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.
Tuesday, November 13 2012
 Where on your post-rattlesnake bite to-do list is "update Facebook status"? For a California teen who nearly died from six rattlesnake bites, it was right after "get in car to go to hospital."
From ABC News:
(Sixteen-year-old Vera Oliphant) said she was in a fog, her eyesight and her consciousness fading. How she got to the house, she cannot fully recall. “I was feeling numb and paralyzed. I had black vision and I saw bubbles. It felt like needles were stabbing me… it burned so hard and it felt like a bomb just exploded in me. It’s really hard to describe,” she said.
“I struggled to get my key out, and I was too weak to ring the bell. I desperately tapped at the window and cried, ‘Help me,’ and that’s when my uncle took me to a hospital 15 miles away,” said Oliphant.
On the way to Sharp Grossmont Hospital in La Mesa, Oliphant was somehow able to put a post on her Facebook page: “i got bit by a rattle snake & now i,m about to go to l.C.U .. it hurts like a ___ & my leg is paralyzed ._.”
Soon after, she went into anaphylactic shock twice and lost consciousness four times. She arrived at the hospital in the nick of time.
What's next, a Tweet saying, "Am being mauled by lions. Hurts. #shouldneverhaveclimbedintothebigcatenclosureatthezoo"?
Monday, November 12 2012
This day, while we are honoring those that fought for our freedom, lets not lose sight of the fact that the fight for freedom continues everyday, both abroad and domestic.
The Future
As you wake up with the morning , the sun on your face, your stomach growls with hunger so you get out of bed and make your way downstairs to the kitchen to make some breakfast. You pull some ingredients out of the fridge and begin to prepare and cook. As you smell the aroma of the slab of garden burger with soy cheese, sizzling in the pan and banana muffin in the toaster oven, you begin to reminisce about a breakfast of eggs, bacon, sausage, ham, and a tall glass of milk…none of which you can ever eat again. As you sit and eat your drab breakfast, you grab your tablet to read the latest news. You still find it difficult to navigate through the local news webpage on this thing and just wish you could hold a printed newspaper again. The headline article you see show’s a picture of a squadron of law enforcement cars in front of a house, a man laying face down with his hands behind his head in the front lawn, surrounded by what looks like a swat team, weapons drawn and pointed at the man. Another person you see walking into the house, thick with body armor from head to toe. The caption reads “Man found harboring illegal canines, now faces life in prison”. You look over to the counter and see the picture of you with your dog, Chewy, from years before and tears fill your eyes as you remember your companion of 10 years that was taken and euthanized, well before his time. You try to choke down your breakfast but find it difficult between the plain food and the lump of emotion in your throat.
Well, it’s time to get ready for work…so you go get dressed in your synthetic fiber pants and shirt with your wool-free socks and sweater, grab your synthetic non-leather briefcase, get into your Karma hybrid, leather-free car and head off to work. Luckily, you are driving very slow and cautious to avoid the wildlife on the road. You see flashing lights up ahead and proceed with care. As you drive by, you notice a car off to the side of the road with the front end damaged and windshield cracked. You see a dead young deer about 50 feet in front of the car and the driver is handcuffed in the back of the police car. You think to yourself, glad that isn’t me because it is a minimum 1 year in jail and $5,000 fine for injuring or killing an animal on the roadway.
You arrive at work and because you didn’t eat most of your breakfast, you can’t wait till lunch time. Fast forward, It’s lunch time and your starving so you leave immediately. You decide to spoil yourself with a much deserved treat, and head over to a local restaurant that, if you know the right people, will sell you a hamburger. Of course, that hamburger will cost you $60 because they are illegal. As you drive into the parking lot, you notice that it is empty. You walk up to the door where you see a big notice posted stating that this establishment has been condemned and is scheduled for demolition after being found in violation of the Animal Consumption Act. The ACA makes the consumption of all Animal parts and byproducts illegal and violation of any part of the act is a felony. The ACA is a measure that was proposed by SHELA, (Society for the Humane and Ethical Liberation of Animals, a collaborative organization comprised of multiple Animal Rights Organizations). This measure was controversially passed and is enforced by SHELA-LE, a federally mandated, law-enforcement branch of this organization staffed with government appointed officers from all branches of law enforcement and the military.
