Last week a friend bought a sexed pair of Spotted Pythons from me. It took him 4 weeks to save up the funds, and during that time he asked me all the right questions and got everything ready. Within two hours after arriving home and getting the snake put away he discovered that one had escaped…the female of course!

I hate the fact that people have to go through things like this, but most of the time it takes a loss and a bad mistake in order to learn. When it comes to keeping snakes it is a fact that there are forces working against us all at every turn. Even when it is legal and you go out of your way to do everything right, all it takes in one tiny detail to ruin everything and foul up all the fun. In my experience I have found that my work is never done and that it is best to always be on the lookout for how I can make things better. In this case the snakes were put in a baby rack made for snakes, but they still got out even though the snake was over 7 months old and no longer a baby. When I put baby snakes in a rack I fold up newspaper and put it under the box so that it is raised up and made even tighter with the top of the rack. Of course, that restricts air flow so I have to drill more holes to make sure my snake can breathe! It seems that every adjustment requires an additional adjustment! The work never ends, and if you think your work is done I bet something will go wrong while you are sitting back relaxing thinking that all is well! Be careful out there fellow snake keeper! It is all in the details!! …read more
Read more here: King Snake

I recently took my daughters to their first reptile show. Once inside they were drawn to a booth with dozens of mounted rats and mice along with rat bone necklaces and mouse skull jewelry. I allowed each of my girls to select a specimen, and as I discussed the terms of the price with the two mouse women a long line formed behind me. I watched as everyone in the line attempted successfully to sell their dead rodents. The herp show had gone green and was recycling dead feeders! I learned that there was a demand for dead snakes too! My favorite item was a jumbo rat mounted on remote controlled wheels. I could sure have some fun with that! …read more
Read more here: King Snake

A reprieve….I have a day’s reprieve. It’s raining outside, Frankie is hanging out inside his greenhouse, I get to sit and write a Frankie Tortoise Tail.

New problem in the Frankie’s Backyard Paradise.

Two years ago when we moved here our neighbor let us know we had a fruit tree in our yard. The excellent tree that shades the back porch is some sorta exotic fruit tree that I had never hear about. I kept an eye on it that first year yet no flowers or fruit every appeared.

Frankie loved eating the non-toxic year round green leaves that fell in the yard. Pretty much, except for the excellent shade and delicious leaves I quit paying attention to the tree.

…..until this December. Tiny lovely white flowers began adorning the tree. What tree blooms in the middle of the winter?

The Loquot Tree does.

Not only does it bloom in the winter, it’s one of the very few trees that produces fruit in the winter.

Curiously I watched as the fruits begin forming. By January the little green fruits were thumb size. In February they begin to ripen into yellow luscious fruits.

Fruits are a no-no for sulcata tortoises. The fruit sugar wrecks havoc with the tortoise digestion system evolved for a scant grassland diet. Sugars cause intestinal bacteria imbalances, and contributes to the dreaded bladder stones.

Just say, “No,” to fruit Frankie. Just say, “No!”

Frankie camps out under that Loquot Tree like a beggar.

First thing in the morning I head out to the tree and pick up anything fallen from the night before.

Doesn’t matter. Frankie haunts the tree like a Florida retiree on a beach.

Frankie under the Loquot Tree

Took just a couple of days to realize I was missing all the “pre-nibbled” fruit dropped to the ground by birds. Bits of fruit fall the ground hidden by grass and dirt and only the sharp nose of a tortoise can find the little sweet morsels.

And then there were the seeds. For barefooted me its like stepping on Tic-Tacs. I know they are there. I can feel them. The panic came when I realized that Frankie was eating the seeds.

An internet search reveals the seeds may or may not be poisonous, depending on the source. Thanks, Internet.

Time for Poop Patrol. I dissect three previous days’ poop. Yep. Frankie is eating the pits.

Good news: Frankie doesn’t chew. Bad news: Frankie swallows.

It’s been wait and watch.

Fruits been falling for three weeks. Frankie isn’t dead yet.

