12-09-2012, 01:10 PM
Volume # 12 Issue # 57 12/9/12
Publisher/Editor- Allen Salzberg
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“The Most Comprehensive - Readable Turtle Book Ever.”
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Table of Contents
1) Life history and the ecology of stress: how do glucocorticoid hormones influence life-history variation in animals?
2) Ontogenetic and individual diet variation in amphibian larvae across an environmental gradient
3) Orientation of migrating leatherback turtles in relation to ocean currents
4) Judge says golf can stay at Sharp Park (Territory of California red-legged frogs and San Francisco garter snakes)
5) Real Life 'Snakes On A Plane' Unfolds Over Egypt As Man Is Bitten By A Loose Cobra
6) Invasive Boa Constrictor Thriving on Puerto Rico
7) The Great Burmese Python Challenge: How Many Can You Kill? (Everglades)
8) Kane: Diving for Turtles-Lake Champlain, NY
9) Some in U. S. Congress oppose wider ban on big snakes
10) Hundreds of Reptiles Seized by Customs (Thailand)
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“THE TORTOISE” The Turtle Conservancy’s -For Members Only-New Periodical Publication (But it’s not just about Tortoises).
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1) Life history and the ecology of stress: how do glucocorticoid hormones influence life-history variation in animals?
1. Erica J. Crespi1,*,
2. Tony D. Williams2,
3. Tim S. Jessop3,
4. Brendan Delehanty4
Article first published online: 11/21/12, Functional Ecology
Author Information
1. 1School of Biological Sciences, Washington State University, Pullman, Washington, USA
2. 2Department of Biological Sciences, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada
3. 3Department of Zoology, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
4. 4Department of Biological Sciences, Centre for the Neurobiology of Stress, University of Toronto Scarborough, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
*Correspondence author. E-mail: erica.crespi@wsu.edu
Summary
1. Glucocorticoids hormones (GCs) are intuitively important for mediation of age-dependent vertebrate life-history transitions through their effects on ontogeny alongside underpinning variation in life-history traits and trade-offs in vertebrates. These concepts largely derive from the ability of GCs to alter energy allocation, physiology and behaviour that influences key life-history traits involving age-specific life-history transitions, reproduction and survival.
2. Studies across vertebrates have shown that the neuroendocrine stress axis plays a role in the developmental processes that lead up to age-specific early life-history transitions. While environmental sensitivity of the stress axis allows for it to modulate the timing of these transitions within species, little is known as to how variation in stress axis function has been adapted to produce interspecific variation in the timing of life-history transitions.
3. Our assessment of the literature confirms that of previous reviews that there is only equivocal evidence for correlative or direct functional relationships between GCs and variation in reproduction and survival. We conclude that the relationships between GCs and life-history traits are complex and general patterns cannot be easily discerned with current research approaches and experimental designs.
4. We identify several future research directions including: (i) integration of proximate and ultimate measures, including longitudinal studies that measure effects of GCs on more than one life-history trait or in multiple environmental contexts, to test explicit hypotheses about how GCs and life-history variation are related and (ii) the measurement of additional factors that modulate the effects of GCs on life-history traits (e.g. GC receptors and binding protein levels) to better infer neurendocrine stress axis actions.
5. Conceptual models of HPA/I axis actions, such as allostatic load and reactive scope, to some extent explicitly predict the role of GCs in a life-history context, but are descriptive in nature. We propose that GC effects on life-history transitions, survival probabilities and fecundity can be modelled in existing quantitative demographic frameworks to improve our understanding of how GC variation influences life-history evolution and GC-mediated effects on population dynamics
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2) Ontogenetic and individual diet variation in amphibian larvae across an environmental gradient
1. TIFFANY A. SCHRIEVER1,2,
2. D.DUDLEY WILLIAMS2
1. 1 Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
2. 2 Department of Biological Sciences, University of Toronto at Scarborough, Toronto, ON, Canada
*Tiffany A. Schriever, Department of Zoology, Cordley Hall 3029, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR 97331-2914, U.S.A. E-mail: tiffany.schriever@utoronto.ca
Freshwater Biology 12/3/12/ First Published Online
Summary
1. Variation among individuals within size or age classes can have profound effects on community dynamics and food-web structure. We investigated the potential influence of habitat disturbance on intrapopulation niche variation.
2. Amphibians occupy a range of lentic habitats from short-hydroperiod intermittent ponds to long-hydroperiod permanent ponds. We quantified ontogenetic diet variation and individual specialisation in wood frog tadpoles (Lithobates sylvaticus) and blue-spotted salamander larvae (Ambystoma laterale) to investigate the influence of hydroperiod on population niche width across a natural hydroperiod gradient using stable isotope and gut content analyses. In one of the few tests using larval forms, we tested the niche variation hypothesis, which predicts that populations with larger niche widths also have increased individual variation.
3. Our results support the niche variation hypothesis, indicating that more generalised populations exhibit higher within-individual diet variation. We report gradual changes in the relative importance of diet items, decreased dietary overlap and increased trophic position in L. sylvaticus throughout development. A. laterale became more enriched in δ13C and increased in δ15N throughout its larval period. We did not find a relationship between hydroperiod and niche parameters, indicating that niches are conserved across heterogeneous habitats. In contrast to most documented cases, we estimated low levels of individual specialisation in amphibian larvae.
4. Amphibians are an important link between aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems, whereby diet shifts can influence food-web structure by altering energy flow pathways and the trophic position of higher consumers, ultimately changing food-chain length.
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3) Orientation of migrating leatherback turtles in relation to ocean currents
Animal Behaviour
Volume 84, Issue 6, December 2012, Pages 1491–1500
• S. Gallia,
• P. Gasparb,
• S. Fossettec,
• B. Calmettesb,
• G.C. Haysc,
• J.R.E. Lutjeharmsd, +,
• P. Luschia, ,
• a Department of Biology, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy
• b Collecte Localisation Satellites, Direction Océanographie Spatiale, Ramonville, France
• c Department of Biosciences, College of Science, Swansea University, Swansea, U.K.
• d Department of Oceanography, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch, South Africa
During their offshore movements, leatherback turtles, Dermochelys coriacea, associate frequently with ocean currents and mesoscale oceanographic features such as eddies, and their movements are often in accordance with the current flow. To investigate how individual turtles oriented their ground- and water-related movements in relation to the currents encountered on their journeys, we used oceanographic techniques to estimate the direction and intensity of ocean currents along the course of 15 leatherbacks tracked by satellite during their long-distance movements in the Indian and Atlantic Oceans. For all individuals a non-negligible component of active swimming was evident throughout the journeys, even when their routes closely followed the currents, but overall the turtle water-related orientation was random with respect to current directions. For turtles in the North Atlantic, the ground-related movements largely derived from the turtles' active swimming, while in the Indian Ocean currents contributed substantially to the observed movements. The same pattern was shown when distinct parts of the routes corresponding to foraging bouts and travelling segments were considered separately. These findings substantiate previous qualitative observations of leatherback movements, by revealing that turtles were not simply drifting passively but rather swam actively during most of their journeys, although with a random orientation with respect to currents. Our analysis did not provide any indication that leatherbacks were able to detect the current drift they were exposed to, further highlighting the navigational challenges they face in their oceanic wanderings.
