By Herp News
Researchers have uncovered evidence of turtle specimens at the 400,000-year-old Qesem Cave site, indicating that early humans enjoyed eating turtles in addition to large game and vegetal material. The research provides direct evidence of the relatively broad diet of early Paleolithic people.
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Read more here: herpetofauna.com
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By Herp News
Researchers have uncovered evidence of turtle specimens at the 400,000-year-old Qesem Cave site, indicating that early humans enjoyed eating turtles in addition to large game and vegetal material. The research provides direct evidence of the relatively broad diet of early Paleolithic people.
…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com
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By Herp News
Two endemic tree frog species, not recognized by science until now, have been identified in broadleaf forests in the island country of Taiwan. Unlike their siblings from mainland China and Southern Asia, they demonstrate reproductive behavior, characterized with egg-eating tadpole embryos feeding on eggs, while still inside the mother’s womb. What told them apart initially, however, were their gemstone-colored eyes.
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Read more here: herpetofauna.com
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Loving this Dumeril’s basking in the sun for a photoshoot in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user liljenni brighten your Monday! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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We give all venomous species some love on Rattlesnake Friday, especially these baby Cobras in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user SouthernHerp !? Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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By Herp News
Satellite data on artificial nighttime light in Florida from 1992-2012 was compared to robust data on sea turtle nesting for the same period, showing regulations have cut light levels to the benefit of turtles. Still, adult females are impacted by skyglow as distant as 100 km, researchers found. The research shows the value of satellite data as a conservation tool.
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How cute are these two beardies in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user TazziesMommy !? Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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This is the striped phase of the tiny greenhouse frog.
If I concentrate, on almost every warm, humid night, the twitterings and chirpings of greenhouse frogs, Eleutherodactylus planirostris, can be heard in our anuran friendly Alachua County yard. The calls are high pitched, soft, and more reminiscent of the stridulations of some cricket species than of an amphibian. In other words, it might take a dedicated effort to hear and have the tinkling notes you are hearing register as the vocalizations of a frog.
Apparently the first notice of the greenhouse frog, a West Indian species was in 1875 when it was noted in Miami-Dade County. Since then it has spread pretty much throughout the state and has been heard or found in Alabama, Georgia, southern Mississippi, southeastern Louisiana, and eastern Texas, as well. It has also been found in heated greenhouses in more northerly states.
This little reddish-tan to gray with reddish overtones frog is fully grown at from ¾ to 1 ¼ inches snout-vent length. It occurs in 2 pattern forms, a striped and a mottled.
There being no free-swimming tadpole stage this species does not require water to breed. The 6 to 26 eggs are deposited in moist leaf litter, beneath moist ground debris, in the cups or between the leaves of bromeliads, and other places that offer similar protection from predators and drying. Metamorphosis is rapid, with the tiny froglets hatching when conditions are ideal in as little as 13 days after egg deposition.
This little tiny frog eats the tiniest of insects and is not known to compete seriously with any native species. An interloper though they may be, they are always welcomed when we happen upon them.
Continue reading “Greenhouse Frogs” …read more
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This Smooth Earth Snake, Virginia valeriae, is a repeat offender. For the last several years it has been busted utilizing artificial cover! Most often found hiding beneath logs, leaf litter, or other debris Smooth Earth Snakes are fossorial (live underground) and give live birth to as many as 12-14 live young in the late summer.
A scar, blemish, missing tail tips and eyes can often serve as proof that the same individuals have set up shop and thrive for years under cover at study sites. This is another reason to take time to inspect and photograph even the smaller and most common species at your sites!
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By Herp News
Scientists have discovered a new species of chameleon in Tanzania.
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Read more here: herpetofauna.com
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There is nothing Common about this frog (Rana temporaria) in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user kus! See what we did there? Get it? Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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Gotta love the sassy nature of the Schneider’s smooth-fronted caiman in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user cpipes! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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Tiny legs having one toe each identify the one-toed amphiuma.
