Table of contents for February 2025 in Practical Reptile Keeping

Understanding people’s perceptions of snakes worldwide, with the aim of reducing the number of bites and deaths resulting from encounters with the reptiles is underway. The so-called “Under the Snakefluence” study involves surveying of people in more than 20 countries to better understand public perceptions and fears about this group of reptiles, as well as assessing how best to educate people about snakes in order to promote safe coexistence. Owen Bachhuber, a researcher in California Polytechnic State’s (Cal Poly’s) Physiological Ecology of Reptiles Laboratory (PERL), is co-managing the project with Australian Ecologist Dr. Christina Zdenek, and University of Queensland’s Poppy Wyndam. Other team members include Arizona State University geography and sustainability Professor Kelli Larson; Australian National University sociology Associate Professor Gavin Smith; and Cal Poly biological sciences Professor Emily Taylor.…

Mosquitoes are able to survive prolonged droughts by drinking blood, which helps to explain how their populations quickly rebound when it finally rains, according to a new study into these remarkable insects, carried out by biologists at the University of Cincinnati (UC). Researcher Christopher Holmes led a study examining how two species of mosquito known for infecting people with diseases such as malaria were able to survive for nearly three weeks without rain. Unexpected results The findings could help explain why the incidence of infection from mosquito-borne illness does not always decline during droughts. While there may be fewer mosquitoes, those that survive bite more often. “We’re finding that mosquitoes bite people more than we imagined, unfortunately,” Holmes explains. “And mosquitoes appear to be benefiting from climate change as winters…

It is not always easy to distinguish between salamanders and newts, with the crocodile newt (Tylotriton verrucosus) for example also being described as the mandarin salamander. As a general guide, salamanders tend to spend more time on land than in water, compared with newts. Being amphibians however, they are still tied to moist areas, with many species occurring in temperate regions, and particularly in North America. Salamanders can be divided into two groups, with the family Cryptobranchidae comprised of several giant species, which can reach up to 2m (6.5ft) long, that live in Japan and China, plus the bizarre North American hellbender (Cryptobranchus alleganiensis), which is also dull in colouration, being predominantly brownish. In contrast, the widely kept members of the family Salamandridae are much more colourful, but therein lies…

These rather bizarre-looking frogs are found in the rainforests of southeast Asia, where they live on the forest floor. They are relatively large in size, growing up to about 12.5cm (5in) in length. Their unusual appearance helps them to hide away unnoticed in the leaf litter, while being able to observe their surroundings. Their horns and eyes protrude above the surface here, allowing them to seize any invertebrates and other potential prey that stray within reach. The horns themselves are simply folds of skin. Malayan horned frogs also have swellings called tubercles on their bodies, and these may have a sensory function. This species is sometimes available in the hobby, but unfortunately, it has not proved to be easy to breed. This is partly because these frogs are inclined to…

The small brown frogs of the genus Colestethus known as rocket frogs or stream frogs are actually one of my favourites. Both names are eminently suitable for them, because they often inhabit stream beds and move between them in fast, rocket-like movements! What’s in a name? As time has passed, so the taxonomy of the family Dendrobatidae has undergone several changes with species being moved into new genera or transferred amongst existing ones. The most recent classification has given some clarity to the group, and the four Colostethus species that are most frequently kept have been split into several new genera on the basis of their morphology and molecular characteristics. One of these genera, Mannophryne, is made up of the members of the existing ‘Colostethus collaris’ group. Directly translated, ‘Mannophryne’…

Researchers at Lund University in Sweden have managed to analyse the soft tissue from a fossilised plesiosaur for the first time. The results show that the long-necked marine reptile had both smooth and scaly skin. This was probably so that it could both swim rapidly and also move along rough seabeds without injury. Plesiosaurs lived in the world’s oceans for much of the Mesozoic Era (203-66 million years ago). These reptiles, which could grow up to 12m (39ft) long, fed on fish and moved much like sea turtles using four paddle-like flippers. Until now, little has been known about the external anatomy of plesiosaurs. However, in this new study, the researchers managed to analyse soft tissue from this 183 million year old plesiosaur found near Holzmaden, Germany. An exceptionally rare…

The largest satellite tracking dataset of wild-caught juvenile sea turtles from the Gulf of Mexico, carried out over a period of 11 years, has highlighted new information about the lifestyles of these iconic marine reptiles, causing a radical rethink in terms of their behaviour. Researchers from the College of Sciences’ UCF Marine Turtle Research Group studied the dispersal movements of four juvenile sea turtle species, revealing that they may be active swimmers rather than passive drifters, during their early life stage known as the “lost years.” These findings challenge existing hypotheses and provide important data for assessing risks from human activity and informing conservation efforts. More effective conservation “One of the main findings is where these sea turtles are and where they go in this life stage because we haven’t…

