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.
Thursday, November 21 2024
Fall vibes with this Eastern Garter in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user snakekate! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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Wednesday, November 20 2024
This Bearded Dragon is striking a pose in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user TazziesMommy! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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Tuesday, November 19 2024
In a move that will shock no one, the first what we can assume will be many laws relating to the Leibowitz/Taipan bite case has happened. Florence, S.C. has released new proposed exotics laws that impact more than reptile owners. From the USARK Action alert the proposed banned reptile portion is:
Crocodilians twelve (12) inches or larger;
Large, dangerous, or potentially invasive constricting snakes including reticulated pythons, python reticulatus;
urmese/Indian rock pythons, python molurus; rock pythons, python sebae, and anacondas, eunectes murinus (green anacondas);
Venomous/poisonous reptiles, amphibians, or serpents;
You can read the full action alert on USARK's page here.
Now one thing of note is the snake law is somewhat vague and can be easily adjusted to include any larger snake unfortunately. Simply using the wording large, dangerous OR rather than AND is hugely problematic from someone who has worked in animal control and seen how people will twist those words, but that is just my opinion and experience. I would expect to see far more of these laws popup in South Carolina over the next year. The damage one person can do to our hobby is immense.
The Northern Leopard frog ( Lithobates pipiens) is an fairly widespread US Native species that get a spotlight in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user Terry_Cox!
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Monday, November 18 2024
What wonderful color contrast in this hatchling Mud Snake in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user Godfrey ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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Friday, November 15 2024
Fantastic headshot of a Steppe Viper ( Vipera renardi) in our herp photo of the day uploaded by kingsnake.com user VenomouS996 ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here! As always on Fridays, we take the time to spotlight our venomous friends to help raise the awareness for the need of conservation and protections of them as part of the #RattlesnakeFriday movement!
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Thursday, November 14 2024
This Milk snake is just hanging out our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user gerryg . Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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Wednesday, November 13 2024
This Cat Gecko looks like he is smiling in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user PGoss! What an awesome shot! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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Tuesday, November 12 2024
This Reticulated Python in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user Augie has room to roam in her cage! Talk about proper caging sizes! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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Monday, November 11 2024
What a beautiful boa constrictor in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user Robb75! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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Friday, November 8 2024
Happy Rattlesnake Friday! This lil Rock Rattlesnake ( Crotalus lepidus) in our photo of the day uploaded by kingsnake.com user erindonalson is showing you how cryptic they can be! Be sure to tell them you liked it here! As always on Friday, we celebrate all of our venomous reptiles for their contribution to the world. It is our goal to help dispel the fears surrounding our beloved venomous creatures.
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Thursday, November 7 2024
This gorgeous closeup of a Painted Turtle also shows a bit of old fashion home grown cage decor in our herp photo of the day uploaded by kingsnake.com user trachemys ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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Wednesday, November 6 2024
What a beautiful Philippine Croc in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user TIKBALANG! One of the most endangered species of crocs actually and here's to captive breeding to re-establish populations! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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Tuesday, November 5 2024
Take a few moments today to follow the lead of this Giant Day Gecko in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user crazyrhacos and give yourself some time to relax! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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Monday, November 4 2024
What a lovely looking pair of Chinese Water Dragons in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user Agata ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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Friday, November 1 2024
Happy Rattlesnake Friday! This beautiful pair of Copperheads are just things of beauty in our photo of the day uploaded by kingsnake.com user ShadowChaser ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here! As always on Friday, we celebrate all of our venomous reptiles for their contribution to the world. It is our goal to help dispel the fears surrounding our beloved venomous creatures.
Upload your own reptile and amphibian photos at gallery.kingsnake.com, and you could see them featured here!
Thursday, October 31 2024
Tadpoles and adults of the extinct frog species Notobatrachus degiustoi (illustrated) lived in temporary ponds in what is the Patagonia region of Argentina today.
Illustration by Gabriel Lío
While searching for dinosaurs in the sediment and soft ash, Palentoligist Federico Agnolín and his colleagues kept stumbling across frogs at their site at Estancia La Matilde in the Santa Cruz province of Argentina. They were finding all adult Notobatrachus degiustoi, which is an extinct species. They believed that the frogs at the time did not have a tadpole stage, but they were about to learn otherwise in a very exciting discovery!
The researchers who described the fossil in Nature today estimate it to be between 161 to 168 million years old, beating the previous record holder by around 30 million years. The find provides solid evidence frogs have had a tadpole stage for at least that long. “It’s a beautiful confirmation of what many experts had suspected,” says herpetologist Alexander Haas of the Leibniz Institute in Bonn, Germany. Reconstructing tadpole evolution based on their diversity today, Haas and others previously predicted that tadpoles would have existed this early on.
The tadpole was surprisingly similar to modern tadpoles! To read the full story, visit National Geographic here!
Herpy Halloween from this little trick or treater in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user rosebuds ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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Tuesday, October 29 2024
So bright and sassy, this little adorable little Pine is a bright spot in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user jodscovry ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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Monday, October 28 2024
So simple and so beautiful. That is the black racer in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user ReptileProducts ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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Friday, October 25 2024
Happy Rattlesnake Friday! Let's celebrate with this fantastic in situ Eastern Diamondback in Alabama, uploaded by kingsnake.com user SalS? Be sure to tell them you liked it here! As always on Friday, we celebrate all of our venomous reptiles for their contribution to the world.
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Thursday, October 24 2024
It is a whole lotta squee in this two for Tuesday pair of hatching Hognose in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user caracal ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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Wednesday, October 23 2024
Beautiful shot of a blood python in the garden in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user grimlin ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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Tuesday, October 22 2024
Our Herp Photo of the Day shows and amazing look inside the egg of a Russian Tortoise to be, uploaded by kingsnake.com user tortusjack!
Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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Monday, October 21 2024
Saturday was Reptile Awareness day, so we wanted to show off how the Chicago Herpetological Society educated thousands on reptiles with this lovely rosy boa in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user PHFaust! Mike is sharing his years of knowledge and love of snakes with anyone who wants to stop. This moment may not seem like much but it changes minds! The Chicago Herpetological Society ran a wonderful event called Reptile Fest for decades until Covid. Are you a member of your local herp society? Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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Friday, October 18 2024
Happy Rattlesnake Friday! How cool is this calico Pygmy Rattlesnake, uploaded by kingsnake.com user abyssus? Be sure to tell them you liked it here! As always on Friday, we celebrate all of our venomous reptiles for their contribution to the world.
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Thursday, October 17 2024
So precious! We love hatching photos, like this awakening Gecko in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user SA! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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Wednesday, October 16 2024
Shiva has her eye on you in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user musicloverhoney! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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Tuesday, October 15 2024
Love this shot! You can feel the texture and see the amazing variety of colors on this kingsnake in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user Tony D ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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Monday, October 14 2024
There is so much to love about Colubrids, so why not celebrate them with a big ole pile of beauty in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user xtranch ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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