One minute I was standing upright on the edge of a semi-dried creek’s backwater. Then one more step I was thigh deep in soupy mud and if there hadn’t been a bank edge sapling for me to grab I’d have probably been face down in the goop. Kenny was doubled over with laughter. I didn’t know whether to try and back out or to flounder forward another step. In fact, right then I was wondering exactly why we were here. I had expected mud. Just not so quickly (read that unexpectedly) and not so deep. And I had expected to search for the target beast, a one-toed amphiuma, Amphiuma pholeter, by standing high and dry on the bank and dragging the small meshed net through the goo.
This was a colder than cool Florida day in February, and although it was nothing like a Maine winter day would have been I was uncomfortable, and knew that before I could get back in the car I had to get even more uncomfortable cleansing at least most of the mud off in the colder-than-cool fast moving stream ahead of me. Also, since I had fully intended to stay high and dry I had not brought a change of clothes with me. Well, darn it!
So let’s see now—I was in thigh deep mud that seemed to promise it was even deeper ahead of me, Kenny, dry and fairly warm, was busily scooping through the liquid mud with his net, and I had to get at least partially cleaned off. Stream, here I come.
Although I never did get to net up a one-toed amphiuma (aka mud eel) on that trip, it mattered not. While I was trying to extricate myself Kenny got a couple of the little critters, and pix were possible.
Continue reading “The real Mud Eel” …read more
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By Herp News
Snake-hunting Secretary Birds use the force of five times their body weight to stamp on and kill their prey. Researchers have discovered that Secretary Birds can kick with 195 Newtons, which is equivalent to five times their own body weight, when they attack and kill their prey. And the contact time between the bird’s feet and the snake is delivered extremely quickly — on average just 15 milliseconds.
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Read more here: herpetofauna.com
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By Herp News
Wild Aegean wall lizards found on Greek islands choose to sit on rocks that better match their individual coloring, new research shows. This improves camouflage and so reduces the risk of being attacked by birds when they sit out in the open, raising the intriguing question of how the lizards know what color they are.
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By Herp News
Wild Aegean wall lizards found on Greek islands choose to sit on rocks that better match their individual coloring, new research shows. This improves camouflage and so reduces the risk of being attacked by birds when they sit out in the open, raising the intriguing question of how the lizards know what color they are.
…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com
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We hope the vibrant colors in this gorgeous Panther Chameleon in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user vinniem1210 brighten your Monday! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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By Herp News
Using genetic methods, scientists have discovered that the introduced pond slider is capable of reproducing in Europe even outside of the Mediterranean region. The turtle, originally from North America, poses a significant threat to the native turtle fauna and, according to the authors of the study.
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By Herp News
Using genetic methods, scientists have discovered that the introduced pond slider is capable of reproducing in Europe even outside of the Mediterranean region. The turtle, originally from North America, poses a significant threat to the native turtle fauna and, according to the authors of the study.
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By Herp News
During a field trip in the mountains of central Chile, scientists discovered a new endemic iguana species. Noticeably, it was characterized by size and scalation, compared to the rest of the local lizards. However, what initially grabbed the biologists’ attention was its coloration. Not only was it unlike the already described ones, but also appeared surprisingly consistent within the collected individuals, even regardless of their sex.
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Read more here: herpetofauna.com
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Happy Rattlesnake Friday with this in situ shot of a Timber in Tennessee in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user herpermike1 ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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How impossibly adorable is this Yunnan firebelly toad (Bombina maxima) in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user HanP ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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Many buff-striped keelbacks are less colorful than these.
It was back in the 1980s that I made the acquaintance of the natricid (garter, water, and related snakes) species.
Chris had received a shipment from Bangkok, and along with the cobras, kraits, and pipe snakes, was a bag identified only as “keelbacks.” Upon seeing the designation I immediately thought Rhabdophis, a keelback with a virulent toxin. But when Chris opened the bag it contained something very different—a keelback species that I didn’t recognize.
Several of the snakes were similar to each other in body color, being an olive tan (with vaguely bluish interstitial skin) and having a buff colored dorsolateral stripe along each side. The light stripe was indistinguishable on the neck but very apparent on the posterior three quarters of the snake. The heads of these were also olive-tan with black vertical interstitial markings on the upper labials. Most bore broad black bars from lower side to lower side but where the dark bars crossed the light dorsolateral stripes, the latter were markedly lighter. The black barring was most prominent anteriorly, faded posteriorly and was absent from the rear of the body and the tail.
