When the expedition finally stumbled across the serpentine amphibian, it was at the end of a road and a seven-hour hike beyond that from the nearest village. The area is known as Cleopatra's Needle.

"This is an animal that doesn't have any flashy colors or anything like that, but it's one of those last, iconic species that we couldn't find," says Brown.

Remarkably, the expedition also found the Palawan toadlet (Pelophryne albotaeniata), which had been missing for the last 40 years.

The turtle frog is not something that, on sight, you would automatically call a frog. For one thing, if you see it, you’re probably in the middle of the Australian desert. The frog prefers living on and in sandy, loose soil. It’s also an unpleasant pink color which sometimes deepens to purple, so it generally looks like a lump of raw meat that someone stuck eyes on.

If you see it hatch its young, it still won’t seem froglike to you. This is one of the few frogs that’s never a tadpole. There being a dearth of pools in the desert, the turtle frog waits for heavy rains, comes out to mate, and then lays eggs that hatch small, but perfectly formed frogs. No little swimmers here.

Isabela is a mostly uninhabited island that, along with the rest of the Galapagos, lies about 560 miles west of Ecuador in the Pacific Ocean. It’s home to the incredible diversity of life that helped inform Charles Darwin’s theories of evolution when he visited the area in 1835.

Luckily, it appears that the iguanas are not in any immediate danger. The Galapagos National Park released a statement that these pink animals, along with their cousins the yellow iguanas and Galapagos giant tortoises, are not “expected to be affected.” The park reports that the lava is largely flowing onto the southeastern portion of the summit; the iguanas live on the northern flank of the volcano.

Traditional methods call for researchers to attach a tag to turtle flippers to track them, but studies show that flipper tagging can miss up to 20 percent of all females that nest on a beach each season. Researchers also know that females nest on several different beaches, which can cause miscalculations about the turtle population. They can't monitor all of the beaches where the turtles nest at night, and many of the flipper tags get lost eventually, Nairn said. But much like a human fingerprint, the genetic signature obtained using the DNA method is unique for each individual turtle.

Not only does this DNA information identify the turtle mother, but it also allows researchers to speculate on population recovery, including how many nests are being laid, how often turtles nest and how many females are laying eggs. Over the first two years of the study, UGA identified around 800 nesting mothers along the Georgia coast, and researchers continue to track those turtles, including where they've nested over the years and how often they've returned to nest.

There are about 75 gopher tortoises on the property. Rodriguez was surprised to learn what it might cost to move them.

"Wow, yeah, that's a big number. That is a very big number for them to actually move them," she said.

City officials said the burrows are on approximately 80 acres, which they are going to use to build retention ponds for a large reclaimed water project.

In Florida, the gopher tortoise is a threatened species, so the reptile and its borrow are protected under state law.

Having this designation would afford them many advantages such as the protection under the humane laws that dogs and cats already enjoy. It would raise public awareness and education about the Green Iguana and that would give it more respect and better care like other domestics.

The definition of "Domesticated" will vary with every person that you speak to, but we agree with the one that is used legally by most city ordinances that states that it shall mean: bred for and adapted to living dependently in an urban household setting.

The Skansen Zoo in Stockholm sent the reptiles to Cuba’s National Zoo in April to help encourage reproduction of the protected species native to the island.

Hiram Fernandez, a veterinarian at the Cuban zoo, says the reptiles will be released soon in Zapata Swamp, about 200 kilometers (125 miles) southeast of the capital. Their ranks have been thinned by hunting and diminishing habitat, with few examples of Crocodylus rhombifer still found in Zapata Swamp and Cuba’s Isle of Youth.

Adult Uluru skinks pair for consecutive years and may raise several generations in a single burrow constructed by the parents. Not unlike humans, multiple generations of skinks live in the shared home, with parents and children contributing to the maintenance and expansion of their home. The burrows are up to thirteen meters in length, have twenty entrances, and contain designated latrines. Researcher found that skink families inhabited them for up to 7 years straight.

DNA testing of Uluru skinks reveals that young lizards sharing the same burrow are nearly all full siblings, who delay leaving the burrow to care for the family home. According to Macquarie University researcher Dr. Adam Stow this cooperative living arrangement is remarkable for lizards: "It’s an unusual case of parental care and also having the siblings cooperate [that] make[s] them possibly the word’s most social lizard."

“Even if we get just one or two hatchlings, I will be very happy,” said Gerald Kuchling, a project leader for the Turtle Survival Alliance, a nonprofit conservation organization. “Even a single one would give hope for the recovery of this magnificent animal. It would be a turn.”

Quite a turn, actually. The Yangtze giant softshell turtle — thought to be the largest freshwater turtle in the world — was once common in the Yangtze and Red Rivers. But by the late 1990s, pollution, hunting, dams and development had driven it to the brink of extinction.

There are only four known specimens remaining, and only one female — an 85-year-old resident of the Suzhou Zoo. For years, biologists have been trying to coax her and her 100-year-old mate to produce hatchlings. So far the pair have disappointed scientists, with the female laying clutch after clutch of unfertilized eggs.