Well damn, It looks like it is off to a fast-food drive thru for another Tofurky sandwich with tomato, lettuce, and Vegenaise.
By the end of the day, your body aches from sitting in front of the computer all day, your head hurts and your eyes strained from looking at the monitor. Sometimes, you just wish you could work with a stack of papers again instead of this blasted computer, but paper is now a very rare commodity due to the heavy taxation put on it thanks to environmental groups.
You had to work late and know you have a long, cautious drive home due to flourishing deer populations, now that hunting is banned in the United States.
You finally make it back home and your stomach is in knots from hunger so you go straight to the kitchen. You are sick of eating fruits and vegetables and tofu, but you have no choice. You walk over to the counter to grab an apple in the bowl right next to that picture of you and Chewy your faithful canine companion. Your face turns red from anger as you remember the details of the day that SHELA-LE pulled into your neighborhood with their caravan of “Death Wagons” as most people referred to them. You are outraged knowing that you had registered Chewy with your local Animal Control, like a good responsible citizen. Once the federal laws were passed outlawing the captivity and enslavement of all living creatures, you knew it was only a matter of time before they came for your best friend. They came and knocked on your door, you sat there holding Chewy, praying they would leave if they thought you weren’t home. Chewy let out a bark….and then you heard the man at the door request the battering ram to enter the premises. You reluctantly opened the door and began to berate the people standing on the front step, calling them soul-less monsters and the devils minions. They were not even fazed by your outrage and ordered you to step aside or be arrested for obstruction. They barged their way into your home to seize your pet. You hear the screams and cries of your neighbors as other SHELA-LE teams are forcing their way into homes and taking their animals too. Chewy, barking at the strangers entering his domain, is violently noosed and dragged out of the house, to the vehicle waiting in front. You were frozen at the thought that anyone could so coldly break the bond you built with this animal for 10 years and emotionlessly kill another living creature. You were so overcome with rage and fear, you couldn’t even speak to say goodbye to Chewy. Before you know it, he’s loaded into the back of the wagon and you know that he is dead before they even drive off to the next house.
The pain is just as real now as it was then. You feel a puncturing, stabbing pain, you feel light headed, sick to your stomach, and a hot flush rushes through your body as though you had spontaneously combusted. As the tears stream down your cheeks and the ache envelopes your heart, you wonder to yourself…how did the world come to this? How did these organizations come to such great power and the government become their puppets? You think back to 15 years ago, when you saw posts all over Social Media of people with exotic animals begging for help to defeat laws banning exotic pets which, if passed, would force them to give up their beloved pets. Did the same things happen to them as happened to me and my Chewy? Could they possibly have felt the same pain when their exotic pets were taken away and destroyed? They said they would be coming after our dogs and cats next, and after agriculture and hunters, but you didn’t believe them. Instead, you believed all the scary news reports and articles telling you that they are trying to protect you and save the animals from horrible situations, the same things they said later about my Chewy which couldn’t have been farther from the truth. You realize that you have no one to blame but yourself for believing all the hype of these extremist organizations, and for not doing something more to stop it back when you still had the opportunity.
J. Potash
Thursday, November 8 2012
 "Sensitive" is probably not the word that springs to mind when you think of a crocodile's jaws, but it turns out they're more sensitive to vibration and touch than a human fingertip.
From a Discovery report on a study in the Journal of Experimental Biology:
"We didn't expect these spots to be so sensitive because the animals are so heavily armored," co-author Duncan Leitch said in a press release. Leitch, a graduate student, performed the studies under the supervision of Ken Catania, a professor of biological sciences at Vanderbilt University.
The technical name for the spots is "integumentary sensor organs" or ISOs. Scientists over the years have speculated that they held all kinds of functions, from secreting oil to detecting electrical fields. A study in 2002, however, suggested that they detected ripples made by water, so that led to the latest research.