Highlights
► We estimate ocean currents along the routes of 15 satellite-tracked leatherbacks. ► We assess how individual turtles oriented their movements in relation to currents. ► The turtles swam actively during most of their journeys, even when following currents. ► Their water-related orientation was at random with respect to current directions. ► No indication was found that leatherbacks were able to detect current drift.
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4) Judge says golf can stay at Sharp Park (Territory of California red-legged frogs and San Francisco garter snakes)
SFGATE, Jill Tucker December 7, 2012
Snakes, frogs and fairways can coexist at Sharp Park Golf Course in Pacifica, a federal judge ruled this week.
The decision settles a 4-year-old feud between environmentalists looking out for endangered California red-legged frogs and San Francisco garter snakes and golfers hoping to preserve the historic 18 holes with ocean views.
Known as the poor man's Pebble Beach, the 80-year-old Sharp Park is owned by San Francisco, and the course is operated by the city's Recreation and Park Department.
It is also home to those frogs and snakes.
Environmental organizations including the Sierra Club, the Center for Biological Diversity and the Wild Equity Institute sued the city in March 2011, alleging course maintenance and golf carts were putting the animals in harm's way.
U.S. District Judge Susan Illston dismissed the case Thursday following a ruling by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service that determined that golf wouldn't jeopardize the endangered animals.
Plaintiffs' attorneys were not immediately available for comment.
The city will be subject to mandatory restrictions on pesticides, golf cart use, water pumping and other practices to limit the impact on the frogs and snakes.
The city plans to reconfigure the park, including moving some holes, improving drainage and linking two ponds that serve as red-legged frog habitat.
"This is a commonsense result," said Chris Carr of the Morrison & Foerster law office, which represented the San Francisco Public Golf Alliance, in a statement. "And it should lead to a period of cooperation in which San Francisco and San Mateo County can work together to restore habitat for the species, while preserving historic and popular public recreation."
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5) Real Life 'Snakes On A Plane' Unfolds Over Egypt As Man Is Bitten By A Loose Cobra
12/5/12, International Business Times, by Eric Brown
A real-life “Snakes on a Place” scenario broke out in the skies over Egypt Monday when a cobra bit a man during an Egypt Air flight from Cairo to Kuwait.
Samuel L. Jackson was not around to help an Australian pilot who found himself in a real life "Snakes on a Plane" scare.
The cobra broke loose on the plane after being smuggled aboard by 48-year-old Jordanian passenger Akram Abdul Latif, who owns a shop in Kuwait selling reptiles as pets.
Latif had attempted to smuggle the snake through airport security in his carry-on bag. Apparently, the attempt was successful until the snake got free on the plane, the Jordan Times Reports.
Once the cobra escaped from Latif’s bag, the reptile shop owner attempted to wrestle with the snake and force it back in his bag. Unfortunately for Latif, the cobra bit him and fled underneath his seat.
No other passengers were injured in the snake attack, but several reported seeing the cobra pass underneath their seats.
After the other passengers reported the snake on the plane, the Egypt Air flight immediately made plans for an emergency landing in the resort town of Al Ghardaqa, located on the Red Sea. The town is away from Cairo, where the flight originated.
At Al Ghardaqa, Latif was rushed to a hospital, but he refused treatment, stating the cobra bite was only a minor injury. For reference, the New York Daily News notes that “Experts say that in some cases the cobra's venom can kill a man in under 15 minutes as it destroys nerve tissue and causes paralysis and death because of respiratory failure.”
Apparently, Latif insisted on taking the snake with him to the hospital and later on to Kuwait once he was released.
“He was bitten in his hand and after we administered first aid he insisted on taking the snake with him to Kuwait,” an Egypt Air official told the Jordan Times.
Once Latif and the cobra were safely off the plane, the flight, with 90 passengers, continued on to Kuwait without further trouble.
Samuel L. Jackson was not available for comment on the incident.
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6) Invasive Boa Constrictor Thriving on Puerto Rico
Press Release USGS Newsroom 11/29/2012
In partnership with: Universidad Interamerican De Pureto, University of Massachusetts Boston
MAYAGÜEZ, Puerto Rico— Non-native boa constrictors, which can exceed 10 feet and 75 pounds, have established a breeding population in Puerto Rico, one that appears to be spreading, according to research published in the journal Biological Invasions.
While boa constrictors and two species of pythons have established invasive populations in Florida, this research is the first to document a large constrictor species established in the United States or its territories outside of Florida. The new population appears to be spreading from its likely point of origin in the western part of the island around the city of Mayagüez. In the last year alone, more than 150 boas have been found in the wild on the island.
The established boa constrictor population likely originated with the pet trade. Genetic studies conducted by the researchers indicate that individual boas on the island are highly related and that the population probably originated with a small number of snakes. First-hand accounts from local officials suggest that newborn boas were released in Mayagüez in the early 1990s.
"Experience has shown that island ecosystems are particularly vulnerable to snake invasions, and unfortunately Puerto Rico has no natural predators that can keep the numbers of these prolific, snakes in check," said USGS Director Marcia McNutt. "Humans were responsible for introducing this scourge to the island, and are the only hope for mitigating the problem before it is too late for the native species."
Two snakes found some distance from the expanding Mayagüez population share genetic markers with that population, suggesting that people might be intentionally or unintentionally moving the snakes around the island. Such movement could potentially increase the rate of spread of this invasive snake. Because the snakes are secretive and difficult to spot, the researchers suspect the population size is large.
“We’ve learned from dealing with other invasive snakes that understanding the source of these populations and preventing spread as soon as possible is important to protect ecosystems," said USGS scientist and study co-author Bob Reed. "Once non-native snakes become established across a large area, especially in densely forested areas, they become much more difficult to find and almost impossible to eradicate."
Private ownership of boa constrictors and most other snake species is prohibited in Puerto Rico because of fears of non-native snakes becoming established.
The paper, "Genetic Analysis of a Novel Invasion of Puerto Rico by an Exotic Constricting Snake," was authored by R.G. Reynolds, University of Massachusetts, Boston; A.R. Puente-Rolón, Universidad Interamericana de Puerto Rico, R.N. Reed, U.S. Geological Survey; and L.J. Revell, University of Massachusetts, Boston.
Contact Information:
U.S. Department of the Interior, U.S. Geological Survey
Office of Communications and Publishing
12201 Sunrise Valley Dr, MS 119
Reston, VA 20192
Robert Reed
Phone: 970-420-3044
Hannah Hamilton
Phone: 703-648-4356
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7) The Great Burmese Python Challenge: How Many Can You Kill?
By Terrence McCoy Thu., Dec. 6 2012 at 7:46 AM
Palm Baeach Broward Time Blog
From an Animal Planet Press Release
Let's rumble!
One month from now, something very unusual -- and very, very Florida -- will occur in the Everglades, representing a metaphoric clash of man and beast: the Burmese python challenge. Its requests are simple. Kill as many snakes as you can.
No, no, no. Don't worry. You don't need a hunting license or anything. Just your wits and, if possible, a sharp object. Preferably a giant knife for decapitating purposes. Bring the kids! Make this a family day. There are indeed educational opportunities to be had. The day of the challenge, January 12, will also feature a tutorial on how to "dispatch" the vermin, which apparently requires much wrangling and, ultimately, one dead giant snake.
Many of the specifics haven't been ironed out, said Carli Segelson, spokesperson for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission. As in: Just how, specifically, will a bunch of hunters trap and kill the animals? Is this dangerous? Does this event somehow channel the Florida ethos?
"I don't even know how to answer that," she said.
