By Herp News
In 1890 Lamberto Loria collected 45 specimens—all female—of a small bat from the wilds of Papua New Guinea. Nearly 25 years later, in 1914, the species was finally described and named by British zoologist Oldfield Thomas, who dubbed it the New Guinea big-eared bat (Pharotis imogene) after its massive ears. But no one ever saw the bat again.
…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com
No products found.
By Herp News
In 1890 Lamberto Loria collected 45 specimens—all female—of a small bat from the wilds of Papua New Guinea. Nearly 25 years later, in 1914, the species was finally described and named by British zoologist Oldfield Thomas, who dubbed it the New Guinea big-eared bat (Pharotis imogene) after its massive ears. But no one ever saw the bat again.
…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com
No products found.
Can the native species of the ecological treasure that is the Galapagos really be protected from invasive species?
Laura Santoso of the California Institute of Technology takes a thoughtful, in-depth look at the issues and conflicting interests in Wired Science:
Even with unlimited cash, it seems impossible to eradicate certain intruders without also harming native species. Small but pervasive species, like rats, are extremely difficult to target without catching resident wildlife in the crossfire. In 2012, 22 tons of rat bait were dropped by helicopter on Pinzon island, blanketing 7 square miles with little blue poisonous cubes. Several organizations, including the Galapagos National Park and CDF, supported the move because the rats had been devouring the eggs of native giant tortoises and lava lizards. But the “raticide” sparked significant controversy, imperiling neighboring native species like the Galapagos hawks. While pesticides are often the best available option (biological interventions are technically challenging to develop), they cannot suppress invasive species without causing side effects.
The final piece of the puzzle, after thwarting new invasive species and removing existing ones, is actively helping endemic species recover. Some local fauna, like the tortoise and the mangrove finch, have been so decimated that they may be destined for extinction without significant help. On the other hand, Giant Tortoise rehabilitation is one example of seemingly productive human intervention. When tortoise populations had dwindled from thousands to dozens on some islands in the 1960s, they were taken in by humans and bred in captivity. Repatriation projects on Santa Cruz, Isabela, and Espanola have increased total tortoise populations to 26,000, but the current dependence on human assistance sparks questions about whether the intervention itself is unnatural, or unsustainable. Although the repatriated tortoises have begun to mate by themselves in the wild, it is unclear if they can maintain their numbers once captive breeding stops.
Photo: kingsnake.com user Ivory Tortoise …read more
Read more here: King Snake
No products found.
By Herp News
The world’s stronghold for Indian rhinos—the state of Assam—has seen its population leap by 27 percent since 2006, despite a worsening epidemic of poaching that has also seen 156 rhinos killed during the same period. According to a new white paper, the population of Indian rhinos in Assam hit 2,544 this year.
…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com
No products found.
By Herp News
Venom variation in closely related snake species has been the focus of a recent study. The research team assessed the venom composition of six related viperid snakes, examining the differences in gene and protein expression that influence venom content. The research also assessed how these changes in venom composition impacted upon venom-induced haemorrhage and coagulation pathologies, and how these changes can adversely affect antivenoms used to treat snakebite.
…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com
No products found.
Of course, everyone on kingsnake.com would love this, and the locals say it’s a sign that the marriage is blessed. But Jason and Kate Crowe were probably pretty shocked when a leatherback sea turtle crashed their Saint Croix wedding.
Read the story and see more photos here.
Photo: Jason and Kate Crowe
…read more
Read more here: King Snake
No products found.
By Herp News
There's another missing reptile in the metro region.
…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com
No products found.
By Herp News
SAN DIEGO, June 10, 2014 /PRNewswire/ — Turtle Beach, the leading audio brand in the video games industry, today announced that a broad lineup of new headsets and partnerships spanning Xbox, PlayStation …
…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com
No products found.
By Herp News
Researcher cameras capture tegu lizards swiping alligator eggs from nests in South Florida. The Argentine black and white tegu, which can grow 4 feet or more, is already found in areas populated by threatened species, including the Eastern indigo snake, Cape Sable seaside sparrow and gopher tortoise. And if the tegus’ range expands, the list of native species potentially at risk could grow to include sea turtles, shore birds and ground-nesting migratory birds.
…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com
No products found.
By Herp News
Scientists in China have found five well-preserved reptile eggs still intact more than 100 million years after they were laid. It's believed they belong to the ancient pterosaur — a reptile that roamed the Earth more than 120 million years ago during the Cretaceous period. (Via YouTube / American Museum of Natural History ) LiveScience notes that until now scientists had only found four …
…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com
No products found.