But then there were the odd 3. On these the patterns were the same but the colors differed greatly. On these the head and neck were a rich orange. The scale sutures of the yellow upper labials were black. The ground color was rich olive tan and the dark cross barring was hardly any darker.The light stripes were buff anteriorly but shaded to a rather bright yelliow posteriorly. And trhe interstitial skin of the body was pale but definite blue.
Can you say “pretty?” I sure did, and these 3 snakes were with me for many years, thriving on a diet of ranid frogs.
Strangely, although I have since seen several shipments containing this species, I have never again seen the orange headed form. Beginner’s luck I guess.
Continue reading “Buff-striped Keelback” …read more
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Hope you enjoy the classic Pied Ball Python in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user js! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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Because I can, this morning I walked outside and across the backyard in 30º F. weather, a cup of coffee in hand, so I can check on Frankie snoozing in his warm 72º F greenhouse.
That’s right. Frankie sleeps in his new greenhouse…outside, not in my house but in his new Frankie shelter, even on really cold nights when otherwise I would haul his huge shell into my house to sleep in the bathroom.
Frankie is no longer the King of Cardboard. Frankie can now enjoy the winter in his own outdoor abode, his new greenhouse, in warmth and security.
He no longer snuggles with cardboard. Frankie is nestled shell deep in insulating hay. His Kane Livestock pad attached to his back wall, an oil heater near the front of his cave, and most important, a heated floor that keeps his toes toasty.
Frankie is the now Grand Gent of the Greenhouse.
Since the greenhouse was installed a month ago, the beginning of December, Frankie has only spent two nights inside our house and only because the greenhouse had not proven itself in freezing weather. After a few modifications last week, Frankie’s greenhouse keeps him safe and warm into the 30’s.
The greenhouse solves so many problems. We can now open the guest room to real humans as Frankie no longer lives in the bathroom during the winter. Greg can visit the gecko room with no fear of stepping in Frankie poop. No more mopping up gallons of Frankie pee off floor tile. The bathroom and laundry room don’t smell like a horse barn. Carpet cleaning with our Green Steam Machine is reduced to a couple times a year.
But I miss Frankie. Many days it’s just too cold for Frankie to walk around the yard. He spends many hours tucked up inside his greenhouse. Luckily, the greenhouse is big enough for me to sit in my own chair and enjoy the warmth with him.
So, cup of coffee in hand I head out to visit the Grand Gent of the Greenhouse. The low last night was 30º F, and confident as I am in the greenhouse, I still want to see how Frankie is doing.
Cup of coffee, and a camera in hand. Of course.
Walk gingerly across the lightly frosted grass. Open the greenhouse door and immediately I am greeted with a flush of warmth. I can’t see Frankie because he is deep within his box. An electric oil heater covers the open space into his box.
The temperature gauge on the wall says its 71º F. I grab the heat temperature gun so I can check to see exactly how warm Frankie is. I pull the oil heater back so I can peek at Frankie.
Awe. Frankie is so cute when he is sleeping. Hi, ya, Frankie! Frankie’s shell reads a toasty 74º F,
Frankie peers out at me through …read more
Read more here: Turtle Times
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Under construction…literally the page and Frankie’s house is under construction so check the date posted on the title for new additions…to the post and to Frankie’s house.
To accommodate Frankie’s increasing size and weight we decided to go really, really big with the hopes this may be the last installment of Frankie houses.
Goals: Fit the growing Frankie, handle the brief but cold coast temperatures, have an area that has the comfort and security of a cave, and keep him happier outside all winter long. I wanted Frankie to be “in the light” during the day so he isn’t so miserable during cold spells, and when the temperatures are good Frankie can get outside without help. Our solution is a green house.
We decided on a Sunglo Greenhouse Kit, the Lean-To 5X7X7 (actual 5′ 1.5″ x 7′ 6″ x 7′ &”), priced at just over $2,600 (his last cost just over $1,000 and lasted about five years). This was an investment and, hey, we can grow winter veggies.
The Sunglo included fan, thermostat and shutters. Greg planned customizing the basic model for Frankie.