Instead we talked a great deal about dead snakes. And that the only good Burmese python is, in fact, a dead Burmese python.
And let's not coddle the snake. Its mass slaughter couldn't be more necessary, Segelson said. Over the past generation, the Burmese python -- an invasive species -- has decimated the Everglades' natural fauna. It has gobbled up millions of other animals unique to their environs.
And now, it's time to fight back. With knives and shotguns and something Segelson called a "captive bolt," which Wikipedia translates to a "device used for stunning animals prior to slaughter."
So mark your calenders, grab yo' huntin' knife, and get into the Everglades. The person who snares the largest snake will collect a grand prize of $1,500. And think of all the captive bolts you could buy with that.
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8) Kane: Diving for Turtles-Lake Champlain
12/04/12 Go to http://www.vpr.net/episode/54936/kane-d ... r-turtles/
to listen or download and there is a video
By Adam Kane, Produced by Betty Smith-Mastaler, Vermont Public Radio
(Host) Lately, commentator Adam Kane, Co-Director of the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum, has been reflecting on things lost and found - in Lake Champlain.
(Kane) The Lake Champlain Maritime Museum's dive team has a saying: the lake does not give up her secrets easily. Or to paraphrase a more popular expression, sometimes despite our best efforts working in her cold, dark waters, what happens in Lake Champlain stays in Lake Champlain.
For six years we've been working with a team studying the behavior of rare spiny soft shell turtles in Lake Champlain's Missisquoi Bay. Due to human disturbance, loss of habitat, and nest predation, this unique turtle is threatened in Vermont and Canada. For nearly a decade, a handful of turtles have been tagged with transmitters and followed to learn how best to protect them.
In the fall, these turtles burrow under the lake bottom to hibernate. Using the transmitters, each turtle's location is determined within a few feet. A diver then descends to the quiet and featureless lake bottom to search for the turtle's hiding place. When the diver finds a likely lump, they carefully dig up the large, often unhappily thrashing turtle. In an instant the peaceful dive becomes a heart pounding wildlife wrestling match. Fortunately the turtle's disturbance is swift; a few measurements and a fresh transmitter, and it gets released back into the lake for its winter sleep.
As usual, while diving this fall I took dutiful notes in my logbook, which is a Rite in the Rain number 373 (yes, I'm that particular about the brand and model). In these ever-present logbooks I record any secrets the lake cares to yield during dive projects, in this case each turtle's location, dive times, and distinctive turtle nature. There's the reclusive North Hero turtle who winters well south of the other turtles; year after year she shows particular irascibility at being dug up. Or the "River Turtle", who in the past hibernated in the Missisquoi River close to the hustle and bustle of downtown Swanton, but chose this year to sleep instead in Missisquoi Bay with her compatriots.
Though we've always eventually located all the tagged turtles, this fall went particularly quickly: we successfully located ten turtles in only two days. As the diving came to a close, I was buoyed by how quickly the lake had given up her secrets. For once, locating something in Lake Champlain had seemed relatively easy.
But the lake always strongly encourages humility.
When we got to shore my precious logbook was nowhere to be found. It had been inside my clipboard along with my camera and car keys. It must have fallen overboard. Frantic searching was followed by a desperate dive, to no avail.
Having spent a career looking for objects lost underwater, I knew the log was gone. And as the weak November sun set on Missisquoi Bay, I thought of my log sitting on the dark lake bottom, now an object of curiosity to its former subjects.
The lake does not give up her secrets easily after all - and sometimes she takes them back.
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9) Some in Congress oppose wider ban on big snakes
By William E. Gibson, Washington Bureau, November 29, 2012
WASHINGTON D.C. -- The monstrous snakes that have invaded the Everglades and gobbled up some of its endangered wildlife are Florida's problem, not cause for a nationwide ban, some Republicans in Congress declared on Thursday.
Their staunch opposition greatly diminishes the chances that Congress will approve a bill to broaden the ban on invasive snakes that was proposed by U.S. Rep. Tom Rooney, R-Tequesta, and supported by proponents of Everglades restoration.
Opponents cited evidence that these snakes die in cold weather and cannot move farther north to threaten other parts of the country. They said a nationwide ban on importation and interstate sales would thwart pet owners and pinch the livelihoods of sellers and breeders.
"Florida is handling a Florida problem that only exists in Florida," U.S. Rep. John Fleming, R-La., chairman of the House subcommittee on fisheries and wildlife, told witnesses at a hearing on Thursday.
The chairman mocked testimony that Burmese Pythons have rebounded from cold snaps, have killed several young children and could thrive in parts of Texas, Louisiana, Puerto Rico and semi-tropical U.S. territories. He also dismissed warnings that global warming will increase the range of deadly snakes and other invasive species.
"I think the worry, the threat, that in the next few years we're going to have reptiles on our doorsteps in Washington, D.C., is a little overblown," Fleming said.
A Florida member, U.S. Rep. Steve Southerland, R-Panama City, dismissed the proposed ban as "a solution in search of a problem." He said the bill amounts to an egregious attempt by an over-bearing government to rein in helpless small businesses, jeopardizing a $1.4-billion reptile industry.
"I'm dumbfounded," Southerland said. "We got bigger fish to fry here than to target businesses. It's open season on businesses. It's open season on enterprise, on freedom."
With as many as 100,000 snakes infesting the Glades, the U.S. Interior Department already has issued an administrative rule to ban importation and interstate sales of the Burmese python, northern and southern African python and the yellow anaconda.
Rooney and Everglades promoters hope to put that ban into law and expand it to include five more species: the reticulated python, boa constrictor, DeSchauensee's anaconda, green anaconda and Beni anaconda.
Environmentalists say these snakes kill endangered wildlife in Florida and undermine a multi-billion-dollar restoration of the Everglades.
"If we are trying to restore the ecosystem for wading birds adapted to the Everglades and we have invasives countering those measures, that's a big problem," Julie Hill-Gabriel, director of Everglades policy for Audubon Florida, said after the hearing.
She also warned that widespread publicity about pythons and other snakes in the 'Glades have discouraged tourism.
"We have some people no longer willing to visit because they are just afraid," Hill-Gabriel said. "The world knows the Everglades have a snake problem, and we need to show we are taking action."
The current ban and proposed expansion would not solve the immediate problem, which is how to eradicate the estimated 30,000 to 100,000 invasive snakes already in the Everglades.
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10) Hundreds of Reptiles Seized by Customs
Bangkok Post, 12/5/12 (No author given)
Customs officials intercepted more than 340 turtles and 65 snakes, geckos, and chameleons in two separate smuggling attempts at Suvarnabhumi airport yesterday.
The turtles were kept in 50 boxes transported from Chon Buri province to the airport early yesterday, said Yuthana Limkaroon, deputy chief of the Department of Customs.
The driver told the police that he was not aware the boxes contained protected wild animals, he said.
Mr Yutthana said PYS International Agency Limited, the export company, told customs the 50 boxes contained vegetables destined for Hong Kong.
It was the second-largest batch of smuggled turtles found by customs and wildlife authorities this year, Mr Yutthana said.
In April, authorities confiscated 500 turtles at the airport before they could be smuggled out of the country.
In another wildlife smuggling case, customs officials seized 65 geckos, chameleons and snakes which were hidden in the luggage of a 30-year-old Kuwaiti passenger.
The man was about to board a plane to Doha, Qatar. He was charged with attempting to smuggle wildlife out of the country without permission.