Still not taking chances. I am outside sweeping, raking, picking up the fruit all day long. I have to be vigilant. Frankie is.

Frankie does his morning bask and a quick …read more
Read more here: Turtle Times

By Herp News

A new fossil reptile that lived 250 million years ago in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, southernmost Brazil has been discovered by an international team of researchers. The species has been identified from a mostly complete and well preserved fossil skull.

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Read more here: herpetofauna.com

By Herp News

Imagine exploring a wooded site along an Alaska stream or lake for evidence of animals. Maybe you’ll see moose prints in the soil or a bit of wolf fur in a berry bush. But some species don’t leave footprints. They still leave a clue. It’s their DNA.

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Read more here: herpetofauna.com

By Herp News

Separated by several hundred kilometers from its next of kin, a new blue-tailed monitor lizard unique to the remote Mussau Island has been described. Given a Latin name meaning ‘isolated,’ it is the only large-sized land-living predator and scavenger on the small Pacific island.

Go to Source

…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com

By Herp News

A gene in snails that determines whether their shells twist clockwise or anti-clockwise has been discovered by a team of international researchers. It could offer clues to how the same gene affects body asymmetry in other animals including humans, they report.

Go to Source

…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com

By Herp News

A new study has called for a change in the way we manage bycatch — to better monitor the unintentional catching of sea turtles by commercial fishers. The number of turtles caught in a single fishery or year may not seem to be a cause for concern, but even low levels might place pressure on a species when considered across fisheries and over multiple years, say the authors.

Go to Source

…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com

By Herp News

A new species of snake has been identified in Europe. The researchers were able to demonstrate that the “Iberian Grass Snake” does not constitute a subspecies of the wide-spread common Grass Snake as previously thought, but rather a distinct species.

Go to Source

…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com

By Herp News

Marine turtles experienced an evolutionary windfall thanks to a mass extinction of crocodyliforms around 145 million years ago, say researchers.

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…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com

By Herp News

As the natural forests in Ethiopia is already less than 3 percent of what it once has been, the banana frog species, dwelling exclusively in the southwestern part of the African country, is exposed to a great risk of extinction. Through their survey, a research team have extended its range, thus making the first steps to saving the charming frogs.

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Read more here: herpetofauna.com

By Herp News

Using head shapes and genetic analyses, researchers have recommend that six groups of subspecies of the western rattlesnake be elevated to full species status.

Go to Source

…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com

By Herp News

Researchers have discovered a new species of extinct worm lizard in Texas and dubbed it the ‘Lone Star’ lizard. The species — the first known example of a worm lizard in Texas — offers evidence that Texas acted as a subtropical refuge during one of the great cooling periods of the past.

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Read more here: herpetofauna.com

By Herp News

Coral snake venom carries significant neurotoxicity and human injuries can be severe or even lethal. Despite this, antivenom treatments are scarce due to challenges collecting adequate amounts of venom needed to produce anti-elapidic serum. Exciting new research uses synthetically designed DNA to produce coral-snake antivenom.

Go to Source

…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com

In our celebration of all things venomous on Friday, this little rough-scaled bush viper (Atheris hispida) in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user eekster26 is looking forward to the weekend! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

Upload your own reptile and amphibian photos photos at gallery.kingsnake.com, and you could see them featured here! …read more
Read more here: King Snake

What a stunning Leopard Gecko in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user Eve! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

Upload your own reptile and amphibian photos photos at gallery.kingsnake.com, and you could see them featured here! …read more
Read more here: King Snake

Still with well defined facial markings, this black-breasted leaf turtle is about a quarter grown.
Have you ever wanted to kick yourself in the butt for getting rid of a particular herp or for passing by the opportunity to purchase a given species. On several occasions I have done both and regretted it for a long time after.

For example, I regret not acquiring a photo of the Javan tubercled or dragon snakes when they were being offered. It is true that they have proven difficult (read that impossible) to keep as captives but there has to be a key to that problem somewhere.

