Can you remember a day before kingsnake.com?

Do you remember a day before kingsnake.com?

I do, and I don't even have to think very hard to do so.

Not only was there no kingsnake.com, there were no computers, either. I can remember those long ago days when my herp interest was fueled by monthly price lists brought to us by the now-struggling USPS.

One of the first companies I can remember was Quivira Specialties. Owned by Charles E. and May D. Burt, it was from this Topeka, KS, wonderland that I purchased my first Texas horned lizard (85c), green anole (65c), neonate boa constrictor ($4.65), Mexican jumping beans (I don't remember the cost), and dozens of other natural history-related items. And all were delivered to me for pennies via the USPS!

Over the years other companies came and then disappeared, leaving in their wake collections of orange, pink, tan, fluorescent green, and bright blue catalogs that listed herps and are now considered collector's items.

But back to Quivira for a moment. Besides their price lists, Quivira Specialties left another legacy. For the last 50+ years Italian wall lizards, Podarcis muralis, and Western (European) green lizards, Lacerta bilineata, escaped and established, have bred in Topeka. To this day the former can be easily found and, although you'll have to work harder to find them, pockets of the beautiful green lizards continue to exist.

More photos under the jump...

A pair of Italian wall lizards: A female Western (European) green lizard:

Author, photographer, and columnist Richard Bartlett is one of the most prolific writers on herpetological subjects in the 20th century. With hundreds of books and articles to their credit, Richard and his wife Pat have spent over four decades documenting reptiles both in the field and in captivity. For a list of their current titles, please visit their page in our bookstore.