This rare turtle was among a large wildlife haul seized by customs authorities at Suvarnabhumi airport on Dec 4, 2012. (Photo by Somchai Poomlard)
The interceptions were made on the same day as Suvarnabhumi airport and the Freeland Foundation launched the iTHINK campaign to raise public awareness about wildlife protection.
Suvarnabhumi's deputy general manager Ittipol Boonaree said the airport has offered full cooperation in the fight against the illegal wildlife trade.
He said an average of 50 wildlife trafficking cases were intercepted at the airport per year.
"In one case, a wildlife trafficker tranquilised tiger cubs and put them in a suitcase with tiger dolls, but the airport authorities were able to determine they were real tigers," Mr Ittipol said.
"This case made us realise the smugglers will try every means to get these animals in and out the country," he added.
Steven Galster, Freeland Foundation's executive director, said the iTHINK campaign is part of an activity to promote the 16th Conference of the Parties to the the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora to be held in Bangkok in March.
The campaign will gather opinions from well-known people on why they think wildlife smuggling must be stopped.
"People know wildlife smuggling is not good, but there is no explanation why people should stop consuming wildlife products," he said.
"It is simply a case of getting across the message of why we need to change our behaviour."
Kristie Kenney, United States Ambassador to Thailand and a presenter of the iTHINK campaign, said wildlife trafficking is a global crime that all countries need to resolve together.
The US parliament has raised its concerns about wildlife conservation by raising awareness with the public, she said.
Damrong Pidech, former chief of the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation and also an iTHINK presenter, said the government had not done enough to crack down on the illegal wildlife trade and to ensure the protection of wild species.
He called on the government to provide more support to wildlife officials working in the field.
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More Great Books on Herps. Remember All profits go to Help Herpdigest
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Malformed Frogs: The Collapse of Aquatic Ecosystems, by Michael Lannoo, 270 pages, Original Price $65.00 Now $30.00 plus $6.00 S&H
(Classic Book on Outbreak of Deformed Frogs)
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Frogs & Toads Of North America-Photos of 100 frogs and toads and all their calls on a CD by Lang Elliott, Carl Gerhardt and Carlos Davidson, 350 pages, glossy, full color. List price $30.00 Now $19.95) Plus $6.00 S&H
Brush up on your Frog Calling ID Ability Now to Get Ready for Spring.
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Firefly Encyclopedia of Reptiles and Amphibians, 2nd Edition, General Editor Chris Mattison, 240 glossy pages, Oversize Book Once $50.00 - Now $30.00 Plus $12.00 S&H-
Great Holiday Gift for that Budding Herper in the House.
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The Lizard King, by Bryan Christy, 256 Pages, Hardcover-List Price $25.00 Sale $12.00 per book. $6.00 for S&H.
Movie Version in Works, They’ve already made Major Changes to Story - They’ve switched the USF&WS Officer who Goes After Mike Van Nostrand from a male to a female and calling it a romcom adventure story.
Read the original. The true story.
Summary of original story--Albino pythons, endangered lizards and other reptiles are the currency of an underworld as dangerous and lucrative as the drug trade. Freelance writer Christy's debut is an enthusiastic chronicle of the rise and fall of a lizard kingpin and the federal agent who pursued him. Mike Van Nostrand inherited Strictly Reptiles, an import-export business in Florida, from his father, Ray, turning it into a multimillion-dollar smuggling operation. Van Nostrand imported reptiles of all shapes and sizes, usually concealed in the suitcases or clothing of his mules, and sold them to collectors and pet stores. He exploited loopholes in the international treaty on endangered-species trade and paid off corrupt officials._____________
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Invasive Pythons in the United States- Ecology of an Introduced Predator
Michael E. Dorcas and John D. Willson, Foreword by Whit Gibbons
The first detailed, comprehensive study of this invasive predator
Page count: 176, 188 color photos, 8 maps, 1 table, 7 figures
Paperback, c2011, Was $25.00 Now Just $15.00 plus add $6.00 for shipping and handling.
With Hearings going on in Congress on Python Laws a Highly Timely Book
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Turtles of the United States and Canada by Carl H. Ernst and Jeffrey E. Lovich
List Price: $98.00, (Hardcover) 840 pages
The Johns Hopkins University Press; Second edition
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Reviews
[A] monumental work... the standard reference to North American turtles for the next generation of biologists. Every serious vertebrate biologist on the continent will want a copy. (Herpetological Review )
The most comprehensive compilation on North American turtles ever attempted and achieved.(Herpetofauna )
In 1972, C. H. Ernst completed the daunting task of compiling a sequel to A. F. Carr's (1952) landmark Handbook of Turtles. Two decades later, Ernst, this time with assistance from former student and fellow cheloniophile J. E. Lovich, has done it again. (Copeia )
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Venomous Reptiles of the United States, Canada, and Northern Mexico volumes 1 and 2 -$75.00 each book, $13.00 S&H for both books, $6.00 S&H for only one book.
Last year, in Volume one the Ernsts covered Heloderma, Micruroides, Micrurus, Pelamis, Agkistrodon, Sistrurus
It was rightfully called a classic.
"Likely to remain the standard reference for the next 20
years."—SciTech Book News, reviewing Venomous Reptiles of North
America
NOW COMES PART II
Carl and Evelyn Ernst have completely revised their landmark reference Venomous Reptiles of North America to present the most comprehensive review of these animals in years. A review that now needs two volumes to complete. ;Volume One of this definitive work presented dramatically improved species accounts of the venomous lizards and elapid and viperid snakes found north of Mexico's twenty-fifth parallel.
In Volume Two they cover the twenty-one rattlesnakes found in the United States, Canada, and, for the first time, species found only in northern Mexico.
In Volume II they present the latest research on Crotalus in the United States, Canada, and northern Mexico and featurean extensive bibliography of literature on the subject.
These volumes contain a wealth of information for anyone with an interest in venom, snakes, or herpetology in general.
Venomous Reptiles of the United States, Canada, and Northern Mexico Volume I & II, provides facts on each animal's diet, reproductive behavior, physiology, ecology, and conservation status. The book also covers details on snakebite, how venom is delivered, venom composition, antivenom production, and medical treatments of envenomation. Each species account includes vivid photographs that aid with identification and detailed maps that show the species range.
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“The Most Comprehensive - Readable Turtle Book Ever.”
TURTLES, TORTOISES AND TERRAPINS- A Natural History -Revised, Expanded and Updated by Ronald Orenstein, 448 pages, that’s 150 more than the first edition, 9" X 11",more than 300 full color photographs, range maps, bibliography, index
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HEALTH CARE AND REHABILITATION OF TURTLES AND TORTOISES
An excellent, must have for every turtle owner and every turtle & wildlife rehabilitator
Covers everything from general information such as: turtle anatomy, diet, stress, hibernation, brumation, outdoor and indoor enclosures and more --- to over 250 pages on shell fractures, tube feeding, bacterial and viral diseases, parasites, diagnostics, antibiotics in chelonians, and with supporting photographs. The author took great time and care to translate her and others experiences in turtle rehabilitation without the jargon, so all turtle owners enthusiasts can understand.
Full-color photographs. (2012) 393 pp. Softcover, by Amanda Ebenhack $39.85 plus $6.00 S&H see below on how to order (Overseas email us at asalzberg@herpdigest.org or S&H price)
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Table of Contents
1) Life history and the ecology of stress: how do glucocorticoid hormones influence life-history variation in animals?
