By Herp News

A dead lizard was found in the mid-day meal served to children at a school in Berhampur district in Odisha on Saturday.

Go to Source

…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com

By Herp News

A number of parks, beaches and conservation groups around the state run programs where nature-lovers can learn about the phenomenon and even watch baby turtles.

Go to Source

…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com

By Herp News

Beating some long odds, biologists and volunteers this week returned a 300-pound loggerhead sea turtle to the Gulf of Mexico in Galveston. The endangered turtle was emaciated when discovered on the island's West Beach in early June, said Lyndsey Howell, research fishery biologist at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in Galveston. At sunset Wednesday, biologists from NOAA and …

Go to Source

…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com

By Herp News

GUANGZHOU, China, Aug. 2 (UPI) — Authorities in China said a man tried to smuggle his pet turtle onto an airplane by hiding it inside of a hamburger.

Go to Source

…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com

By Herp News

Two-headed turtle Thelma and Louise now has two things in common with its namesake: Texas and celebrity status. The bisephalic Texas cooter, born at the San Antonio Zoo on June 18, is now certifiably Facebook famous with over 3,200 followers and counting.

Go to Source

…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com

By Herp News

By VERONICA LINARES, UPI.com A man got caught trying to smuggle his pet turtle past airport security at the Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport in China.

Go to Source

…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com

By Herp News

If you see a box turtle in New York, don’t pick it up and help it on its way; it probably already knows where it’s going.        

Go to Source

…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com

By Herp News

Researchers are conducting some of the first ever scientific studies of neonate pine snakes, performing snake surgery for radio tracking and helping snakes survive road crossings through the busy New Jersey shore traffic.

Go to Source

…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com

By Herp News

This is the second such incident within week in the school located in Hinjili, the Assembly constituency of Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik.

Go to Source

…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com

By Herp News

Earlier, on July 25, a lizard was found in soya curry before it was served in the same school.

Go to Source

…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com

By Herp News

This is the second such incident within week in the school located in Hinjili, the Assembly constituency of Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik.

Go to Source

…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com

By Herp News

A dead lizard was found in the mid-day meal for the second time in a week, at a primary school at Hinjili in Odisha's Ganjam district today, officials said.

Go to Source

…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com

By Herp News

A dead lizard was found in the mid-day meal at a primary school in Odisha Friday, an official said.

Go to Source

…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com

By Herp News

Bhubaneswar, Aug 2 (IANS) A dead lizard was found in the mid-day meal at a primary school in Odisha Friday, an official said.

Go to Source

…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com

Welcome to August!

kingsnake.com and RodentPro.com will be displaying the kingsnake.com Zombiehunter Snake Hunting Truck at the entrance to this years National Reptile Breeders Expo in Daytona Beach. kingsnake.com will also be handing out their free “I brake for snakes, not Zombies” bumper stickers and RodentPro discount coupons.

Join us from 10 am to 3 pm Saturday, August 18, and Sunday, August 19, outside the main entrance of the Ocean Center, grab a bumper sticker and a coupon — while supplies last! — and have your picture taken with the giant Zombiehunter truck!

The National Reptile Breeders Expo, one of the largest and oldest reptile and amphibian community events, will start in Daytona Beach on Thursday, August 15, and run through Sunday, August 19, at the Daytona Beach Hilton and the Ocean Center, on Atlantic Avenue.

For a full schedule of events, travel information and more, please visit their website! …read more
Read more here: King Snake

I have not been around on the site much, been busy and havent had access to a computer. I do however still keep turtles and tortoises. I made new threads under box turtles, and tortoises sections. I’m currently working on a new outdoor enclosure and hopefully a small pond. Also still have my website up, been up for years now lol… i still update it and its probably where i spend most my time. I am planning on coming back to turtletimes once again and become a active member once again. Till next time

Kyle …read more
Read more here: Turtle Times

By Herp News

Tortoise MLP Fund, Inc. today announced that as of July 31, 2013, the company’s unaudited total assets were approximately $2.0 billion and its unaudited net asset value

Go to Source

…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com

By Herp News

Tortoise MLP Fund, Inc. today announced that as of July 31, 2013, the company’s unaudited total assets were approximately $2.0 billion and its unaudited net asset value

Go to Source

…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com

By Herp News

Tortoise North American Energy Corp. today announced that as of July 31, 2013, the company’s unaudited total assets were approximately $261.8 million and its unaudited

Go to Source

…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com

By Herp News

Tortoise North American Energy Corp. today announced that as of July 31, 2013, the company’s unaudited total assets were approximately $261.8 million and its unaudited

Go to Source

…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com

By Herp News

Tortoise Energy Independence Fund, Inc. today announced that as of July 31, 2013, the company’s unaudited total assets were approximately $429.6 million and its unaudit