When confronted by an oncoming truck on Thursday, an alligator in Avoyelles Parish, Louisiana, refused to back down. Instead, the reptile went on the attack, and proceeded to tear off the truck's entire front bumper.

"I was coming home from my camp when an alligator crossed my path," the driver of the truck told Jukin Media, a video licensing and production company. "I honestly thought he would back up and run the other way, when he did the exact opposite."

“When our amphibian species start disappearing, there’s a problem,” said senior zookeeper Noah Shields. “This is not just another animal that may be going extinct here in Indiana. This is a very, very important species.”

Found in the Blue River in southern Indiana, and in rivers from Arkansas to New York, the Hellbender species is millions of years old. Recently, however, they are starting to disappear. Purdue associate professor Rod Williams has been leading the charge to preserve the species, which is now considered endangered in Indiana.

“They’re very sensitive to changes in the environment,” Williams said. “Hellbenders are also a very long lived amphibian. They can live 30 years in the wild. So when you have a really long-lived animal that starts to decline in the wild at a very rapid rate, it’s cause for concern that there’s something going on in the environment.”

Since then more than 400 dead turtles have shown up. Dozens more sick turtles were also recovered, each of which was lethargic, emaciated and covered in infected lesions in their eyes, skin and even internal organs.

None of the infected turtles survived.

The 60-kilometer river is the only home to the Bellinger River snapping turtle (Elsaya georgesi), a rare but little-studied species that has already been on the decline for years due to pollution and predation by invasive foxes. Scientists now fear that this mysterious, as-yet-unidentified disease has reached 90 percent of the turtle’s habitat and could cause the species’s imminent extinction.

Coulter said the Humane Society consulted a snake expert who said the snake died at the hands of a human and not another animal. She also said rocks didn't simply fall on the snake and kill it.

"It's a concern because, just because she's not a dog or cat doesn't mean she didn't suffer. She was attacked and left there to die," Coulter said. "If this was a dog or cat pelted with rocks and left to die, everyone would be horrified.

"While snakes may not be everyone's favourite animal, they are a part of our ecosystem and can suffer like any other animal."

On Thursday, Lowery and Ba Cu met again in a visit arranged by zoo officials in honor of Memorial Day. Though Lowery, now 72, lives in Pickerington, he doesn’t often visit the zoo, he said, so he was glad to see the turtle.

“She sets a record every day,” he said.

Before he was drafted, Lowery had been studying to be a zookeeper and worked at the zoo’s reptile house.

In addition to the turtle, he sent back snakes and small mammals that he thought the zoo would be interested in. First, he had to persuade Vietnamese wildlife officials to let him take the animals, then he boxed them up and sent them to the U.S. on Pan American World Airways.

Monday evening more than 200 grade school students will track soft plush box turtles to better understand their ecosystem.

‘We’ll have some of those plush turtles that have those telemetry devices so the kids will take their parents out and track them which we’ll have hidden at the zoo,’ says Dean.

They’ll be using radio telemetry technology to help the state reptile of Missouri.

The royal came face to face with a Tuatara lizard, also named Harry, during a welcome ceremony in the city of Invercargill.

The Prince came up close and personal with the 100-year-old reptile as it settled on his arm.

The Tuatara is only found in New Zealand where it is revered in native Maori culture as a messenger of the gods.

It was back to business as usual afterwards as Prince Harry then faced a crowd of screaming female fans - one of whom even managed to plant a kiss on the Royal.

The Arizona Poison and Drug Information Center at the University of Arizona College of Pharmacy in Tucson and the Banner Poison and Drug Information Center at Banner-University Medical Center in Phoenix will be conducting a study to find the most effective way to use the two antivenoms.

"Arizona has the largest diversity of rattlesnake bites in the country and what we see in all these rattlesnake bites is an incredible diversity of patients and the kind of effects we see in the rattlesnakes themselves," said Keith Boesen, director of the Arizona Poison and Drug Information Center.

Every year, there are between 250 to 350 rattlesnake bites in Arizona. Many of the victims credit antivenom for saving their lives.

The Everglades alligators appear to be suffering from the artificial water management imposed on the area to drain land for cities and farms, he said.

Before the canals and pumps and other structures went up over the past century, he said there were sufficient dry periods to concentrate prey, allowing the alligators to find enough food. But now, some areas are flooded year-round, allowing fish, turtles and other prey to spread out over a wide area. That makes it harder for the alligators to find enough to eat.

"They are thinner," he said. "They're not getting enough to eat. We've been seeing that for a number of years, specifically in the Everglades and the water conservation areas.'

The Lake Oku clawed frog is native to only Lake Oku in Cameroon and, due to their unique history of evolution (including the loss of their tongues), the aquatic frogs are tottering on the brink of extinction.

A team of amphibian keepers at the zoo are the first to ever successfully breed the frog, sparking fresh hope of ensuring the survival of the species.

Zookeepers have been intent on maintaining perfect conditions for the amphibians to thrive and four of the zoo’s 13 tadpoles have already metamorphosed into young, colourful frogs.