By Herp News
There's another missing reptile in the metro region. After news last week that a red foot tortoise named Strawberry Shortcake had gone missing in Mount Pearl, a woman in Conception Bay South says her pet turtle has been missing for two days from her home on Franks Road, near Legion Road.
…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com
No products found.
By Herp News
In the dark caves of southern Indiana in the United States, scientists have discovered a new species of cavefish that are blind, pinkish, and have their anus behind their heads. This peculiar new cavefish is the first to be described in North America in 40 years, and researchers have named it Amblyopsis hoosieri or Hoosier cavefish.
…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com
No products found.
By Herp News
Can a single photograph change the fate of a park? A new conservation group, HabitatID, believes so, and is putting this belief into action. Setting up camera traps in Cambodia’s Virachey National Park, the group hopes that photos of charismatic and endangered species will help reinvigorate protection for a park that has been abandoned by conservation groups and underfunded by the government.
…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com
No products found.
By Herp News
Can a single photograph change the fate of a park? A new conservation group, HabitatID, believes so, and is putting this belief into action. Setting up camera traps in Cambodia’s Virachey National Park, the group hopes that photos of charismatic and endangered species will help reinvigorate protection for a park that has been abandoned by conservation groups and underfunded by the government.
…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com
No products found.
By Herp News
Scientists in China have found five well-preserved reptile eggs still intact more than 100 million years after they were laid. It's believed they belong to the ancient pterosaur — a reptile that roamed the Earth more than 120 million years ago during the Cretaceous period. (Via YouTube / American Museum of Natural History ) LiveScience notes that until now scientists had only found four …
…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com
No products found.
By Herp News
SAN DIEGO, June 9, 2014 /PRNewswire/ — Turtle Beach, the leading audio brand in the video games industry, today announced new gaming headsets designed for the popular PlayStation®4 console. The new headsets, which will be available in stores in the Fall of 2014, will be on display at the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) in Los Angeles at Booth #1447 in the South Hall from June 10 to 12 …
…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com
No products found.
By Herp News
Scientists in China have found five well-preserved reptile eggs still intact more than 100 million years after they were laid. It's believed they belong to the ancient pterosaur — a reptile that roamed the Earth more than 120 million years ago during the Cretaceous period. (Via YouTube / American Museum of Natural History ) LiveScience notes that until now scientists had only found four …
…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com
No products found.
By Herp News
Scientists in China have found five well-preserved reptile eggs still intact more than 100 million years after they were laid.
…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com
No products found.
Want to start your week off with a herp-themed laugh? Read this Wired story about the biggest snake who ever existed, and its messed-up social media campaign.
Have fun, and a great week, too! …read more
Read more here: King Snake
No products found.
By Herp News
The first intact skull of a Mediterranean worm lizard has been found in Spain, according to a new study. Only isolated fragments of fossil Mediterranean worm lizards have previously been found in Europe, and currently, our limited knowledge of their evolution is mainly based on molecular studies. The worm lizard is a limbless, scaled reptile and categorized in the genus Blanus in the Mediterranean.
…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com
No products found.
By Herp News
As our cities continue to grow many animal species have to choose to abandon their changing habitats or adapt to their new setting. In Taiwan the tiny mientien tree frog (Kurixalus diootocus) is making the most of its new situation by using city storm drains to amplify mating calls.
…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com
No products found.
By Herp News
The Tortoise MLP & Pipeline Fund today announced its third anniversary and that TORIX has received a Five-Star Overall Morningstar RatingTM out of 26 funds in the Energy Limited Partnership category based on three-year risk-adjusted performance ending 5/31/14.
…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com
No products found.
By Herp News
The five intact eggs were found in the Xinjiang province, China and all belonged to a previously unknown pterosaur species, Hamipterus tianshanensis.
…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com
No products found.
By Herp News
The government has announced that ecotourism projects are being planned for three of the six major islands in the municipality of Turtle Islands.
…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com
No products found.
Check out this video “Iguana eating grapes,” submitted by kingsnake.com user Minuet.
Submit your own reptile & amphibian videos at http://www.kingsnake.com/video/ and you could see them featured here or check out all the videos submitted by other users! …read more
Read more here: King Snake
No products found.
