Researchers with Barcelona's Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont have confirmed a new species of lizard of the family Oculudentavis, Oculudentavis naga. A similar reptile, Oculudentavis khaungraae, was mistakenly identified in 2020 as the smallest known bird and was later…
After more than a decade of petitions and lawsuits, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has protected the Neuse River waterdog salamander under the Endangered Species Act. The critical habitat in which the salamander is protected includes 779 river miles (up…
Ben Davis sees a lot of snakes when he is out driving the roads of Mississippi, but a few months ago while behind the wheel, one snake crossing the road caused him to turn back. "It was near Burnsville in…
The first two captive-bred Palawan forest turtles (Siebenrockiella leytensis) from a captive breeding program on Palawan island in the Philippines have been released back into the wild, the fruits of a seven year effort to breed the turtles as part…
Does your state have a reptile-themed license plate? Well if you live in West Virginia, the state released a new plate featuring an image of an Eastern box turtle. West Virginia joins Nevada and Florida by putting a turtle on…
An 11-year-old Sulcata tortoise who has been suffering from metabolic bone disease since birth was outfitted with a custom wheelchair to help him move about more easily. George’s bones in his hind legs never fully developed, making it nearly impossible…
South Carolina has banned the importation of Argentine black and white tegus (Salvator meriane)and their hybrids into the state, and breeding of the species has also been banned. Current owners of the lizard must register and microchip their pets by…
A new frog species of the Litoria caerulea group has been discovered in Papua New Guinea that is chocolate brown in coloration. The frog, named Litoria mira, is native to New Guinea and its habitat consists of swampy lowland rainforests.…
A giant tortoise that was found in 2019 and thought to be an extinct species, is actually the species and is not extinct. Fern, the Fernandina giant tortoise (her founding is chronicled in the May/June 2019 issue of REPTILES magazine)…
Poison frogs of the family Dendrobatidae get their poison from the leaf litter ants and mites that they eat. They aren’t born poisonous. Researchers with Stanford University, Harvard University, Cambridge Rindge and Latin High School in Cambridge, MA and Centro…
The Nature Conservancy announced today that it has released 12 Eastern indigo snakes (Drymarchon couperi) in northern Florida's Apalachicola Bluffs and Ravines Preserve (ABRP) in Bristol, in an effort to return the native reptile to the region that it has…
The University of Florida, in conjunction with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission will hold free Passive Integrated Transponder tagging days for your green iguana or tegu (and other non-native reptiles) to help owners to comply with the July…
The San Francisco garter snake (Thamnophis sirtalis tetrataenia), a subspecies of Thamnophis sirtalis that is only known to exist on the San Francisco Peninsula in San Mateo County, got a boost in it habitat May 22 when the San Mateo…
An environmental organization cofounded by Leonardo DiCaprio this week announced that it will work, in partnership with the Galápagos National Park Directorate, Island Conservation and the local communities on the islands, to help restore, protect and rewild the Galápagos islands.…
A new study of how European colonization impacted the Guadeloupe Islands in the French Caribbean details how the arrival of Europeans caused half of the islands lizard and snake populations to go extinct. Dr. Corentin Bochaton and Professor Nicole Boivin…
An Indian snake that was first collected in the mid-19th Century and described first via snake skins in 1796, and named the banded racer (Argyrogena fasciolata), was in actuality a completely different species. Herpetologist Dr. Deepak Veerappan of the Natural…
The Turtle Survival Alliance (TSA) announced last week that it has captured, tagged and released the 99th and 100th alligator snapping turtle (Macrochelys temminckii) in Buffalo Bayou, located in Houston, TX. The 99th turtle, a 131lb male is nicknamed J.J.…
The Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources has proposed new restrictions on the keeping of native reptiles and amphibians, and would ban the keeping of box turtles completely, according to a report on Virginiamercury.com. While the proposal is targeted at poachers,…
If you haven’t seen a Solomon Islands giant webbed frog (Cornufer guppyi), you have got to see this beast of a frog. In April, pig hunters in the Solomon Islands captured what has to be one of the largest frog…
The United States Fish and Wildlife Service has denied protections for the Samwel salamander (Hydromantes samweli), Shasta salamander, (H. shastae), and Wintu salamander (H. wintu), though it is asking for the public to submit any information that may be relevant…
Researchers in the Philippines have discovered a new frog species that was previously thought to be the same species found on another island, but was determined to be unique through genetic testing. The frog, the Mindoro fanged frog (Limnonectes beloncioi)…
The population of the Ibiza wall lizard (Podarcis pityusensis) the last remaining endemic vertebrate on the island of Ibiza in the western Mediterranean Sea, has become prey over the last 18 years by an invasive snake that was brought to…
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has finalized critical habitat protection for the northern Mexican garter snake (Thamnophis eques megalops), after decades of inaction by the service. The USFWS designated 20,326 acres of critical habitat in the counties of La…
Zoo Knoxville's Amphibian and Reptile Conservation Campus (ARC) opened early this month after an extensive $18 million, 2.5-acre expansion dedicated specifically to reptiles and amphibians. The ARC now features 85 species of reptiles and amphibians, including 38 endangered reptile and…
