Some costly antivenoms may soon be replaced by opossum blood.

From Chemistry World:

But treatments are costly and inaccessible for many people. Most antivenoms are made by injecting dilute venom into a mammal, such as a horse or rabbit. This results in an immune response, and the animal’s serum is then processed so that it can be injected into snakebite victims to scavenge toxic molecules in their blood. Such treatments typically cost $100-150 (£60-100) per dose, a prohibitive price for many people in developing countries.

But a team led by Claire Komives from San Jose State University has identified a protein from the blood of opossums – animals known for their ability to survive snake bites – that can be produced in large quantities by engineered bacteria, and shows promise as an antivenom.

In studies carried out on venom-exposed mice, those that were given just the venom died within 12 hours, while those that received the same amount of venom but were treated with the opossum peptide exhibited no ill effects. ‘Basically, the venom was completely neutralised,’ explains Komives, who was speaking at the 249th ACS National Meeting & Exposition in Denver, US. The peptide could protect the mice from the venoms of western diamondback rattlesnakes and Russell’s vipers.

Read more here.

Human and other primates may have evolved keen eyesight to detect dangerous snakes.

From NPR:

In a new paper published in the journal Primates, author William C. McGrew, a former professor of evolutionary primatology at the University of Cambridge, reports a high rate of venomous snake encounters by his team of primatologists seeking to observe unhabituated wild chimpanzees in Mount Assirik, Senegal, West Africa.

McGrew's snake-encounter analysis in the paper Snakes as hazards: modelling risk by chasing chimpanzees is one test of what's known as the snake-detection theory of primate origins, a set of hypotheses that suggest we (along with other primates) owe certain features of our evolution to the risks posed by death and injury from snakes.

During the 609 days that make up the core period of the analysis, McGrew and his team encountered a snake in Assirik, on average, once every 4.3 days — totaling 132 snake encounters. During the entire study period of four years, 142 snakes of 14 different species were identified. Of these, 64 percent were venomous: 33 cobras, 27 vipers and 24 rear-fanged snakes.

Read more here.

A Canadian paleontologist identified the remains of several endangered species smuggled from Hong Kong.

From the Calgary Herald:

Don Brinkman, a paleontologist at the Royal Tyrrell Museum in Drumheller, has been studying turtles for three decades and had assisted with previous investigations by Environment Canada.

But this case — which involved combing through a container with 945 turtle plastrons (bottom part of the shell), 2,454 turtle shells, and 52 bags of turtle fragments within 815 cartons, followed by a second container with 224 bags of fragments in 842 cartons — was the biggest Brinkman has ever worked on.

After three days in a Vancouver warehouse sifting through piece after piece, the lone scientist in a room full of officers, Brinkman helped bring the probe to a conclusion by identifying five endangered turtle species and three endangered tortoise species.

Read more here.

Remind your friends in Florida to leave nesting sea turtles alone, and avoid using bright lights near the turtles.

From WINK News:

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) asks people not to get too close, shine lights on, or take flash photos of nesting sea turtles.

Spring is the beginning of sea turtle nesting season in Florida. From now through the end of October, thousands of sea turtles will land on Atlantic and Gulf coast beaches to lay their eggs. With Florida hosting one of the largest loggerhead nesting aggregations in the world, this becomes an opportunity for residents and visitors to play an important role in conserving these long-lived reptiles. People can help by taking turtle-friendly precautions on the beach.

“Take care when you’re on a Florida beach at night and do not disturb the nesting sea turtles,” said Dr. Robbin Trindell, who leads the FWC’s sea turtle management program. “People can help save threatened and endangered sea turtles by giving them enough space and privacy to safely and successfully lay their eggs. It’s as simple as keeping your distance and avoiding shining lights or taking flash photos of the nesting sea turtles.”

Read more here.

As winter fades back into a dormant state until next year, spring means herps are on a journey to find the perfect mate for breeding season in the southeast. This means several things to different species that will all be simultaneously doing the same thing at once: moving.