Kelly Sloan, sea turtle program coordinator Sanibel/Captiva Conservation Foundation, also has plans to make this a good year for turtles.

"Coyotes are a problem," Sloan explained. "We are going to attempt to screen every nest this year. Hopefully that will keep the coyotes out."

Sloan is also hoping for lots of green turtles this year. They had a record number of greens, 23 of them, in 2013 and none last year. Sloan is also starting a big campaign with a slogan "After Nine it's Turtle Time," in an attempt to get people to turn off or conceal lights at night. Hatchlings use the lights from the horizon to find the water. Artificial light can lure them the wrong way.

And when it comes to mating, this family of frogs has a unique trait not seen in other frogs.

They typically like to live near fast streams and, if a pair decides to mate, they will spend five minutes searching for a private spot.

‘The male quickly carves out a chamber by excavating the sand around small rocks at the bottom of the stream,’ said Agata Blaszczak-Boxe from New Scientist.

‘Then, like Christian Grey from Fifty Shades he invites his mate into his sex dungeon, which is only just big enough to fit the two amorous amphibians.’

Lang Tengah Turtle Watch co-founder Raphe van Zevenbergen said he noticed clumps of tar balls washing up ashore along the 15m-stretch beach and immediately lodged a report with the marine park authorities.

“So far, we have collected some 13 bags of tar balls. We are concerned that the tar might seep into the sand. We have also asked for help from the nearby resorts.

“They have been very obliging in cleaning their own sections of the beach as we all await assistance from the authorities,” he said.

Lang Tengah Island, which is just under three kilometres in length, is popularly known as Turtle Bay due to its known turtle nesting population, predominantly the green turtles.

Snakes play important roles in ecosystems, but they also terrify some people. That fear has led to many myths about snake behavior.

To get to the bottom of some of the assumptions about snakes in the United States and separate fact from fiction, Live Science talked to several snake experts. Here are some commonly held beliefs about snakes and whether they're true or false.

Stortroen, an 82-year-old retired insurance claim center manager from St. Paul, Minn., has joined research outings in places ranging from Australia to South Africa. This was his first time assisting scientists in the Mojave Desert.

"I enjoy the teamwork. I enjoy working with nature," he said, pausing beside boulders while the group took a break and pulled out their water bottles.

Stortroen was one of 15 Earthwatch volunteers — American, British and Canadian — who helped with the research earlier this month in Joshua Tree National Park. The volunteers split up with park biologists and UC scientists to conduct surveys of plants, count birds and record the numbers of lizards and other reptiles.

Northern New England's annual amphibian migration is always perilous, but critters that cross roads to breed are facing an additional challenge this year: a delayed start after the long winter. Every spring, several species of salamanders and frogs travel to vernal pools —temporary bodies of water created by melted snow—to mate and lay eggs, and the resulting offspring need several months to develop and grow legs before the pools dry up in summer. Wildlife officials say the migration is running a week or two behind this year, cutting into that critical development time. That could affect millions of animals across Vermont, Maine, and New Hampshire, says Eric Orff, a wildlife biologist with the National Wildlife Federation.

"Sandesh was well informed about the dangers of a snakebite. He very well knew sleeping causes venom to spread rapidly all over the body and hence he did not sleep," Nayak said. Sumalatha said the snake was not poisonous, but had caused a deep wound around the boy's knees. "On giving necessary treatment, we found out the boy was not bitten by poisonous snake, but it had caused deep wound around his knee.

As he responded to the treatment quickly, Sandesh was discharged from the hospital after he recovered fully, the doctor said. The boy, on his arrival to the hospital, refused to set the snake free from his bag, but after the treatment it was released into a nearby forest, the boy's father said.

Moving quickly, the top half of the snake ascends the trunk, while the bottom half of it stays coiled lower down.

Wrapping its top half around the tree, the snake then brings the rest of its body up to where its head is and begins tightly coiling itself around the trunk once more.

Once entirely wrapped around the middle section of the tree, the snake again lifts its head and ascends vertically a metre or so.

The recovery plan focuses on alleviating the threat of habitat loss and fragmentation by permanently protecting breeding ponds and their adjacent uplands through acquisition and conservation easements. Because the majority of the remaining habitat for the Santa Barbara County California tiger salamander is on privately owned lands, habitat-based conservation efforts will require the cooperative efforts of both local agencies and private partners.

"Because we’ve already destroyed so much of their natural habitat, recovering and protecting the places these unique tiger salamanders need to survive won’t be easy," said Loda. "But we can’t afford to lose this special amphibian, so I hope federal, state and local agencies as well as developers will all step up to support the hard work of recovery."

Although Santa Barbara California tiger salamanders have been protected under the Endangered Species Act for more than a decade, the Fish and Wildlife Service had not developed a required recovery plan to guide management of the species. In April 2012 the Center sued the Interior Department for its failure to develop such a plan for the endangered salamanders; the plan released today is the result of the December 2012 settlement agreement that resulted from this lawsuit.