The one big add on: radiant floor heating. We believe this will make the Frankie shelter a 100% suitable for year round habitation.
I may move in with him. The greenhouse has electricity and WIFI.
Here is the installation
Footings as required by greenhouse specifications. Can’t say much except Greg and I are doing all the work ourselves….mostly Greg. I make the sandwiches.
Once the footings were down and cured it was time to set up and install the radiant floor heat.
Insulation was set on the bare ground.
Insulation is placed in preparation for the 120 volt heating cables.
Greg picked up the parts for the radiant heat floor from a company called WarmlyYours. He assembled everything himself. Greg set the heating cables evenly on a metal grid and attached electrics in preparation for the cement pour.
Grid with the heating cables are set on spacers on the insulation.
Once everything was in place the cement was poured and left to cure.
A week later the cement was cured enough to start the build. Frankie did a test walk to make sure.
Foundation brackets were drilled into the cement.
Drilling into cement was about the hardest part of the whole installation. Picking up the right tools and bits helped but it …read more
Read more here: Turtle Times
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This gorgeous Shinisaurus crocodilurus in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user lavadusch will hopefully be the brightest part of your day! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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This is a subordinate male rainbow lizard from a Miami population.
The northeastern South American country of Colombia was once the predominant shipper of neotropical wildlife to the United States. Birds of all manner (cock-of-the-rocks to parrots), mammals (wooly monkeys to ocelots to anteaters), amphibians (remember the Colombia horned frog?), reptiles (boas to red-footed tortoises, to rainbow lizards).
Rainbow lizards?
So, How Does One Accurately Describe a Rainbow Lizard?
Well, if I chose to try, describing the little 8-striped (the vertebrals strip is divided!) brownish and greenish female would not be awfully difficult. But to describe the blue, yellow, green, brown (and several hues between) of a dominant male could prove to be a chore and would probably wind up being inaccurate anyways. So, to make things easy, allow me to suggest that you determine the origin of the example in question. As it now stands the lizards making up what is currently known as Cnemidophorus lemniscatus are probably a species complex. They will differ in color and pattern at different locales. Color intensity also varies according to the status of the male within a given population. Dominant males are much more colorful than subordinate males.
So have at it. At least you’ll be more satisfied with your description of the example at hand. That’s a certainty! Oh, by the way, the lizards depicted here are from a Miami-Dade County population that probably contains genes from several Colombian origins.
Rainbow lizards, a teiid, are adult at 10-12 inches in total length. Although the primary diet is insects and other invertebrates these lizards also eat seeds, berries, and blossoms.
Continue reading “Rainbow Lizards” …read more
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As you can see from our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user TomDickinson, garter snakes come in an amazing variety of colors! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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By Herp News
Brazilian torrent frogs may use sophisticated audio and visual signals to communicate, including inflating vocal sacs, squealing, and arm waving, according to a new study. The authors suggest their results indicate that Brazilian torrent frogs have one of the most diverse repertoires of visual and audio displays known to frogs, indicating that communication in torrent frog species is likely more sophisticated than previously thought.
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Read more here: herpetofauna.com
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By Herp News
Brazilian torrent frogs may use sophisticated audio and visual signals to communicate, including inflating vocal sacs, squealing, and arm waving, according to a new study. The authors suggest their results indicate that Brazilian torrent frogs have one of the most diverse repertoires of visual and audio displays known to frogs, indicating that communication in torrent frog species is likely more sophisticated than previously thought.
…read more
Read more here: herpetofauna.com
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Happy Rattlesnake Friday from this Sidewinder in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user Uncloudy ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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By Herp News
A new study offers a glimmer of hope for some amphibian populations decimated by the deadly chytrid fungus: climate change may make environmental conditions for the fungus unsuitable in some regions and potentially stave off the spread of disease in African amphibian populations struggling to adapt to changes brought about by global warming.