Of the herps that I am most upset at allowing myself to be talked out of was and still is my 2 pairs of black-breasted leaf turtles, Geomyda spengleri spengleri.

There are several Asiatic turtle species of which I am fond, several members of the genus Cuora among them, but IMO none compare with this little leaf turtle.

This is not because of color. This leaf turtle is a variable but often dingey brown above with very pronounced posterior carapacial serrations. The yellow(ish) rimmed plastron is mostly black. The skin is also brown with the only noticeable highlight being the stark white irides of the protuberant eyes.

So, if it’s not color what is it about these four inch long Asian turtles that is so enchanting? One word—personality. Once acclimated this turtle, naturally alert, quickly becomes tame– actually outgoing—and seems contemplative. It reminds me in more ways than one of our little bog turtle but outdoes the boggy in each aspect…

Time to close. I’ve almost talked myself into another purchase.

Continue reading “Black-breasted Leaf Turtle” …read more
Read more here: King Snake

Is this Irian Jaya Jag in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user StonedReptiles bright enough for you? Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

Upload your own reptile and amphibian photos photos at gallery.kingsnake.com, and you could see them featured here! …read more
Read more here: King Snake

In high school I got my hands on Barbours book about Snakes in Kentucky and will never forget gazing at the picture of the Corn Snake and learning that a small and isolated population of these snakes occurred in Kentucky. Little did I know that the names of the other students who checked out that book would be my future bosses and co-workers at The Louisville Zoo, or that my friend Phil Peak and I would one day focus in on this serpent and spend countless hours in the counties that seemed so far away and foreign to me at the time.

It took some effort to locate my first specimen by the time that I was in my 20’s, but once I began to figure them out I was able to locate well over 100 of them in a very confined area. Phil and I were able to establish a small group of these snakes in captivity and we donated babies to educational facilities across Kentucky. We also gave them to people in our local Herp Society so that they could be used in presentations, and also so that our local people would not feel the need to go down and remove additional specimens from the wild. Phil and I had a lot of questions about this isolated population of snakes so we began to record as much information about each specimen as we could. In addition to blotch and scale row counts we were also able to determine when they emerged, when they bred, when they laid eggs, when the babies hatched, and when the adults went back underground to spend the winter. After compiling all of our data we began the process of publishing our work in a scientific format. This process was long and complicated for us, and we were fortunate to meet Danna Baxley who came onboard with our efforts as a co-author and helped us organize the work in a way that was presentable and acceptable to the newly formed Journal of North American Herpetology where it was published in 2015. To anyone interested in the scientific paper, here is a link to the PDF file that can be found on the Center For North American Herpetology website: http://www.cnah.org/pdf/88314.pdf

It is difficult to fully describe everything that was involved in this whole process in the short format here, so I will close it out by saying that the journey from my high school library all the way to being published in a scientific journal was a long and interesting experience that has left me grateful to the local people of rural Kentucky and to my friends Phil Peak and Danna Baxley whose knowledge and patience made possible what I could not have done on my own.
…read more
Read more here: King Snake

Crocodilians come out of the egg sassy, like this Cuvier’s dwarf caiman in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user sk8r009 give us a serious case of the “awws”! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

Upload your own reptile and amphibian photos photos at gallery.kingsnake.com, and you could see them featured here! …read more
Read more here: King Snake

Many McGregor’s pit vipers are strongly patterned.
This is another of today’s choose your name species. This beautiful and variable pit viper from the Philippine islands of Batan and Sabtang (perhaps introduced to other locales) has gone from its 1913 described name of Trimeresurus mcgregori (named for the collector of the first specimen who just happened to receive and survive a bite) to Trimeresrus flavomaculatus mcgregori, then to Parias mcgregori, and now back to the starting name, T. mcgregori.

This is one of the more variably colored pit vipers, ranging from solid brown to a pure silvery white and having many shades of yellow and a few differing patterns between those 2 extremes. It is adult at about 3 feet in length. It is an oviparous species.