We were traveling to southwestern Mississippi from Alabama in search of black pine snakes (Pituophis melanoleucus lodingi) on a late March afternoon, and decided to stop at a rest area to stretch out our legs for a few minutes.

While walking around in this coastal lowland and surrounded by shallow swampy marsh habitat type, we stumbled upon a pair of Gulf Coast box turtles (Terrapene carolina major) breeding, with the female completely flipped over on her back and the male upright, which apparently is nothing out of the ordinary.

Reaching sexual maturity anywhere between 7-10 years, box turtles breed in the spring and females start seeking out nests June-July to lay a single clutch of 3-8 eggs at a time. It is also more than very likely that the same Gulf Coast box turtle we came across will lay her eggs near the water she was found around, and nest several different times this year with more clutches.

This subspecies of North American box turtles is one of six others that exist, and also un-mistakenly the largest. They are generally described as being matte brown or almost black in coloration with a distinct yellow stripe down their backs, but can also have thin or thick blotches .

It is also noted that if you happen to see one trying to cross the road, please feel obligated to help it do so safely but to also not relocate it so that it doesn't get back into the road trying to go to where it was originally traveling to!

Chytridiomycosis is present in frogs from Madagascar, but for some reason they haven't developed the disease.

From QZ.com:

Madagascar has the 12th highest rate of amphibian species richness in the world, with more than 400 species, 99% of which are indigenous to the region. But this biodiversity hotspot is already under severe pressure—a quarter of its species are under threat, according to the latest Global Amphibian Assessment. It’s rightly feared that the arrival of Bd, as reported in the journal Scientific Reports, could bring about mass amphibian decline—and even extinctions—as has been seen elsewhere.

Testing of the samples of the Bd fungus found in Madagascar reveals the strain is closely related to BdGPL, the hyper-virulent lineage behind all the known outbreaks of the chytrid fungus pathogen that have decimated amphibian populations. However, what’s interesting is that the rate of infection is extremely low and there’s no clinical signs of chytridiomycosis—the frogs have the fungus, but they haven’t developed the disease.

Read more here.

Wildlife experts suspect this python became too much for its owner to handle, so he or she released it into the English countryside.

From Sky News:

"There are specific offences under the Wildlife and Countryside Act and Animal Welfare Act in relation to releasing a python and we would urge anyone with any information as to where the python came from to contact us.

"It is a possibility that the python may have outgrown its home and owners can contact Pip Reptile Rescue if they require any help or advice about caring for or rehousing reptiles.

"Similarly, we would urge anyone thinking about getting rid of their pets, particularly those which may pose a risk to the public, to contact an animal charity for advice so that they can be rehomed safely and responsibly."

Read more here.

The first reported case of black-and-white tegu necrophilia occurred in Brazil.

From the National Geographic:

The scientist returned to the same spot the next afternoon. By that time, the corpse was bloated and had begun to rot and smell.

But even the stench did not discourage another male black-and-white tegu from attempting to have sex with the dead body—this time for nearly an hour.

During this time, the new male embraced the dead female and bit her head, another courtship behavior. He rested on her body from time to time, taking breaks from the exhausting sexual activity, before finally flicking his tongue on the corpse and leaving, according to the study, published in January in the journal Herpetology Notes.

Read more here.

Not willing to let construction disturb the snakes they visit, several elementary school students organized to save them.

From the Delta Optimist:

The garter snakes had to be rescued as construction crews were scheduled to begin work on a section of the Boundary Bay dike. The students - Ben, Maya, Nic, Jude, Noah, Myles, Jasmine, Kaelyn and Lauren, who are in kindergarten through Grade 5 - were shocked when they heard about the impending construction.

All frequently visit the area to search out the snakes.

"We've all been going to the snakes since we were babies," said Kaelyn.

During the spring and summer, the snakes are active in the area and the kids often visit the beach, for class and after school, to play with them.

