Researchers studying an emerging disease that is killing tadpoles in North America have found instances of the disease in tadpoles in Panama and the United Kingdom. The disease, called Severe Perkinsea Infection (SPI) has been killing tadpoles in the United…
All the information necessary for successfully keeping crested gecko lizards.
An 11-year-old Sulcata tortoise who has been suffering from metabolic bone disease since birth was outfitted with a custom wheelchair to help him move about more easily. George’s bones in his hind legs never fully developed, making it nearly impossible…
South Carolina has banned the importation of Argentine black and white tegus (Salvator meriane)and their hybrids into the state, and breeding of the species has also been banned. Current owners of the lizard must register and microchip their pets by…
A new frog species of the Litoria caerulea group has been discovered in Papua New Guinea that is chocolate brown in coloration. The frog, named Litoria mira, is native to New Guinea and its habitat consists of swampy lowland rainforests.…
A giant tortoise that was found in 2019 and thought to be an extinct species, is actually the species and is not extinct. Fern, the Fernandina giant tortoise (her founding is chronicled in the May/June 2019 issue of REPTILES magazine)…
This story appeared in the May/June 2019 issue of REPTILES magazine. There I stood, boots digging into the black crust of volcanic rock, looking out onto the edge of the world. The cooled, jagged lava beneath me shatters more like…
Poison frogs of the family Dendrobatidae get their poison from the leaf litter ants and mites that they eat. They aren’t born poisonous. Researchers with Stanford University, Harvard University, Cambridge Rindge and Latin High School in Cambridge, MA and Centro…
The Nature Conservancy announced today that it has released 12 Eastern indigo snakes (Drymarchon couperi) in northern Florida's Apalachicola Bluffs and Ravines Preserve (ABRP) in Bristol, in an effort to return the native reptile to the region that it has…
The University of Florida, in conjunction with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission will hold free Passive Integrated Transponder tagging days for your green iguana or tegu (and other non-native reptiles) to help owners to comply with the July…
As a proud tortoise owner, you know your reptile needs good nutrition to stay healthy and well but what does a balanced, complete tortoise diet include? “Tortoises need foods that are appropriate for their species, age and lifestyle,” said Dr.…
The San Francisco garter snake (Thamnophis sirtalis tetrataenia), a subspecies of Thamnophis sirtalis that is only known to exist on the San Francisco Peninsula in San Mateo County, got a boost in it habitat May 22 when the San Mateo…
An environmental organization cofounded by Leonardo DiCaprio this week announced that it will work, in partnership with the Galápagos National Park Directorate, Island Conservation and the local communities on the islands, to help restore, protect and rewild the Galápagos islands.…
A new study of how European colonization impacted the Guadeloupe Islands in the French Caribbean details how the arrival of Europeans caused half of the islands lizard and snake populations to go extinct. Dr. Corentin Bochaton and Professor Nicole Boivin…
An Indian snake that was first collected in the mid-19th Century and described first via snake skins in 1796, and named the banded racer (Argyrogena fasciolata), was in actuality a completely different species. Herpetologist Dr. Deepak Veerappan of the Natural…
The Turtle Survival Alliance (TSA) announced last week that it has captured, tagged and released the 99th and 100th alligator snapping turtle (Macrochelys temminckii) in Buffalo Bayou, located in Houston, TX. The 99th turtle, a 131lb male is nicknamed J.J.…
The Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources has proposed new restrictions on the keeping of native reptiles and amphibians, and would ban the keeping of box turtles completely, according to a report on Virginiamercury.com. While the proposal is targeted at poachers,…
If you haven’t seen a Solomon Islands giant webbed frog (Cornufer guppyi), you have got to see this beast of a frog. In April, pig hunters in the Solomon Islands captured what has to be one of the largest frog…
The United States Fish and Wildlife Service has denied protections for the Samwel salamander (Hydromantes samweli), Shasta salamander, (H. shastae), and Wintu salamander (H. wintu), though it is asking for the public to submit any information that may be relevant…