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This little Retic has it’s eye on you in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user Steve_Ray ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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This is an adult female dusky ameiva in Miami.Until very recently this big lizard (to 22-24” total length, of which all but about 8” is tail length) was considered a dark (dusky) phase of the green and tan giant ameiva. A few years ago a closer look was finally taken at this impressive Central and South American teiid and it was found that rather than A. ameiva, it is actually Ameiva praesignis. At that time a common name of Borriguerro Ameiva, a long standing South American name, was suggested. However, since this lizard has long been known as the “dusky ameiva” in the USA, I suggest that this name be retained. Like the giant ameiva, the original examples in the Florida populations were shipped for the pet trade from Barranquilla, Colombia in the 1950s. Agile and fast, some escaped and were able to establish themselves in the benign climate of South Florida.
When the genus name of Ameiva is used as a common name, it is not italicized. Like other teiids (tegus and relatives) this lizard is usually active only on sunny days when it often remains active through the warmest hours. This alert and wary lizard will quickly dart into areas of dense ground cover or a home burrow if approached. Although omnivorous, this big lizard is primarily insectivorous and will dig insects from beneath the surface of the ground. Besides insects they consume all manner of small invertebrates as well as berries and other vegetation. Captives will accept pinky mice, and there is no reason to believe that those in the wild would not eat nestling mice or nestlings of ground nesting songbirds.
If kept captive this ameiva should be provided a spacious terrarium. I suggest they be provided with a brightly lit hot spot having a temperature of 110-120F. A thermal gradient having a temperature of 75F on the cool end should be provided.
Continue reading “Miami’s Ameivas – The Dusky Ameiva” …read more
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The cutest of our angry creatures, this great field shot of a Snapping Turtle takes the spotlight our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user anuraanman ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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Eastern Diamondback Rattlesnake Crotalus adamanteus
I travel to Florida with my family about every other year and only get to take one day to hunt snakes on each visit, so I am by no means an expert on the finer aspects of Florida snake hunting. Over the years I have been able to locate some really neat and even rare herps, but my favorite find of all time in Florida was this Collier county Eastern Diamondback Rattlesnake.
When I discovered this snake crossing a road I was totally unprepared. All I had was a cheap little pocket camera. I was wearing tennis shoes like a true tourist. I did not even have a snake hook, and I had to resort to using a baby stroller to pose this snake for pictures. There were tourists taking pictures of me using the stroller to pose this snake! I got several pictures and I guess this was the best one. I know it is not the best pose and not so great of an EDB image, but for me it is GREAT! When I look at it I remember seeing that big fat beast from at least 200 yards away and stomping the gas so I could get to it before it escaped. The snake struck at me repeatedly and I can only imagine what I looked like with that baby stroller. The sun was bright, and I even remember how the air tasted when I look at the picture. Sometimes I am unable to get the kind of picture that I am after, but years later when I am at home looking over things I am always happy when I see images I got that may have not seemed so good at the time. Sometimes being able to relive the experience and the memories is a better reward than taking a killer picture. Keep this in mind as you are out in your travels, and just keep your cameras rolling! …read more
Read more here: King Snake
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Fire Salamander – Gallery Photo by firereptiles
To help prevent a deadly fungus from killing native salamanders, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is publishing an interim rule tomorrow to list 201 salamander species as injurious wildlife and barring their importation into the United States and interstate trade of those already in the country.
The fungus Batrachochytrium salamandrivorans also known as Bsal or salamander chytrid, has wreaked havoc on salamander species overseas and poses an imminent threat to native salamanderpopulations. The fungus is not yet known to be found in the United States, and to help ensure it remains that way, the Service is publishing an interim rule that will take effect on January 28, 2016.
A species can be listed under the Lacey Act because it is injurious to the health and welfare of humans; the interests of forestry, agriculture, or horticulture; or the welfare and survival of wildlife or the resources that wildlife depend upon. In listing these species, the Service is responding to science that shows that Bsal is an imminent threat to U.S. wildlife.
For more information please visit this link http://www.fws.gov/injuriouswildlife/salamanders.html
…read more
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By Herp News
The Tsaratanana Massif –the highest mountain on Madagascar and one of the island’s most remote regions– is home to several indigenous species. Yet, the majority of these species remain unknown to science due to the fact that this woodland area is difficult to reach. Thanks to a European expedition to this area, however, a group of scientists has discovered, among other species, two new species of very elusive frogs that live on the forest floor.
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Read more here: herpetofauna.com
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This hatching Leopard Gecko is cute as a button in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user radar357 ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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