"This intriguing finding inspired us to look further," Catania said. "For a variety of reasons, including the way that the spots are distributed around their body, we thought that the ISOs might be more than water ripple sensors."
Read the full story here.
Wednesday, November 7 2012
 The 36th International Herpetological Symposium has announced the first confirmed speakers for its 2013 event, to be held in New Orleans, Louisiana, July 31-August 3 at the Astor Crown Plaza.
With three days of presentations on herpetology, herpetoculture, and reptile veterinary medicine, the symposium is in its 36th year of connecting hobbyists, scientists, educators, and zoo professionals. Confirmed speakers for the 2013 event so far include noted herpetologists and herpetoculturists Charlie Painter, John Cann, Danté Fenolio, Ph.D, Tell Hicks, Vince Scheidt, Fred Antonio, Steve Reichleing, Ari Flagle, Ed Pirog, and Karl Switak. I am also scheduled to speak at IHS 2013, and will be discussing the NRAAC organization and its annual reptile and amphibian law conference. Attendees of this educational event will receive free admission to the amazing Audubon Zoo, the Aquarium of the Americas, and the Audubon Butterfly Garden and Insectarium
For up to date information on scheduling, hotel accommodations, and to register to attend, please visit the IHS at their brand spanking new web site at http://www.internationalherpetologicalsymposium.com.
See you on Bourbon Street!
Monday, November 5 2012
New kingsnake.com classifieds launch Dec. 1
There's a whole new kingsnake in testing now! The new version of the kingsnake website will focus on reptiles and amphibians and the community from a local perspective, with news and events, local breeders and businesses, and, of course, local classified ads broken down by state. The all-new classifieds will be quicker and easier to use, as well as mobile- and tablet-friendly, and will feature a new layout, new search engine friendly URLs for things like individual ads, and a mobile version supporting IOS, Android, BlackBerry, Bada, Windows Phone, palm webOS, symbian, and more. The new classifieds ended beta testing this month, and will launch Dec. 1. Watch for updates!
Year-end housecleaning
We're doing some year-end housecleaning on kingsnake.com , removing or archiving older projects and content, combining some forum and classified ad categories, discontinuing some advertising platforms, and changing the general look and feel of the site while retaining its functionality. Expect to see some changes over the winter break, but plan on kingsnake.com being a leaner, cleaner, faster-loading site come spring!
kingsnake.com advertising sale
kingsnake.com will have a one-week holiday advertising sale starting Friday morning on leaderboard, full, and medium rectangle banners, as well as on storefront/business directory listings and reptile event listings. The sale starts at noon Central Time on Friday, November 9, and will run until noon Central Time on November 16. Banners will be half price, directory listings $100 per year ($50 off), and event listings will be $50 each ($50 off). Watch for the link in kingnsnake.com's header starting Friday, and give your holiday advertising a Christmas goose!
kingsnake.com site coordinator moves on
Longtime staffer and volunteer Cindy Steinle has moved on to other opportunities, and all of us at kingsnake.com would like to wish her success. For many years she has been an important part of our community and our family, and we will miss her. If you have an outstanding kingsnake.com related issue requiring attention please contact us at communityreview@pethobbyist.com.
NRAAC 2013 in Washington, D.C.
Planning has started for the 2013 National Reptile & Amphibian Law Symposium & Workshop, to be held in the Washington, D.C., area. PIJAC and the ARAV have signed on to co-host the event with the National Reptile & Amphibian Advisory Council (NRAAC). Discussions have been opened regarding co-hosting with the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA), Partners in Amphibian and Reptile Conservation (PARC), and the Association of Fish & Wildlife Agencies (AFWA), and so far are looking favorable. Once stakeholder input has been received, it is hoped that a location and date will be determined and announced for the event, probably sometime in early December.
Saturday, November 3 2012
 After years of problems from weather to oil spills, it appears that the Florida Loggerhead nesting numbers are booming!