"The snakes, to me, are sort of like family," said Maya.

Read more here.

A North Carolina aquarium is training people to help with FrogWatch USA.

From Star News Online:

FrogWatch USA, a citizen science program, is now recruiting trained volunteers to collect data about the calls of local frogs and toads at local wetlands sites now through August and submit the data online.

“Amphibians are important species to keep an eye on because they are very sensitive to changes in their environment,” said Andy Gould, aquarium outreach coordinator. “If we see them in our area, it means that our habitats are healthy and thriving. If we notice their absence, we may want to look further into potential causes.”

No scientific background is required to volunteer, and those who want to participate will receive a free, four-hour training session that includes hands-on demonstrations and other educational activities to help them get acquainted with the native amphibian species they might encounter in Southeastern North Carolina.

Read more here.

Invasive species and urban development are critically endangering the salamander

From Aljazeera America:

A recent study from the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) shows in 1998 there were 6,000 axolotls per square kilometer in Xochimilco. By 2008 that figure had plummeted to 100. And in 2014 researchers found less than one per square kilometer.

There are at least three major causes for its decline: urbanization, water pollution and the massive invasion of exotic predator fish like carp and tilapia, introduced by the Mexican government in the 1980s to help feed local communities. From the first few thousands they introduced, there are now an estimated 900 tons of fish in these canals.

“It’s an amazing amount. About 98 percent of the biomass in the water is made up of just these two fish, and they destroy everything,” said professor Luis Zambrano, an ecologist at UNAM who studies Mexican salamanders and the deterioration of their environment. “The government didn’t know what they were doing. They’ve altered the food chain and the whole ecosystem.”

Read more here.

Sexually dimorphic species are less likely to go extinct, according to new research.

From the Costa Rica Star:

By examining research on global patterns of amphibian diversification over hundreds of millions of years, De Lisle and Rowe discovered that “sexually dimorphic” species – those in which males and females differ in size, for example – are at lower risk of extinction and better able to adapt to diverse environments.

Their work suggests the ability of males and females in sexually dimorphic amphibian species to independently evolve different traits – such as size – helps them survive extinction threats that kill off others, says De Lisle.

He says classic ecological theory would not have predicted that about amphibians, a class of vertebrates that includes frogs, toads, salamanders, newts and caecilians.

The conventional school of thought believes different-sized sexes of the same species take up more resources and are less able to adapt and diversify than species where ecologically relevant traits like size are basically the same between males and females.

Read more here.

Researchers aren't just looking at snake venom to develop potentially life saving medicine; lizard venom is also being mapped.

From phys.org:

Venom research is a large field, especially due to the pharmaceutical potential of the venom proteins. The idea here is that venom proteins are capable of affecting the body's cells. Excessive amounts can be harmful and even lethal in some circumstances, but if the right dose is used, the venom proteins can be used to treat certain diseases. Snake proteins that normally cause prey to bleed can be used in small doses to treat blood clots, for example.

In the same way, work is currently being done to develop spider venom proteins to provide pain relief. The Aarhus researchers focused on gila lizards, and these are currently being used in pharmaceutical contexts. Gila lizards produce exendin-4, a small venom protein used in the treatment of diabetes and obesity, which is a competitor to Victoza - produced by Novo Nordisk.

Read more here.

Rainforest frog populations rely on feral pigs to create wallows, but with pig populations dwindling researchers have recreated the wallows using simple plastic bowls.

From Digital Journal:

To study the impact of these depressions on the reproductive success of the frogs, scientists based at the University of Vienna installed a series of plastic bowls to collect rainwater at regular intervals in a patch of rainforest in French Guiana and monitored frog populations in their test and control plots.

It was found that the frog populations expanded rapidly in both the areas with the bowls and nearby plots, from 148 frogs the season before the bowls were installed to 246 frogs two years later, while no increase was seen in plots far away from the man-made peccary wallows.

Read more here.