2) Ontogenetic and individual diet variation in amphibian larvae across an environmental gradient
3) Orientation of migrating leatherback turtles in relation to ocean currents
4) Judge says golf can stay at Sharp Park (Territory of California red-legged frogs and San Francisco garter snakes)
5) Real Life 'Snakes On A Plane' Unfolds Over Egypt As Man Is Bitten By A Loose Cobra
6) Invasive Boa Constrictor Thriving on Puerto Rico
7) The Great Burmese Python Challenge: How Many Can You Kill? (Everglades)
8) Kane: Diving for Turtles-Lake Champlain, NY
9) Some in U. S. Congress oppose wider ban on big snakes
10) Hundreds of Reptiles Seized by Customs (Thailand)
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“THE TORTOISE” The Turtle Conservancy’s -For Members Only-New Periodical Publication (But it’s not just about Tortoises).
HerpDigest has Gained Access to a Limited Number of the Very First issue of the Turtle Conservancy’s New Periodical Publication “The Tortoise.” Recently available only to members. And they are going fast.
According to the Turtle Conservancy, by publishing “The Tortoise” on a yearly basis, it will keep it relevant by containing more in-depth information on the latest work being done to save turtles and tortoises all over the world than any other publication.
Issue # 1, is an excellent example of this, with it’s 160 pages, 100 color photos and 14 reports and stories on the work done and that needs to be done, on a number of threatened and critically endangered species from around the globe:
Ranging from the highlands of Southeast Asia, home to two primitive tortoises of the genus Manouria, to the restricted range of the Geometric Tortoise (Psammobates geometricus) in the Western Cape Province of South Africa, to the West Coast of the US home of the Pacific Pond Turtle (Actinemys marmorata), to the cryptic wood turtles (Rhinoclemmys sp.) of Mexico, and almost everywhere in between.
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WE ARE PERMANENTLY OUT OUT OF ALL 2013 CALENDARS
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1) Life history and the ecology of stress: how do glucocorticoid hormones influence life-history variation in animals?
1. Erica J. Crespi1,*,
2. Tony D. Williams2,
3. Tim S. Jessop3,
4. Brendan Delehanty4
Article first published online: 11/21/12, Functional Ecology
Author Information
1. 1School of Biological Sciences, Washington State University, Pullman, Washington, USA
2. 2Department of Biological Sciences, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada
3. 3Department of Zoology, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
4. 4Department of Biological Sciences, Centre for the Neurobiology of Stress, University of Toronto Scarborough, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
*Correspondence author. E-mail: erica.crespi@wsu.edu
Summary
1. Glucocorticoids hormones (GCs) are intuitively important for mediation of age-dependent vertebrate life-history transitions through their effects on ontogeny alongside underpinning variation in life-history traits and trade-offs in vertebrates. These concepts largely derive from the ability of GCs to alter energy allocation, physiology and behaviour that influences key life-history traits involving age-specific life-history transitions, reproduction and survival.
2. Studies across vertebrates have shown that the neuroendocrine stress axis plays a role in the developmental processes that lead up to age-specific early life-history transitions. While environmental sensitivity of the stress axis allows for it to modulate the timing of these transitions within species, little is known as to how variation in stress axis function has been adapted to produce interspecific variation in the timing of life-history transitions.
3. Our assessment of the literature confirms that of previous reviews that there is only equivocal evidence for correlative or direct functional relationships between GCs and variation in reproduction and survival. We conclude that the relationships between GCs and life-history traits are complex and general patterns cannot be easily discerned with current research approaches and experimental designs.
4. We identify several future research directions including: (i) integration of proximate and ultimate measures, including longitudinal studies that measure effects of GCs on more than one life-history trait or in multiple environmental contexts, to test explicit hypotheses about how GCs and life-history variation are related and (ii) the measurement of additional factors that modulate the effects of GCs on life-history traits (e.g. GC receptors and binding protein levels) to better infer neurendocrine stress axis actions.
5. Conceptual models of HPA/I axis actions, such as allostatic load and reactive scope, to some extent explicitly predict the role of GCs in a life-history context, but are descriptive in nature. We propose that GC effects on life-history transitions, survival probabilities and fecundity can be modelled in existing quantitative demographic frameworks to improve our understanding of how GC variation influences life-history evolution and GC-mediated effects on population dynamics
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2) Ontogenetic and individual diet variation in amphibian larvae across an environmental gradient
1. TIFFANY A. SCHRIEVER1,2,
2. D.DUDLEY WILLIAMS2
1. 1 Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
2. 2 Department of Biological Sciences, University of Toronto at Scarborough, Toronto, ON, Canada
*Tiffany A. Schriever, Department of Zoology, Cordley Hall 3029, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR 97331-2914, U.S.A. E-mail: tiffany.schriever@utoronto.ca
Freshwater Biology 12/3/12/ First Published Online
Summary
1. Variation among individuals within size or age classes can have profound effects on community dynamics and food-web structure. We investigated the potential influence of habitat disturbance on intrapopulation niche variation.
2. Amphibians occupy a range of lentic habitats from short-hydroperiod intermittent ponds to long-hydroperiod permanent ponds. We quantified ontogenetic diet variation and individual specialisation in wood frog tadpoles (Lithobates sylvaticus) and blue-spotted salamander larvae (Ambystoma laterale) to investigate the influence of hydroperiod on population niche width across a natural hydroperiod gradient using stable isotope and gut content analyses. In one of the few tests using larval forms, we tested the niche variation hypothesis, which predicts that populations with larger niche widths also have increased individual variation.
3. Our results support the niche variation hypothesis, indicating that more generalised populations exhibit higher within-individual diet variation. We report gradual changes in the relative importance of diet items, decreased dietary overlap and increased trophic position in L. sylvaticus throughout development. A. laterale became more enriched in δ13C and increased in δ15N throughout its larval period. We did not find a relationship between hydroperiod and niche parameters, indicating that niches are conserved across heterogeneous habitats. In contrast to most documented cases, we estimated low levels of individual specialisation in amphibian larvae.
4. Amphibians are an important link between aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems, whereby diet shifts can influence food-web structure by altering energy flow pathways and the trophic position of higher consumers, ultimately changing food-chain length.
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3) Orientation of migrating leatherback turtles in relation to ocean currents
Animal Behaviour
Volume 84, Issue 6, December 2012, Pages 1491–1500
• S. Gallia,
• P. Gasparb,
• S. Fossettec,
• B. Calmettesb,
• G.C. Haysc,
• J.R.E. Lutjeharmsd, +,
• P. Luschia, ,
• a Department of Biology, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy
• b Collecte Localisation Satellites, Direction Océanographie Spatiale, Ramonville, France
• c Department of Biosciences, College of Science, Swansea University, Swansea, U.K.