Loggerhead nesting statewide was almost the highest since monitoring began in 1989, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission said Friday. In total, surveyors counted 58,172 loggerhead nests on the state's “index” beaches, second only to the peak seen in 1998.
Just five years ago, nesting on those same beaches hit a low of 28,074 and prompted widespread concerns about the status of the turtle.
“We're pleased to see this increase, but we recognize that loggerheads, and other sea turtle species, still face many challenges,” Blair Witherington, a commission research scientist, said Friday.
The majority of loggerhead nesting in the United States — 90% — occurs in Florida, especially along the east coast.
The even better news is that nesting season is still going until mid-November. To read the full article, click here.
A group of juvenile Desert Tortoises has been released in Nevada in efforts to track their movements to make relocations more successful in the future.
"Habitat destruction is one of the biggest threats facing desert tortoises in the wild," said Jennifer Germano Ph.D., post-doctoral researcher at the Desert Tortoise Conservation Center. "Currently we are using translocations as an experimental tool to help minimize some of the impacts to tortoise populations. Tracking this group of young tortoises will allow us to better understand how these animals respond to translocation, which will help us improve recovery efforts for this species in the future."
A transmitter has been placed on each of the tortoises to allow researchers to track the movements and health of the juvenile reptiles (ranging in age from 3 to 8 years). Translocations have recently been recommended for tortoises impacted by regional habitat disturbances due to energy project development and as a tool to augment depleted populations. Through this effort, researchers hope to better understand what factors improve long-term survival for individuals and how they can improve the tools they use for the conservation management of this species.
To read the full article, click here.
And last, the grillnet industry is on a course to continue killing sea turtles despite the Leatherback's listing as state marine reptile in California.
Longlining along California’s coast has been banned due its high bycatch of non-target animals, including federally protected marine mammals and endangered species.
The California drift gillnet fishery targets swordfish and thresher shark using nets that stretch a mile in length. But obviously this fishing method collects life indiscriminately from the ocean, resulting in the death or injury (a death sentence in the wild) of more than 130 protected whales, dolphins, seal and sea lions and thousands of other sharks and marine mammals, according to the Sea Turtle Restoration Project.
Anything taken aboard other than a swordfish or shark is dumped back into the ocean – dead, alive or dying.
“Curtains of death, in the form of the California driftnet fishery, should be abolished in California waters and need to be phased out as soon as possible,” biologist and executive director of SeaTurtles.org, Todd Steiner said. “Sea turtles, sharks and whales are all being hammered by this fishery that targets high-mercury seafood species that are largely unfit to eat.”
To read the full article, click here.
Thursday, November 1 2012
 Sometimes we think government regulators are out to get our hobby. But the more I talk with them as individuals, the more I realize some of them simply don't understand how we feel about our pets.
That word -- "pets" -- pretty much sums up the issue, in fact. While I was at the National Reptile and Amphibian Legal Symposium, I had a conversation with one of the US Fish and Wildlife representatives, who had listened to my impassioned comments on general pet owner issues relating to the addition of species onto the Lacey Act. It turns out she was flabbergasted to hear that we reptile people see these animals as our pets, and not as a commodity.
As government regulation and a bad economy combined to threaten the reptile community, we as hobbyists, breeders, and keepers did a pretty good job of talking to our legislators about the financial impact of bans and restrictions. That was a pretty smart thing to do, particularly with more conservative lawmakers who are very attuned to the plight of small businesses.
But we've done a terrible job of talking about how we feel about our animals, and that's hurt us.
Most people who own reptiles keep them as pets, not as a business. It's their beauty and personality, not any prospect of financial gain, that make them important to us.
In my conversation with the regulator, I could see she was really struggling to understand. So I changed "Burmese python" to "cat," and gave her the same scenario. She instantly realized where our passion and anger over the rule change came in. Just in an instant, the realization of leaving behind a beloved pet made all the world of sense.
Reptiles may not be dogs and cats, but to those of us that love and keep them, they are as dear to our hearts. That's something we need to keep talking about.
|