Protected in its Philippine homeland and the relatively few captives having proven problematic to breed, this beautiful pit viper is not a frequently seen species in collections. As would be expected, when on the rare occasions this taxon does become available, the prices asked are often out of range for all but the most dedicated of venomous keepers.

Continue reading “McGregor’s Pit Vipers” …read more
Read more here: King Snake

These hatchling Galapagos Tortoises in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user jerry d. fife give us a serious case of the “awws”! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

Upload your own reptile and amphibian photos photos at gallery.kingsnake.com, and you could see them featured here! …read more
Read more here: King Snake

By Herp News

Coral snake venom carries significant neurotoxicity and human injuries can be severe or even lethal. Despite this, antivenom treatments are scarce due to challenges collecting adequate amounts of venom needed to produce anti-elapidic serum. Exciting new research uses synthetically designed DNA to produce coral-snake antivenom.

Go to Source

…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com

In our celebration of all things venomous on Friday, what an amazing close up of the Hagen’s pit viper in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user knotsnake ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

Upload your own reptile and amphibian photos photos at gallery.kingsnake.com, and you could see them featured here! …read more
Read more here: King Snake

The old standby, Wagler’s viper, Tropidolaemus wagleri, Thailand.
A decade or so ago, the Wagler’s viper, Tropidolaemus wagleri, once thought to be just a very variable snake species, was determined to actually be a species complex. Researchers have now elevated several of what were long considered simply geographic or color variants of the Wagler’s viper to full species status. This has, of course, rendered the Wagler’s viper, itself, much less variable, but definitely no less interesting.

Besides T. wagleri of Thailand and West Malaysia the genus now contains:

Hutton’s pit viper, T. huttoni (a poorly known species from southern India)

Mindanao pit viper, T. philippinensis (a genetically separable Wagler’s viper lookalike from Mindanao)

Keeled green pit viper. T. subannulatus of the Philippines and Borneo (as described, possibly a species complex)

Broad-banded temple pit viper, T. laticinctus, of Sulawesi.

The alternate name of temple viper (applied to at least 2 of the species) seems to have originated due to the abundance of T. wagleri near the Temple of the Azure Cloud in Malaya.

If you search old literature or Google the species, you will undoubtedly see photos of people, old and young alike, often near the Temple of the Azure Cloud, holding Wagler’s vipers barehandedly. In my opinion this is unwise in the extreme. Admittedly this snake, nocturnal by nature, is relatively placid and reluctant to bite in the daylight hours. They are far less apt to allow indiscriminate handling after dark. It is to the best interests of all herpers (and especially yourself) that you not become an expensive and controversial snakebite statistic.
Continue reading “Wagler’s Vipers” …read more
Read more here: King Snake

By Herp News

Using head shapes and genetic analyses, researchers have recommend that six groups of subspecies of the western rattlesnake be elevated to full species status.

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…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com

So precious! We love hatchling photos, like this awakening Gecko in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user SA! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

Upload your own reptile and amphibian photos photos at gallery.kingsnake.com, and you could see them featured here! …read more
Read more here: King Snake

How cute is this Pacman Frog in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user doobie119 ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

Upload your own reptile and amphibian photos photos at gallery.kingsnake.com, and you could see them featured here! …read more
Read more here: King Snake

The supraocular areas of this northern Colombian boa baby are barely darkened.

For many decades Colombian boas, Boa constrictor imperator, were a major component in the American pet trade. In fact, they were the dominant and least expensive subspecies available. I purchased my first baby Colombian boa back in the early 1950s from Quivira Specialties Company in Topeka, Kansas. It cost me $4.65 plus postage. Yep—that was 4 dollars and 65 cents. You could buy a “red-tailed” boa for a couple of bucks more but they were less readily available and why would one need a boa with a redder tail that that borne by the Colombian (actually imperator is found from northern Mexico to northwestern South America) subspecies anyway?

What is a B. c. imperator? The call is pretty much made by the shape of the dark head marking. On this subspecies the longitudinal central marking ostensibly had a lateral projection to each eye. In reality the lateral projections could vary from well-defined to nearly absent. They were often represented by the supraocular scales being darkened but not connected to the longitudinal central mark. These projections are lacking on the more southerly forms. The red of the tail of imperator may vary from blackish-red in northern Mexico to dusty red in northern Colombia.