• d Department of Oceanography, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch, South Africa
During their offshore movements, leatherback turtles, Dermochelys coriacea, associate frequently with ocean currents and mesoscale oceanographic features such as eddies, and their movements are often in accordance with the current flow. To investigate how individual turtles oriented their ground- and water-related movements in relation to the currents encountered on their journeys, we used oceanographic techniques to estimate the direction and intensity of ocean currents along the course of 15 leatherbacks tracked by satellite during their long-distance movements in the Indian and Atlantic Oceans. For all individuals a non-negligible component of active swimming was evident throughout the journeys, even when their routes closely followed the currents, but overall the turtle water-related orientation was random with respect to current directions. For turtles in the North Atlantic, the ground-related movements largely derived from the turtles' active swimming, while in the Indian Ocean currents contributed substantially to the observed movements. The same pattern was shown when distinct parts of the routes corresponding to foraging bouts and travelling segments were considered separately. These findings substantiate previous qualitative observations of leatherback movements, by revealing that turtles were not simply drifting passively but rather swam actively during most of their journeys, although with a random orientation with respect to currents. Our analysis did not provide any indication that leatherbacks were able to detect the current drift they were exposed to, further highlighting the navigational challenges they face in their oceanic wanderings.
Highlights
► We estimate ocean currents along the routes of 15 satellite-tracked leatherbacks. ► We assess how individual turtles oriented their movements in relation to currents. ► The turtles swam actively during most of their journeys, even when following currents. ► Their water-related orientation was at random with respect to current directions. ► No indication was found that leatherbacks were able to detect current drift.
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4) Judge says golf can stay at Sharp Park (Territory of California red-legged frogs and San Francisco garter snakes)
SFGATE, Jill Tucker December 7, 2012
Snakes, frogs and fairways can coexist at Sharp Park Golf Course in Pacifica, a federal judge ruled this week.
The decision settles a 4-year-old feud between environmentalists looking out for endangered California red-legged frogs and San Francisco garter snakes and golfers hoping to preserve the historic 18 holes with ocean views.
Known as the poor man's Pebble Beach, the 80-year-old Sharp Park is owned by San Francisco, and the course is operated by the city's Recreation and Park Department.
It is also home to those frogs and snakes.
Environmental organizations including the Sierra Club, the Center for Biological Diversity and the Wild Equity Institute sued the city in March 2011, alleging course maintenance and golf carts were putting the animals in harm's way.
U.S. District Judge Susan Illston dismissed the case Thursday following a ruling by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service that determined that golf wouldn't jeopardize the endangered animals.
Plaintiffs' attorneys were not immediately available for comment.
The city will be subject to mandatory restrictions on pesticides, golf cart use, water pumping and other practices to limit the impact on the frogs and snakes.
The city plans to reconfigure the park, including moving some holes, improving drainage and linking two ponds that serve as red-legged frog habitat.
"This is a commonsense result," said Chris Carr of the Morrison & Foerster law office, which represented the San Francisco Public Golf Alliance, in a statement. "And it should lead to a period of cooperation in which San Francisco and San Mateo County can work together to restore habitat for the species, while preserving historic and popular public recreation."
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5) Real Life 'Snakes On A Plane' Unfolds Over Egypt As Man Is Bitten By A Loose Cobra
12/5/12, International Business Times, by Eric Brown
A real-life “Snakes on a Place” scenario broke out in the skies over Egypt Monday when a cobra bit a man during an Egypt Air flight from Cairo to Kuwait.
Samuel L. Jackson was not around to help an Australian pilot who found himself in a real life "Snakes on a Plane" scare.
The cobra broke loose on the plane after being smuggled aboard by 48-year-old Jordanian passenger Akram Abdul Latif, who owns a shop in Kuwait selling reptiles as pets.
Latif had attempted to smuggle the snake through airport security in his carry-on bag. Apparently, the attempt was successful until the snake got free on the plane, the Jordan Times Reports.
Once the cobra escaped from Latif’s bag, the reptile shop owner attempted to wrestle with the snake and force it back in his bag. Unfortunately for Latif, the cobra bit him and fled underneath his seat.
No other passengers were injured in the snake attack, but several reported seeing the cobra pass underneath their seats.
After the other passengers reported the snake on the plane, the Egypt Air flight immediately made plans for an emergency landing in the resort town of Al Ghardaqa, located on the Red Sea. The town is away from Cairo, where the flight originated.
At Al Ghardaqa, Latif was rushed to a hospital, but he refused treatment, stating the cobra bite was only a minor injury. For reference, the New York Daily News notes that “Experts say that in some cases the cobra's venom can kill a man in under 15 minutes as it destroys nerve tissue and causes paralysis and death because of respiratory failure.”
Apparently, Latif insisted on taking the snake with him to the hospital and later on to Kuwait once he was released.
“He was bitten in his hand and after we administered first aid he insisted on taking the snake with him to Kuwait,” an Egypt Air official told the Jordan Times.
Once Latif and the cobra were safely off the plane, the flight, with 90 passengers, continued on to Kuwait without further trouble.
Samuel L. Jackson was not available for comment on the incident.
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6) Invasive Boa Constrictor Thriving on Puerto Rico
Press Release USGS Newsroom 11/29/2012
In partnership with: Universidad Interamerican De Pureto, University of Massachusetts Boston
MAYAGÜEZ, Puerto Rico— Non-native boa constrictors, which can exceed 10 feet and 75 pounds, have established a breeding population in Puerto Rico, one that appears to be spreading, according to research published in the journal Biological Invasions.
While boa constrictors and two species of pythons have established invasive populations in Florida, this research is the first to document a large constrictor species established in the United States or its territories outside of Florida. The new population appears to be spreading from its likely point of origin in the western part of the island around the city of Mayagüez. In the last year alone, more than 150 boas have been found in the wild on the island.
The established boa constrictor population likely originated with the pet trade. Genetic studies conducted by the researchers indicate that individual boas on the island are highly related and that the population probably originated with a small number of snakes. First-hand accounts from local officials suggest that newborn boas were released in Mayagüez in the early 1990s.
"Experience has shown that island ecosystems are particularly vulnerable to snake invasions, and unfortunately Puerto Rico has no natural predators that can keep the numbers of these prolific, snakes in check," said USGS Director Marcia McNutt. "Humans were responsible for introducing this scourge to the island, and are the only hope for mitigating the problem before it is too late for the native species."
Two snakes found some distance from the expanding Mayagüez population share genetic markers with that population, suggesting that people might be intentionally or unintentionally moving the snakes around the island. Such movement could potentially increase the rate of spread of this invasive snake. Because the snakes are secretive and difficult to spot, the researchers suspect the population size is large.
“We’ve learned from dealing with other invasive snakes that understanding the source of these populations and preventing spread as soon as possible is important to protect ecosystems," said USGS scientist and study co-author Bob Reed. "Once non-native snakes become established across a large area, especially in densely forested areas, they become much more difficult to find and almost impossible to eradicate."
Private ownership of boa constrictors and most other snake species is prohibited in Puerto Rico because of fears of non-native snakes becoming established.
The paper, "Genetic Analysis of a Novel Invasion of Puerto Rico by an Exotic Constricting Snake," was authored by R.G. Reynolds, University of Massachusetts, Boston; A.R. Puente-Rolón, Universidad Interamericana de Puerto Rico, R.N. Reed, U.S. Geological Survey; and L.J. Revell, University of Massachusetts, Boston.
Contact Information:
U.S. Department of the Interior, U.S. Geological Survey
Office of Communications and Publishing
12201 Sunrise Valley Dr, MS 119
Reston, VA 20192
Robert Reed
Phone: 970-420-3044
Hannah Hamilton
Phone: 703-648-4356
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7) The Great Burmese Python Challenge: How Many Can You Kill?
By Terrence McCoy Thu., Dec. 6 2012 at 7:46 AM
Palm Baeach Broward Time Blog
From an Animal Planet Press Release
Let's rumble!
