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Reptile & Amphibian
News Blog

Keep up with news and features of interest to the reptile and amphibian community on the kingsnake.com blog. We cover breaking stories from the mainstream and scientific media, user-submitted photos and videos, and feature articles and photos by Jeff Barringer, Richard Bartlett, and other herpetologists and herpetoculturists.

Saturday, September 25 2010

Study: Pythons won't survive outside of Florida

By Cindy Steinle
Sat, September 25 2010 at 21:20

It'll come as a disappointment to the media, no doubt, but it looks like giant Burmese Pythons aren't going to flood out of the Everglades and take over half the United States after all.

The Savannah River Ecology Laboratory (SREL) study is completed, and the findings are clear -- and no surprise at all to those who know anything about Burmese Pythons. From the Aikenstandard.com:

Of the 10 pythons tracked, none survived the winter, all succumbing to one of the most brutal winters on record in South Carolina.

"Our results suggest that Burmese pythons from the population currently established in Florida are capable of withstanding conditions substantially cooler that those typically experienced in southern Florida, but may not be able to survive severe winters in regions as temperate as central South Carolina," the researchers reported.
[....]

Half of the snakes perished on Dec. 11, when temperatures dipped to around 25 degrees. Of those initial deaths, none of the snakes had sought cover or refuge in the artificial dens. Three more snakes died between Dec. 17 and Jan. 4, each having failed to seek cover during subfreezing temperatures. The last two snakes were found in underground cover in mid January during an extreme cold spell.

The study initially drew fire from the reptile community because of the provision of artificial dens, food being provided as opposed to the snakes having to fend for themselves, and warmer temperatures caused by run-off from the local power plant. Even with all those factors taken into account, however, the pythons still did not survive the winter.

To read the study, click here. Just a warning, the full study will cost $34.00. The abstract, however, is presented in its entirety after the bump.

Continue reading "Study: Pythons won't survive outside of Florida"

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Mojave Rattlesnake UFC Part one

By
Sat, September 25 2010 at 19:06

Labor day, 2009 at about 9:45 am on a short walk, I came across this pair of adult male Movaje rattlesnakes (Crotalus scutulatus) battling it out. A definite rarity in the field, even for those of us who are herpetologists, wildlife photographers, or just avid reptile enthusiasts. I've been in the field a lot and have seen a LOT of snakes, but this is my first encounter with this behavior, although it is a well known part of their courtship behavior. Basically, during certain parts of the year, female rattlers are in their prime for courtship and the males know it (won't get too scientific here, because I'm not writing a book LOL) If a female is nearby, and one adult male encounters another, they may battle. The one who crawls away first is the looser... I watched these two go at it for at least an hour. In fact, there was a third male in the bush to my right, and i only saw him once, but he was bigger, and apparently uninsterested in this war. Once these two were done, I walked back out of the wash, and on my ran into a female snake 25 yards down from these guys. Maybe she was the one causing all this... who knows?

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Herp Report: Psychic Croc prefers pies

By Cindy Steinle
Sat, September 25 2010 at 18:38

A crocodile is trying to get in on Paul the psychic octopus' turf by picking not just the winners of a soccer championship, but an election.

From News.com.au:

Harry the Croc - who has already successfully predicted the winner of the Soccer World Cup (Spain) and the Australian Federal Election (not Spain) - eyed both flags warily yesterday before he settled on a winner.

Staff at Crocosaurus Cove dangled chickens from Collingwood and St Kilda flags as the crowd waited in tense silence for the reptilian Oracle to speak.

And he's no Saint. Almost predictably for a croc as big as Harry, he went straight for the Pies.

Harry then went on to pick the winner in the federal election. Of course the real giggle is that this is national news.

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Parthenogenetic Boa Constrictor

By
Sat, September 25 2010 at 08:24

The captive breeding in the Boa world is providing study data for the scientific community. A supremely beautiful Female Ghost Boa was bred this season with a Dominant or co-dominant pattern mutation Key West Boa. This female had the most massive ovulation I had this past season.

Her mate was this proven Key West Boa.

Together we expected them to make a wonderful litter of baby Boas that would all be het for Anerythristic. Half of those babies should have been Key West Boas and half of those would have been Hypo Key West Boas. However, the results were astounding. There were 19 babies total. Zero Key Wests among them. In fact the entire litter consisted of Anerythristic and Ghost Boas. In fact, all the babies are female as well pointing to the possibility of a Parthenogenetic litter.

Six of the offspring were either stillborn or deformed. They along with shed skin samples are being collected to send to Dr. Warren Booth who will do genetic analysis of the tissues to determine if in fact, as suspected, if this female produced these babies without a contribution from a male. This is a science experiment in the making.

