversity and distribution on islands is not size and isolation, as traditional island biogeography theory states, but economics. Simply put, the more trade an island is engaged in, the more boats visit it, and with more boats comes more hitchhikers.

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In a feel-good story out of Texas, Fort Worth firefighters rescued a young girl’s pet frog from a burning home.

From the Star-Telegram:

“Firefighters conducted a search but found that the house was unoccupied at the time of the fire,” Lt. Carol Jones, a fire department spokeswoman, said in a news release issued Tuesday morning. “A family member who later arrived explained that the owners were actually out of state and then inquired about the family pet.”

Firefighters happily reunited the daughter with the family’s pet frog, who appeared unharmed, Jones said.

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How did taxidermists preserve the likeness of a now extinct species? Very carefully and with painstaking research.

From Gizmodo:

Lonsesome George was the last of the Pinta Island giant tortoises on the Galapagos. Due to human intervention in the ecosystem his entire species whittled down to just George. Since his discovery he’d been well cared for and revered by scientists across the board. Several attempts at mating George just never panned out and he died from old age. Within 24 hours of his death he was frozen with the decision to taxidermy him.

The first step of the process was to get George to the museum for evaluation. This involved huge amounts of coordination and paperwork to get him to NY through customs and into the States safely intact. They worked against the clock to minimize any types of freezer burn or damage done to George that could happen when kept frozen too long or transported poorly. After the museum assessed George, he was brought to the Wildlife Preservations taxidermy studio in Woodland Park, NJ.

George Dante, president of Wildlife Preservations and an expert in the field of taxidermy, lead the effort in bringing George’s likeness back into existence. Since there were no other animals of his species to base him off of, extensive amounts of research went into making sure the process was as accurate as possible.

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By Herp News

A small study suggests snakes may have developed courtship and male-to-male combat behavior, such as moving undulations, neck biting, and spur-poking, over time.

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By Herp News

A loggerhead sea turtle named Sapphire is getting ready for a cross-country trip on Thursday to a permanent home in Southern California after convalescing for more than a year at the Florida Keys-based Turtle Hospital.

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By Herp News

MARATHON, Fla. (AP) — A loggerhead sea turtle named Sapphire is getting ready for a cross-country trip on Thursday to a permanent home in Southern California after convalescing for more than a year at the Florida Keys-based Turtle Hospital.

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By Herp News

One-of-a-Kind “Green Roof” Designed To Save Energy Is Installed (PRWeb September 24, 2014) Read the full story at http://www.prweb.com/releases/2014/09/prweb12195259.htm

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By Herp News

A loggerhead sea turtle recovering its strength from a possible boat injury is leaving its Florida Keys-based Turtle Hospital after more than a year for its new permanent home.

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Scent of a Woman: I like that movie. My favorite part isn’t the Colonel’s speech at the school. My favorite part is the restaurant scene. We’ll get back to that.

This morning’s weather was exceptional: cool air, clear sky, sunny. Just the break I needed to get some back yard chores done, a chance for the box turtles to spend time in their outside habitat, and perfect for digging up worms for turtles.

Besides my own two box turtles, I am rehabbing a two year old wild box turtle who was chewed up by a dog. Iz, the victim box turtle, is healing well but his back legs don’t yet carry weight.

Momma Turtle and Big Turtle (with me for 15+ years) were dropped into their outdoor habitat. The little rehab turtle, Iz, needs some outdoor exercise time so he gets to stay with me. Iz and I head into the yard to dig up worms for all the box turtles.

Not yet mentioned here but a force to be reckoned with is the 100 pound Frankie the sulcata tortoise: this ishisbackyard. Frankie often sleeps in late and I hoped he would be still be sleeping when I am dig up worms. Regretfully, Frankie too is enjoying the cool morning and is basking by the fence near the area I was going to dig up worms.

Oh, well. I can handle Frankie…… (Haven’t I said that before?)

I head to the fence looking for an area away from Frankie, With a small container, hand trowel, hand tiller and Iz the turtle in a box, I select an area where soil has built up by the fence, and a little distance from the basking Frankie. The worms love the deep soil and Frankie will be occupied with basking.

Iz is placed on the ground next to where I am sitting. Iz get’s busy scamping around while I dig for worms all the while keeping peripheral vision on Frankie.

Frankie’s been eyeing me, too. I am doing something in his yard so he considers that such activity must be contemplated, investigated, scrutinized, inspected, engaged, entangled, and possibly ultimately destroyed. The minute Frankie picks up his shelled-shelf and starts walking my way I grab Iz and hide him back into the box lest Frankie find him.

Frankie inspects as he approaches the area. He comes across the container full of dirt and worms.

“No, Frankie! No ramming the dirt!”

Too late. With one one step Frankie dumps my container of dirt and worms.

“Frankie! Go do something else. There is nothing for you here.”

Frankie stares at me like he doesn’t understand English. The voice tone Frankie gets because after a 30 second stare-down he turned around and headed up the hill.

Iz gets placed back on the ground next to my knees and I start picking up dirt and worms Frankie dumped. I take a gander over …read more
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George Craig rescued the world’s largest captive crocodile and has cared for him for nearly 30 years.

From the Daily Mail:

George captured Cassius in 1987 from a river in the Northern Territory, where he was notorious for his huge size – and was under threat of being hunted down and killed by the local population.

Cassisus, who is missing his front left leg and tip of his tail due to vicious fights, was deemed a massive threat to humans after attacking boats.

So George set about capturing him to save his life, and bringing him to live in his sanctuary.

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By Herp News

ROMPIN: A HOUSEWIFE fought off a huge monitor lizard in her desperate attempt to rescue her 8-month-old daughter from being mauled and dragged by the reptile out of their quarters at a resort in Pulau Tioman. In the 10am freak incident on Monday, Nor Raudhah Maisarah Abdullah repeatedly hit the reptile with a stick before using her bare hands to push the reptile while it was dragging the baby …

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By Herp News

Development of roads and other structures disturb large, continuous patches of habitat for wildlife. This habitat fragmentation is one of the biggest contributors to species extinction, as the local ecology and species interactions are altered. A new study finds that leaf-nosed bat abundances in Mexico are closely linked to how sensitive each species is to habitat fragmentation.

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