Go to Source

…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com

By Herp News

Tortoise Power and Energy Infrastructure Fund, Inc. today announced that as of July 31, 2013, the company’s unaudited total assets were approximately $234.2 million and

Go to Source

…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com

By Herp News

Tortoise Energy Capital Corp. today announced that as of July 31, 2013, the company’s unaudited total assets were approximately $1.1 billion and its unaudited net asset

Go to Source

…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com

By Herp News

Tortoise Pipeline & Energy Fund, Inc. today announced that as of July 31, 2013, the company’s unaudited total assets were approximately $390.4 million and its unaud

Go to Source

…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com

By Herp News

Tortoise Energy Infrastructure Corp. today announced that as of July 31, 2013, the company’s unaudited total assets were approximately $2.1 billion and its unaudited ne

Go to Source

…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com

By Herp News

In 1917, Joel Asaph Allen examined an innocuous species of shrew from the Congo Basin and made a remarkable discovery: the shrew’s spine was unlike any seen before. Interlocking lumbar vertebrae made the species’ spine four times strong than any other vertebrate on Earth adjusted for its size. The small mammal had been discovered only seven years before and was dubbed the hero shrew (Scutisorex somereni), after the name give to it by the local Mangbetu people, who had long known of the shrew’s remarkable abilities.

Go to Source

…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com

By Herp News

In 1917, Joel Asaph Allen examined an innocuous species of shrew from the Congo Basin and made a remarkable discovery: the shrew’s spine was unlike any seen before. Interlocking lumbar vertebrae made the species’ spine four times strong than any other vertebrate on Earth adjusted for its size. The small mammal had been discovered only seven years before and was dubbed the hero shrew (Scutisorex somereni), after the name give to it by the local Mangbetu people, who had long known of the shrew’s remarkable abilities.

Go to Source

…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com

By Herp News

Before the arrival of humans—with their dogs, cats, and wild pigs—the northern Bahamian rock iguana ruled its home range, being pound-for-pound among the biggest land animals on the islands. In these ecosystems, the iguana’s were the mega-grazers, the bison and elk of the Caribbean one might say. But hunting by humans, invasive species, and habitat loss knocked the king from its throne: pushing it into smaller habitats and decimating its population. Today the three subspecies of the northern Bahamian rock iguana (Cyclura cychlura) hang by a thread. And now a new threat is rising: poorly-regulated tourism, including iguana feeding.

Go to Source

…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com

Turns out crocodiles have a sweet tooth — although unlike humans, they usually assuage it with fruit, not chocolate bars.

From New Scientist:

Reports that crocodiles have a taste for fruit go back decades, says Thomas Rainwater at the US Fish and Wildlife Service in Charleston, South Carolina. “But since these animals were long considered carnivores, no one paid much attention.”

In a routine analysis of American alligators (Alligator mississippiensis) living in the Everglades National Park in Florida, Rainwater and his colleagues found fruit including pond apples in the alligators’ stomachs. They then turned up reports that at least 13 of the 23 living crocodilian species are fruit eaters.

Whether or not crocodilians actively go after fruit is debatable – especially as the predators are secretive and tend to do most of their foraging at night. A crocodile might simply eat an animal that has itself recently dined on fruit, for example.

But there is some evidence that fruit is consumed deliberately, too.

Read the full story here.

Photo by kingsnake.com user cpipes …read more
Read more here: King Snake

By Herp News

The head of the Ottawa Humane Society says he's disturbed by reports alleging reptile neglect at an Ottawa big box pet store, and said he wants reptile owners to know his organization is equipped to come to the aid of exotic pets.

Go to Source

…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com

By Herp News

This notice provides stockholders of Tortoise Power and Energy Infrastructure Fund, Inc. with information regarding the distribution paid on July 31, 2013 and cumulativ

Go to Source

…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com

By Herp News

They still call the Balkans “the Powder Keg of Europe.” For good reason too: bloody ethnic and religious conflicts in the past decades have left hundreds of thousands dead and millions displaced. As recently as 2001, the army in Macedonia was fighting with ethnic Albanians, many of them from Kosovo. However, in the past seven years a rare and charismatic wild cat – the Balkan lynx (Lynx lynx balcanicus)– is serving to unify countries with troubled historical and political relations. Albania, Macedonia, Kosovo and Montenegro are collaborating on a joint conservation strategy for the Critically Endangered animal.

Go to Source

…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com

When firefighters entered a burning home in northern Utah, they found a roomful of snakes, some venomous.

From ABC News:

Among the snakes that were found were some of the most deadly, including five albino western diamondbacks and a Gaboon viper.

“The Gaboon viper is considered one of the most dangerous snakes in the world,” said Brad Hunt of the Utah Division of Wildlife. “It has very long fangs and very potent venom.”