While tortoises and turtles may be well protected from predators in their shells, this protection has come at a price. The original ancestors of turtles had a flexible rib cage, just as we do, and they took in atmospheric air in a similar fashion, with their rib cage expanding and contracting as they breathed in and out. Yet this situation has now altered significantly, because the ribs of chelonians (as tortoises and turtles are collectively known) have become locked into the shell, providing structural support but sacrificing their flexibility as a result. Tracking this development The question that has long fascinated scientists is how and when this transition occurred. Until recently, the oldest known fossil turtles, dating back about 215 million years, had fully developed shells, making it essentially impossible…

Varanus exanthematicus is a small to medium-sized monitor lizard or varanid native to Africa. It has a wide distribution south of the Sahara, extending across the continent from Senegal in the west to Sudan in the east, and is generally considered to be common. The species is popularly known as the savannah monitor lizard, and also as Bosc’s monitor, being named after the French scientist, Louis Bosc, who first described it in 1792. ‘Exanthem’, as reflected in the scientific name of this species, means an eruption or blister of the skin, and this in fact refers to the uneven scales called osteoderms that cover the neck and back of these lizards. Their skull and dentition are adapted to feed on hard-shelled prey and their teeth are quite blunt. The jaw…

There are many ways in which reptiles can be classified, starting with the conventional groupings, known as ranks. These progress as an example down from the family level through genus to species, and often to the most specific level in the taxonomic tree, which are subspecies. Then of course, there are the separate behavioural and environmental divisions that can be used, such as terrestrial and arboreal, or desertdwelling. In the case of snakes, however, there is another method that is rarely discussed, but which is critically important, when it comes to determining which species are safe, and those that deliver venom. These divisions are based on tooth structure. Although we cannot use this to put snakes into specific families, we can use it to group them into whether they are…

In a groundbreaking study, University of Florida (UF) scientists have utilised the large amounts of data collected by those charged with removing Burmese pythons from the wild. As a result, the scientists have now been able to provide critical insights about how to take these snakes most efficiently from the environment. Using the information to get answers They correlated survey outcomes, including python removals, with survey conditions, using statistical modelling. For example, the researchers examined if factors like the time of day or temperature impacted the chance of removing a python. They also analysed whether the most surveyed areas aligned with the highest python removals. This allowed the researchers to identify regions where relatively few contractors are catching a lot of pythons, indicating more teams working in these locations could…

The evolutionary changes that allowed ancient pterosaurs to grow to enormous sizes have been pinpointed for the first time by palaeontologists in the Centre for Palaeobiology and Biosphere Evolution at the University of Leicester in the UK. Their findings have revealed a surprising twist: the ability to walk efficiently on the ground played a crucial role in determining how large the biggest flying creatures ever known could ultimately grow, with some developing wingspans measuring up to 10m (33ft) in diameter. A wide range The researchers uncovered a surprising level of variation, similar to that seen amongst living birds. This discovery indicates that pterosaurs were not confined to a life in the skies but were also adapted to a wide variety of terrestrial lifestyles, ranging from tree-climbing in early species to…

Snake breeding is a fascinating process and is the goal of many keepers, the majority of whom simply want to enjoy the experience, whereas a few decide to develop this pursuit further, turning it into their main source of income as professional breeders. Nevertheless, breeding snakes is certainly not as easy as putting two snakes of different sexes into a tub and expecting a positive result. In this short series, I will guide you through the process of how to breed snakes successfully, avoiding the pitfalls which lie ahead for the unwary. Considerations before starting out Before you attempt to breed your snakes, make sure that there is a market for the species that you intend to breed! For example, the number of ball pythons (Python regius) that have been…

With cold, wet winters, the UK climate is unfortunately not suitable for accommodating reptiles outside all year round. During the summer, however, reptiles can be kept outdoors for much of the day when the weather is fine and dry. This should bring both physiological and behavioural benefits for your pet, providing a potentially much larger environment which it can explore and investigate. Housing of this type may also reduce your running costs for heat lamps and lights at this time of year, helping you to save money on your electricity bills. To make matters even better, outdoor enclosures can often be assembled quite cheaply, sometimes even from recycled materials. They can also be planted up with vegetation in some cases, which will provide valuable variety in your pet’s diet. This…

I was born under the sign of Scorpio. It was on November 13th to be precise. And, yes, it was a Friday! I guess you cannot get much more unlucky than that. What is more, in a moment of madness some years ago, I even had a scorpion tattooed on my … but perhaps we won’t go into that! What I will say is that very few people ever got to see it. Scorpions are not insects, but arachnids, as revealed by their eight legs. They are therefore relatives of spiders. The earliest scorpions scuttled around on the floor of the oceans, before starting to colonise land. They are now present on every continent apart from Antarctica, ranging in size from just 0.9cm, up to 20cm (0.4-8in). Many people wrongly…