Boas, escaped or deliberately released, were known to have been established in South Florida since the 1960s. They were and are largely restricted to a small area of Miami. Of variable appearance. Some have the head markings and pale red tails that define the northern Colombian boas while others lack even vestiges of the horizontal head projections and have rich red tails suggesting a more southerly origin.

And since I recently lost all pix of Miami boas when a hard drive crashed, I guess it’s time to try my luck once more.

Continue reading “Colombian Boas and a Mention of Miami” …read more
Read more here: King Snake

By Herp News

In the past two decades, water frogs have spread rapidly in Central Europe. Using a new statistical model, researchers have now been able to show that local species such as the Yellow-bellied Toad and the Common Midwife Toad are suffering from the more dominant water frogs.

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Read more here: herpetofauna.com

As you can see here in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user mjmullis , there is no doubt where the name came from! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

Upload your own reptile and amphibian photos photos at gallery.kingsnake.com, and you could see them featured here! …read more
Read more here: King Snake

Three cheers for one of the best reptile pets, the Bearded Dragons here in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user Rick Millspaugh ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

Upload your own reptile and amphibian photos photos at gallery.kingsnake.com, and you could see them featured here! …read more
Read more here: King Snake

This action alert just came in from USARK. Oregon has the ability to change laws through a rulemaking process which is faster, however reduces our time to respond.

ACTION ALERT Oregon state: Comment by March 4.

The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW) has proposed some rule changes which will negatively impact both native and exotic animal keepers. The changes may even harm the animals by requiring sterilization of animals that are rarely, if ever, sterilized. While good intention may be the basis for these proposals, ODFW may not be aware of the negative impacts associated with the new rules.

One big change is that it will be illegal to keep animals listed under the federal Endangered Species Act (ESA). This list includes many non-native species that have been kept and bred in the U.S. for many decades, hence, not affecting wild populations. That list includes not only herps like Radiated tortoises, but many macaws, other birds, fish and even chinchillas. which are commonly kept as pets.

View the full ACTION ALERT at USARK’s website here. …read more
Read more here: King Snake

Hey mamba, mamba verde! What a great shot of the Western Green Mamba in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user fangfatale ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

Upload your own reptile and amphibian photos photos at gallery.kingsnake.com, and you could see them featured here! …read more
Read more here: King Snake

By Herp News

A gene in snails that determines whether their shells twist clockwise or anti-clockwise has been discovered by a team of international researchers. It could offer clues to how the same gene affects body asymmetry in other animals including humans, they report.

Go to Source

…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com

This young gator is getting a start on the weekend a day early in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user goini04 ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

Upload your own reptile and amphibian photos photos at gallery.kingsnake.com, and you could see them featured here! …read more
Read more here: King Snake

By Herp News

Separated by several hundred kilometers from its next of kin, a new blue-tailed monitor lizard unique to the remote Mussau Island has been described. Given a Latin name meaning ‘isolated,’ it is the only large-sized land-living predator and scavenger on the small Pacific island.

Go to Source

…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com

By Herp News

A new study has called for a change in the way we manage bycatch — to better monitor the unintentional catching of sea turtles by commercial fishers. The number of turtles caught in a single fishery or year may not seem to be a cause for concern, but even low levels might place pressure on a species when considered across fisheries and over multiple years, say the authors.

Go to Source

…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com

By Herp News

A new species of snake has been identified in Europe. The researchers were able to demonstrate that the “Iberian Grass Snake” does not constitute a subspecies of the wide-spread common Grass Snake as previously thought, but rather a distinct species.

Go to Source

…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com

Hope you have a happy hump day with a little help from this cute Spotted Turtle in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user allen! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

Upload your own reptile and amphibian photos photos at gallery.kingsnake.com, and you could see them featured here! …read more
Read more here: King Snake