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Herp Report: Money-making scheme best left unhatched

By Cindy Steinle
Sat, September 25 2010 at 06:27

Budding entrepreneur Cai Yong thought it would be great to hatch and raise up a large group of Cobras to make money off the venom extracted. Maybe he should have thought his business plan through a little more, because residents of his remote Xianling village were not pleased to find snakes everywhere, including the bathroom:

Starting at the beginning of this month, cobras were spotted in outhouse toilets, kitchens, front yards and the mah-jong parlour in the tiny farming village in Qijiang county in Chongqing municipality, south-western China.
'I saw one in the bathroom,'' said Zhang Suli, 47, the wife of a corn and rice farmer. ''I was scared, and I started screaming.''
The Mid-Autumn Festival holiday this week, when Chinese celebrate the season's harvest moon, has not been an auspicious one for the people of Xianling.
First, there was the cobras-gone-wild story, which veered between slapstick and terror. Then an apparent government clampdown followed, in which officials declared that most of the snakes had been captured and all was well, assertions that many locals did not believe.

More than half of the 3000 cobras have been confiscated, some are still loose. While Chinese officials state that, "All is well and there is nothing to see," villagers are still claiming to see the loose snakes.

A few things Cai Yong should have considered: Venom extractions must be done in a controlled environment. Venom removed incorrectly (this includes removals in the field) are not always viable for research; sterile controlled conditions are required. Proper storage of the specimens prevent damage. Not to mention the obvious danger of extracting.

To read the full article, click here. I could find no actual ID on the cobras, so I just used a pic of one of the many we met at Reptile Gardens.

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Friday, September 24 2010

Who are you?

By
Fri, September 24 2010 at 21:03

My husband, Paul, was cleaning up the garage when he asked me to come see something. When I went into the garage, he was pointing to the floor, "Who is this?" he said.

The 'who' was a big fat male leopard gecko. I picked him up and other than trying to bite me once, he was fine. I checked him over and other than missing a couple of toes on one foot, he looked good. His eyes were clear and bright, his weight was wonderful, and his tail was fat. He had some bright orange onm his back and tail

We weren't missing a big male, and hadn't lost one in the past. We know our neighbors and as far as I know, none of our neighbors have leopard geckos. So hmmm....

I wonder how much ground a big male can cover? I'm kind of curious that some of the outdoor cats didn't get him. Or the coyotes.

But more importantly, why our garage? Did he scent our leopard geckos? Or was it just happenstance?

How can one gecko create so many questions. Too bad the little guy can't talk.

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Thursday, September 23 2010

Herp Report: Rise in Mojave bites prompts study

By Cindy Steinle
Thu, September 23 2010 at 22:24

Cochise County can be a dangerous place. A rise in serious Mojave Rattlesnake encounters is prompting pharmacy students to learn more about their venom and possible find a change in its composition.

From the Arizona Daily Wildcat:

As Part of their senior year project at the College of Pharmacy, students Kelvin Richards and Ryan Curtis teamed up with Daniel Massey, Pharmacy resident at University Medical Center. By Studying the Mohave rattlesnake, the most common species in Cochise County, and comparing it with Pima County's they will determine if those Mohave rattlesnakes venom is becoming increasingly potent.

The research began in July, and is a project Massey has wanted to do for three years. "It's a personal passion of my own," Massey said. "I've been collecting snakes... I have pictures since I was 10 years old with rattlesnakes." He met the students through the Arizona Poison and Drug Control Information Center, which is supporting the collaborative research.

The venom of 19 Mohave rattlesnakes have been collected by a third party which provides them with the GPS location of the animals in order to make sure the snakes are from the area they are examining.

Longer recovery, more trouble stabilizing patients and unusual lab results led to the study. To read the full story click here.

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General Meeting Announcement: 9/29/10

By
Thu, September 23 2010 at 21:43

In June, 2010, Steve and Gery traveled with a group of veterinarians to Ecuador. They spent three nights in the rain forest of eastern Ecuador, seeing the abundant local wildlife including herps, birds, monkeys and insects. The group then flew to the Galapagos Islands, where they boarded a ship, visited 10 of the islands and saw giant tortoises, land and marine iguanas, lava lizards, three of the four endemic snake species, and many birds, sea lions, insects and fish. They crossed the equator eight times. Their presentation will showcase descriptions and hundreds of photos of the native wildlife and scenery.

Steve and Gery are long time (decades) members of the CHS. Both are veterinarians with special interest in herp patients, and both have been active field herpers for many years.

The regular monthly meetings of the Chicago Herpetological Society take place at Chicago's newest museum -- the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum. This beautiful new building is at Fullerton Parkway and Cannon Drive, directly across Fullerton from the Lincoln Park Zoo. Meetings are free and open to the public. For more information click HERE.

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