One month from now, something very unusual -- and very, very Florida -- will occur in the Everglades, representing a metaphoric clash of man and beast: the Burmese python challenge. Its requests are simple. Kill as many snakes as you can.
No, no, no. Don't worry. You don't need a hunting license or anything. Just your wits and, if possible, a sharp object. Preferably a giant knife for decapitating purposes. Bring the kids! Make this a family day. There are indeed educational opportunities to be had. The day of the challenge, January 12, will also feature a tutorial on how to "dispatch" the vermin, which apparently requires much wrangling and, ultimately, one dead giant snake.
Many of the specifics haven't been ironed out, said Carli Segelson, spokesperson for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission. As in: Just how, specifically, will a bunch of hunters trap and kill the animals? Is this dangerous? Does this event somehow channel the Florida ethos?
"I don't even know how to answer that," she said.
Instead we talked a great deal about dead snakes. And that the only good Burmese python is, in fact, a dead Burmese python.
And let's not coddle the snake. Its mass slaughter couldn't be more necessary, Segelson said. Over the past generation, the Burmese python -- an invasive species -- has decimated the Everglades' natural fauna. It has gobbled up millions of other animals unique to their environs.
And now, it's time to fight back. With knives and shotguns and something Segelson called a "captive bolt," which Wikipedia translates to a "device used for stunning animals prior to slaughter."
So mark your calenders, grab yo' huntin' knife, and get into the Everglades. The person who snares the largest snake will collect a grand prize of $1,500. And think of all the captive bolts you could buy with that.
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8) Kane: Diving for Turtles-Lake Champlain
12/04/12 Go to http://www.vpr.net/episode/54936/kane-d ... r-turtles/
to listen or download and there is a video
By Adam Kane, Produced by Betty Smith-Mastaler, Vermont Public Radio
(Host) Lately, commentator Adam Kane, Co-Director of the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum, has been reflecting on things lost and found - in Lake Champlain.
(Kane) The Lake Champlain Maritime Museum's dive team has a saying: the lake does not give up her secrets easily. Or to paraphrase a more popular expression, sometimes despite our best efforts working in her cold, dark waters, what happens in Lake Champlain stays in Lake Champlain.
For six years we've been working with a team studying the behavior of rare spiny soft shell turtles in Lake Champlain's Missisquoi Bay. Due to human disturbance, loss of habitat, and nest predation, this unique turtle is threatened in Vermont and Canada. For nearly a decade, a handful of turtles have been tagged with transmitters and followed to learn how best to protect them.
In the fall, these turtles burrow under the lake bottom to hibernate. Using the transmitters, each turtle's location is determined within a few feet. A diver then descends to the quiet and featureless lake bottom to search for the turtle's hiding place. When the diver finds a likely lump, they carefully dig up the large, often unhappily thrashing turtle. In an instant the peaceful dive becomes a heart pounding wildlife wrestling match. Fortunately the turtle's disturbance is swift; a few measurements and a fresh transmitter, and it gets released back into the lake for its winter sleep.
As usual, while diving this fall I took dutiful notes in my logbook, which is a Rite in the Rain number 373 (yes, I'm that particular about the brand and model). In these ever-present logbooks I record any secrets the lake cares to yield during dive projects, in this case each turtle's location, dive times, and distinctive turtle nature. There's the reclusive North Hero turtle who winters well south of the other turtles; year after year she shows particular irascibility at being dug up. Or the "River Turtle", who in the past hibernated in the Missisquoi River close to the hustle and bustle of downtown Swanton, but chose this year to sleep instead in Missisquoi Bay with her compatriots.
Though we've always eventually located all the tagged turtles, this fall went particularly quickly: we successfully located ten turtles in only two days. As the diving came to a close, I was buoyed by how quickly the lake had given up her secrets. For once, locating something in Lake Champlain had seemed relatively easy.
But the lake always strongly encourages humility.
When we got to shore my precious logbook was nowhere to be found. It had been inside my clipboard along with my camera and car keys. It must have fallen overboard. Frantic searching was followed by a desperate dive, to no avail.
Having spent a career looking for objects lost underwater, I knew the log was gone. And as the weak November sun set on Missisquoi Bay, I thought of my log sitting on the dark lake bottom, now an object of curiosity to its former subjects.
The lake does not give up her secrets easily after all - and sometimes she takes them back.
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9) Some in Congress oppose wider ban on big snakes
By William E. Gibson, Washington Bureau, November 29, 2012
WASHINGTON D.C. -- The monstrous snakes that have invaded the Everglades and gobbled up some of its endangered wildlife are Florida's problem, not cause for a nationwide ban, some Republicans in Congress declared on Thursday.
Their staunch opposition greatly diminishes the chances that Congress will approve a bill to broaden the ban on invasive snakes that was proposed by U.S. Rep. Tom Rooney, R-Tequesta, and supported by proponents of Everglades restoration.
Opponents cited evidence that these snakes die in cold weather and cannot move farther north to threaten other parts of the country. They said a nationwide ban on importation and interstate sales would thwart pet owners and pinch the livelihoods of sellers and breeders.
"Florida is handling a Florida problem that only exists in Florida," U.S. Rep. John Fleming, R-La., chairman of the House subcommittee on fisheries and wildlife, told witnesses at a hearing on Thursday.
The chairman mocked testimony that Burmese Pythons have rebounded from cold snaps, have killed several young children and could thrive in parts of Texas, Louisiana, Puerto Rico and semi-tropical U.S. territories. He also dismissed warnings that global warming will increase the range of deadly snakes and other invasive species.
"I think the worry, the threat, that in the next few years we're going to have reptiles on our doorsteps in Washington, D.C., is a little overblown," Fleming said.
A Florida member, U.S. Rep. Steve Southerland, R-Panama City, dismissed the proposed ban as "a solution in search of a problem." He said the bill amounts to an egregious attempt by an over-bearing government to rein in helpless small businesses, jeopardizing a $1.4-billion reptile industry.
"I'm dumbfounded," Southerland said. "We got bigger fish to fry here than to target businesses. It's open season on businesses. It's open season on enterprise, on freedom."
With as many as 100,000 snakes infesting the Glades, the U.S. Interior Department already has issued an administrative rule to ban importation and interstate sales of the Burmese python, northern and southern African python and the yellow anaconda.
Rooney and Everglades promoters hope to put that ban into law and expand it to include five more species: the reticulated python, boa constrictor, DeSchauensee's anaconda, green anaconda and Beni anaconda.
Environmentalists say these snakes kill endangered wildlife in Florida and undermine a multi-billion-dollar restoration of the Everglades.
"If we are trying to restore the ecosystem for wading birds adapted to the Everglades and we have invasives countering those measures, that's a big problem," Julie Hill-Gabriel, director of Everglades policy for Audubon Florida, said after the hearing.
She also warned that widespread publicity about pythons and other snakes in the 'Glades have discouraged tourism.
"We have some people no longer willing to visit because they are just afraid," Hill-Gabriel said. "The world knows the Everglades have a snake problem, and we need to show we are taking action."
The current ban and proposed expansion would not solve the immediate problem, which is how to eradicate the estimated 30,000 to 100,000 invasive snakes already in the Everglades.
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10) Hundreds of Reptiles Seized by Customs
Bangkok Post, 12/5/12 (No author given)
Customs officials intercepted more than 340 turtles and 65 snakes, geckos, and chameleons in two separate smuggling attempts at Suvarnabhumi airport yesterday.
