Hello, Frank Indiviglio here. While most people acknowledge that spiders perform a valuable service by consuming harmful insects, there remains the lingering belief that the vast majorities are dangerously venomous, and do more harm than good. Today I’d like to pass along some facts and figures that you may find interesting.
Venom
All spiders produce venom, but [...]

Hello, Frank Indiviglio here. Aeromonas hydrophila is a common species of gram negative bacteria that often infects captive frogs and salamanders. It is particularly prevalent during the warmer months, when high temperatures stress amphibian immune systems (even tropical species often spend much of their time in cool micro-habitats) and leave them vulnerable to microorganisms that [...]

Hello, Frank Indiviglio here. In Part I of this article we discussed the origin and current state of the problems associated with the long term use of goldfishes as a staple food for reptiles and amphibians.
Bait and Tropical Fishes
Fathead minnows, golden shiners and related fishes are preferable to goldfishes as a reptile and amphibian food, [...]

Hello, Frank Indiviglio here. I and the staff at ThatFishPlace/ThatPetPlace recently asked for your help in preventing the passage of House Resolution 669, the “Non-Native Wildlife Invasion Prevention Act”.  This resolution, if passed by Congress as originally proposed, would have severely limited and/or banned the keeping of nearly every species of non-native animal, destroying hobbies, [...]

Hello, Frank Indiviglio here. The books Snakes: the Keeper and the Kept and Snakes and Snake Hunting, written by Staten Island Zoo curator Carl Kauffeld, turned “Okeetee, South Carolina” into a household name for legions of snake enthusiasts worldwide (myself included). An incredibly productive snake collecting area, Okeetee was especially noted for its brilliantly colored [...]

Hello, Frank Indiviglio here.  I remember well my shock when the news concerning temperature dependant sex determination (TDSD) among reptiles first broke.  Imagine…a turtle or crocodile egg can develop as either a male or female, depending upon the incubation temperature!  Well, it now seems that at least one species of lizard, the three-lined skink (Bassiana [...]

Hello, Frank Indiviglio here.
I frequently recommend wild-caught invertebrates as food for captive herps, birds, invertebrates and fishes. Today I’d like to address the thoughtful comments posted by some of our blog readers regarding potential pesticide contamination.
Secondary Poisoning
Secondary poisoning, the killing of animals other than the species that is the target of a pesticide, is an [...]

Hello, Frank Indiviglio here.  One of the world’s rarest amphibians is being bred by dedicated hobbyists and is now available in the US pet trade. Anderson’s salamander, Ambystoma andersoni, which was only formally described in 1984, is limited in range to a single high altitude (6,000+ feet above sea level) lake and stream in south-central [...]

Hello, Frank Indiviglio here.  Having long worked with a variety of the world’s most unusual invertebrates, I had imagined myself ready for any and all surprises that might be offered by these fascinating creatures.  Yet the first tailless whipscorpion that I encountered in the wild – a huge specimen that met my gaze inside a [...]

Hello, Frank Indiviglio here.  Small, shrimp-like marine crustaceans known as krill have long featured prominently in the diets of aquarium fishes.  I’d like to relate here some personal experiences that point to their value as food for turtles, tadpoles, newts and salamanders.
Krill as Turtle Food
Some years ago a herpetologist of my acquaintance, noting that krill [...]