The Gaboon Viper is indigenous to Africa, and anti-venom for the snake is not readily available in the United States.

Having venomous snakes is illegal in the state of Utah, and even native snakes must be registered and have permits. It is suspected that the owner, whose name has not been released but who officials believe is a snake professional or breeder, smuggled at least the Gaboon viper from out of state.

He was cited for possession of illegal animals, and Animal Control was in contact with an attorney to consider options for pressing any misdemeanor charges.

The snakes that he owned legally will be returned to him, officials said.

An animal control officer on the scene noted “the snakes were kept in ‘incredible condition’ and in ‘immaculate facilities.'”

Read the full story here.

Photo: Gaboon viper by kingsnake.com user viperkeeper. …read more
Read more here: King Snake

The availability of captive-bred reptile and amphibian species to work with today is almost endless, with new color phases and morphs being discovered or created all the time.

Back when I was a hobbyist in the 80s and 90s, only a few species were being produced in captivity, primarily native colubrid snakes along with a small handful of exotics. The other species available, especially the exotic species, were almost invariably wild-caught imports, and even such animals as Honduran milk snakes, common in the captive-bred community today, were only available as parasite-infested wild-caught specimens whose survival was often questionable. Sports, or morphs, were virtually unknown, albinos truly rare, piebalds a holy grail.

With all the choices available today, just how do you pick which reptile or amphibian species to work with?

No matter what your interest is, there is something available for you, and that’s the first place to start: your interests.

Certainly there are other factors involved, not the least of which are space, cost, legality, etc., that all must be considered, but in the end, if you’re not interested in the species or morph, why work with it? Whether you want to work with Pacman frogs because you like Pacman frogs, or you want to chase the rainbow by breeding the latest and greatest ball python or hognose morphs, if you’re not working with something you’re interested in, you might as well be delivering pizzas instead.

My interests have been, and always will be, kingsnakes and milk snakes, and because that also happens to be the “branding” chosen for this web site long long ago, it’s a natural that I’ve started by breeding kingsnakes and milk snakes. With relatively easy care requirements, and a variety of species, sub-species, and color morphs to work with, they make excellent examples of “first time breeder” animals, one for which a ready market exists.

My business plan calls for acquiring several hundred kingsnake and milk snake hatchlings over the next 24 months, along with a few select adults, raising them up, breeding them, and then selling their offspring primarily into the wholesale market. As such it will be a full three years before I can expect to see any offspring in salable quantities, or the first returns on the investment, and as such will have to make very careful and wise decisions and good deals.

I plan to work primarily with less expensive snakes to start, California kingsnakes, eastern kingsnakes, Pueblan milk snakes, and a few others, avoiding the more problematic feeders or more collectible species such as graybanded and moutain kingsnakes, as well as avoiding the “man-made” morphs and sports such as albinos. Later as the operation expands I’ll look at adding more variety, but for now I’m going to focus on basics.

If you have these on your table at a show this year, or have them posted to our classifieds here, don’t be surprised to …read more
Read more here: King Snake

By Herp News

A tortoise was denied boarding at an airport in China after its owner's attempt to sneak it through security checks in a KFC burger failed, state media said Wednesday.

Go to Source

…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com

By Herp News

The head of the Ottawa Humane Society says he's disturbed by reports alleging reptile neglect at an Ottawa big box pet store, and said he wants reptile owners to know his organization is equipped to come to the aid of exotic pets.

Go to Source

…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com

By Herp News

Reptile owners, handlers and some former PetSmart employees say they are shocked by how the animals are treated at large pet stores, saying the animals appear to be poorly cared for and malnourished.

Go to Source

…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com

By Herp News

In 1917, Joel Asaph Allen examined an innocuous species of shrew from the Congo Basin and made a remarkable discovery: the shrew’s spine was unlike any seen before. Interlocking lumbar vertebrae made the species’ spine four times strong than any other vertebrate on Earth adjusted for its size. The small mammal had been discovered only seven years before and was dubbed the hero shrew (Scutisorex somereni), after the name give to it by the local Mangbetu people, who had long known of the shrew’s remarkable abilities.

Go to Source

…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com

By Herp News

Bhilwara, July 30 — A lizard in the mid-day meal led to 78 students of an upper primary school in Rajasthan's Bhilwara district being hospitalized on Tuesday. The students complained of stomach ache, cramps and vomiting after consuming the meal.The incident happened less than two weeks after 23 students died after being served lunch laced with a deadly pesticide in a school in Bihar.Officials …

Go to Source

…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com

By Herp News

76 students of a government school in Rajasthan’s Bhilwara district on Tuesday fell ill after consuming their mid-day meal in which a dead lizard was found. The children of the higher prima…

Go to Source

…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com