The turtles were kept in 50 boxes transported from Chon Buri province to the airport early yesterday, said Yuthana Limkaroon, deputy chief of the Department of Customs.
The driver told the police that he was not aware the boxes contained protected wild animals, he said.
Mr Yutthana said PYS International Agency Limited, the export company, told customs the 50 boxes contained vegetables destined for Hong Kong.
It was the second-largest batch of smuggled turtles found by customs and wildlife authorities this year, Mr Yutthana said.
In April, authorities confiscated 500 turtles at the airport before they could be smuggled out of the country.
In another wildlife smuggling case, customs officials seized 65 geckos, chameleons and snakes which were hidden in the luggage of a 30-year-old Kuwaiti passenger.
The man was about to board a plane to Doha, Qatar. He was charged with attempting to smuggle wildlife out of the country without permission.
This rare turtle was among a large wildlife haul seized by customs authorities at Suvarnabhumi airport on Dec 4, 2012. (Photo by Somchai Poomlard)
The interceptions were made on the same day as Suvarnabhumi airport and the Freeland Foundation launched the iTHINK campaign to raise public awareness about wildlife protection.
Suvarnabhumi's deputy general manager Ittipol Boonaree said the airport has offered full cooperation in the fight against the illegal wildlife trade.
He said an average of 50 wildlife trafficking cases were intercepted at the airport per year.
"In one case, a wildlife trafficker tranquilised tiger cubs and put them in a suitcase with tiger dolls, but the airport authorities were able to determine they were real tigers," Mr Ittipol said.
"This case made us realise the smugglers will try every means to get these animals in and out the country," he added.
Steven Galster, Freeland Foundation's executive director, said the iTHINK campaign is part of an activity to promote the 16th Conference of the Parties to the the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora to be held in Bangkok in March.
The campaign will gather opinions from well-known people on why they think wildlife smuggling must be stopped.
"People know wildlife smuggling is not good, but there is no explanation why people should stop consuming wildlife products," he said.
"It is simply a case of getting across the message of why we need to change our behaviour."
Kristie Kenney, United States Ambassador to Thailand and a presenter of the iTHINK campaign, said wildlife trafficking is a global crime that all countries need to resolve together.
The US parliament has raised its concerns about wildlife conservation by raising awareness with the public, she said.
Damrong Pidech, former chief of the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation and also an iTHINK presenter, said the government had not done enough to crack down on the illegal wildlife trade and to ensure the protection of wild species.
He called on the government to provide more support to wildlife officials working in the field.
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More Great Books on Herps. Remember All profits go to Help Herpdigest
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Malformed Frogs: The Collapse of Aquatic Ecosystems, by Michael Lannoo, 270 pages, Original Price $65.00 Now $30.00 plus $6.00 S&H
(Classic Book on Outbreak of Deformed Frogs)
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Frogs & Toads Of North America-Photos of 100 frogs and toads and all their calls on a CD by Lang Elliott, Carl Gerhardt and Carlos Davidson, 350 pages, glossy, full color. List price $30.00 Now $19.95) Plus $6.00 S&H
Brush up on your Frog Calling ID Ability Now to Get Ready for Spring.
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Firefly Encyclopedia of Reptiles and Amphibians, 2nd Edition, General Editor Chris Mattison, 240 glossy pages, Oversize Book Once $50.00 - Now $30.00 Plus $12.00 S&H-
Great Holiday Gift for that Budding Herper in the House.
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The Lizard King, by Bryan Christy, 256 Pages, Hardcover-List Price $25.00 Sale $12.00 per book. $6.00 for S&H.
Movie Version in Works, They’ve already made Major Changes to Story - They’ve switched the USF&WS Officer who Goes After Mike Van Nostrand from a male to a female and calling it a romcom adventure story.
Read the original. The true story.
Summary of original story--Albino pythons, endangered lizards and other reptiles are the currency of an underworld as dangerous and lucrative as the drug trade. Freelance writer Christy's debut is an enthusiastic chronicle of the rise and fall of a lizard kingpin and the federal agent who pursued him. Mike Van Nostrand inherited Strictly Reptiles, an import-export business in Florida, from his father, Ray, turning it into a multimillion-dollar smuggling operation. Van Nostrand imported reptiles of all shapes and sizes, usually concealed in the suitcases or clothing of his mules, and sold them to collectors and pet stores. He exploited loopholes in the international treaty on endangered-species trade and paid off corrupt officials._____________
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Invasive Pythons in the United States- Ecology of an Introduced Predator
Michael E. Dorcas and John D. Willson, Foreword by Whit Gibbons
The first detailed, comprehensive study of this invasive predator
Page count: 176, 188 color photos, 8 maps, 1 table, 7 figures
Paperback, c2011, Was $25.00 Now Just $15.00 plus add $6.00 for shipping and handling.
With Hearings going on in Congress on Python Laws a Highly Timely Book
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Turtles of the United States and Canada by Carl H. Ernst and Jeffrey E. Lovich
List Price: $98.00, (Hardcover) 840 pages
The Johns Hopkins University Press; Second edition
Our Price is cheaper than Amazon
$75.00 plus $13 for S&H. (it’s 8 pounds and worth every ounce)
and all profits goes to keep HerpDigest alive
ACT NOW ------TO ORDER: See below on how.
Email us first at asalzberg@nyc.rr.com for S&H fees for all overseas orders. (And yes this includes Canada)
Reviews
[A] monumental work... the standard reference to North American turtles for the next generation of biologists. Every serious vertebrate biologist on the continent will want a copy. (Herpetological Review )
The most comprehensive compilation on North American turtles ever attempted and achieved.(Herpetofauna )
In 1972, C. H. Ernst completed the daunting task of compiling a sequel to A. F. Carr's (1952) landmark Handbook of Turtles. Two decades later, Ernst, this time with assistance from former student and fellow cheloniophile J. E. Lovich, has done it again. (Copeia )
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Venomous Reptiles of the United States, Canada, and Northern Mexico volumes 1 and 2 -$75.00 each book, $13.00 S&H for both books, $6.00 S&H for only one book.
Last year, in Volume one the Ernsts covered Heloderma, Micruroides, Micrurus, Pelamis, Agkistrodon, Sistrurus
It was rightfully called a classic.
"Likely to remain the standard reference for the next 20
years."—SciTech Book News, reviewing Venomous Reptiles of North
America
NOW COMES PART II
Carl and Evelyn Ernst have completely revised their landmark reference Venomous Reptiles of North America to present the most comprehensive review of these animals in years. A review that now needs two volumes to complete. ;Volume One of this definitive work presented dramatically improved species accounts of the venomous lizards and elapid and viperid snakes found north of Mexico's twenty-fifth parallel.
In Volume Two they cover the twenty-one rattlesnakes found in the United States, Canada, and, for the first time, species found only in northern Mexico.
In Volume II they present the latest research on Crotalus in the United States, Canada, and northern Mexico and featurean extensive bibliography of literature on the subject.
These volumes contain a wealth of information for anyone with an interest in venom, snakes, or herpetology in general.
Venomous Reptiles of the United States, Canada, and Northern Mexico Volume I & II, provides facts on each animal's diet, reproductive behavior, physiology, ecology, and conservation status. The book also covers details on snakebite, how venom is delivered, venom composition, antivenom production, and medical treatments of envenomation. Each species account includes vivid photographs that aid with identification and detailed maps that show the species range.
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