By Herp News
SAN DIEGO, June 6, 2014 /PRNewswire/ – Turtle Beach, the leading audio brand in the video games industry, today announced the Elite Membership Program, an exclusive offering available with all Turtle …
…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com
No products found.
By Herp News
The first intact skull of a Mediterranean worm lizard has been found in Spain, according to a new study. Only isolated fragments of fossil Mediterranean worm lizards have previously been found in Europe, and currently, our limited knowledge of their evolution is mainly based on molecular studies. The worm lizard is a limbless, scaled reptile and categorized in the genus Blanus in the …
…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com
No products found.
By Herp News
In 1997, Gabriella Fredriksson, then a young PhD student, was studying sun bears in East Kalamantan, Indonesia, when massive forest fires broke out in the park. ‘It quickly became clear that there was no government agency, NGO, or private company in the area interested in assisting putting out these fires, which were threatening to burn down the entire reserve,’ Fredriksson told mongabay.com.
…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com
No products found.
By Herp News
A five-metre crocodile that has called central Queensland home for three decades is on its way to the Middle East.
…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com
No products found.
By Herp News
A tortoise thought to have travelled almost 300 miles in the back of a lorry from Devon is saved moments before being pulped at a Norfolk recycling plant.
…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com
No products found.
By Herp News
The five intact eggs were found in the Xinjiang province, China and all belonged to a previously unknown pterosaur species, Hamipterus tianshanensis.
…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com
No products found.
By Herp News
The first three-dimensionally preserved eggs of ancient winged reptiles that lived more than 100 million years ago have been unearthed in China. Five intact eggs were found, along with dozens or more adult fossils, of a new type of pterosaur, a group of prehistoric winged reptiles that dominated the skies during the time of dinosaurs. “We found a lot of pterosaur bones which belong to different …
…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com
No products found.
Scientists recently discovered 28 new species of reptile in the Mekong Delta, bringing the total of new species discovered in Southeast Asia to 367. One of the new species is a primitive viper known as the White Head Burmese Viper, Azemiops kharini.
From the World Wildlife Foundation’s report:
The venomous species is thought to be a primitive viper species because it has an elliptically shaped, flattened head; enlarged head plates; smooth dorsal scales; folding front fangs; the absence of heat-sensing pits; and a coiled venom gland duct in adults.
The species can be found in dense bamboo and tree-fern groves interspersed with open, sun-lit zones, and usually inhabits deep leaf litter that accumulates near fallen trees. Its diet consists mostly of rodents that are associated with quick-flowing mountain streams. The genus is known to inhabit cooler mountainous areas at altitudes of up to 1000 m, as well as disturbed areas, including agricultural lands and secondary forests.
Read the full report and view images of all the new species here.
Photo: Nguyen Thien Tao/Vietnam National Museum of Nature …read more
Read more here: King Snake
No products found.
By Herp News
Two brothers, ages 18 and 21, from Detroit could be arraigned as soon as Thursday for a wild high speed police chase on I-96.
…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com
No products found.
By Herp News
By: Dee DeQuattroEmail: ddequattro@abc6.comTwitter: @deedequattroFall River Police have released a surveillance photo of a man they believe to be behind the theft of a beloved turtle from the Fall River library. The 13-year-old turtle was stolen on Saturday night. Police believe the suspect hid behind a stack of books until the library closed, then made away with the beloved reptile.The man is …
…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com
No products found.
By Herp News
Researchers working in the Mekong region of Southeast Asia discovered 367 new species between 2012-2013, and are finding them at a rate of one new species every two days.
…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com
No products found.
By Herp News
A colorful bird found on the Wakatobi islands south of Sulawesi in Indonesia is sufficiently distinct from birds in nearby areas to be classified as a unique species, argue scientists writing in the current issue of the open-access journal PLoS ONE.
…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com
No products found.
By Herp News
( PLOS ) The first intact skull of a Mediterranean worm lizard has been found in Spain.
…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com
No products found.
By Herp News
This family, known as blanids, includes the only worm lizards found on land in Europe, said study researcher Arnau Bolet, a doctoral student at the Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont in Barcelona. “Thus, the study of a complete fossil skull more than 11 million years old was an unprecedented opportunity.” [The 12 Weirdest Animal Discoveries] Worm lizards are found around the world …
…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com
No products found.
By Herp News
Shell Canada is awarding the Georgian Bay Turtle Hospital with a $50,000 grant. The hospital has been struggling to become a functional rehabilitation centre.
…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com
No products found.