That Reptile Blog – Reptile, Amphibian and Exotic Pet Care and Information

 In Part 1 of this article I introduced Hagen’s new Smart Plants, an exciting line of realistic artificial plants (Bromeliads and Scindapsis) that contain small water-holding pools at their bases.  When properly positioned in a terrarium, they provide naturalistic sites into which female Poison Frogs can deposit their tadpoles.  Today we’ll see how other amphibians and reptiles can make use of this new and much-needed innovation.

Arboreal Reptiles

In the wild, most highly arboreal snakes and lizards find all the water they need without ever setting foot or belly on the ground.  Captives, especially high-strung or wild caught individuals, may be stressed if forced to do so.   Read More »

Tortoises are among the most popular of reptile pets, and many folks now realize the importance of a proper diet, UVA and UVB light, and heat.  Yet many well-meaning tortoise enthusiasts continue to provide their pets with grossly inappropriate accommodations – a situation that is fueled by those pet store employees who recommend glass aquariums to first-time owners. Read More »

Many interesting amphibian and reptile field research reports are published in professional journals such as Copeia, Herpetologica and Herpetological Review, and are not available on the internet.  Unfortunately, such journals are usually quite expensive (if well-worth the price).  From time to time I’ll provide summaries of interesting articles that I come across.  Today’s report is drawn from Autumn, 2010 publications and covers 2 unusual feeding records.  The observations were made in Florida and, as might be expected, both predator and prey (Cuban Treefrog, Spectacled Caiman, Walking Catfish) were non native species! Read More »

Hello, Frank Indiviglio here.  Please see Part 1 of this article to read about the conservation of the Marsh Crocodile (Crocodylus palustris) and to see what it’s like to work with them in captivity. 

Natural History

Marsh Crocodiles are aptly named – despite being powerful swimmers, they favor the calm, plant-choked waters of swamps and marshes over swift-moving rivers (the species name, “palustris”, is a reference to their habitat).

Their range extends from Bangladesh, Nepal and Pakistan through India and Sri Lanka.  Read More »

Asia’s freshwater turtles face an unprecedented extinction crisis, which may soon result in the loss of 90 or more species.  In 2001, I joined other turtle enthusiasts in south Florida to help process nearly 10,000 turtles of many species that had been confiscated on route to food markets in China.  The magnitude of the response to their plight heartened me, but today, unfortunately, we are still fighting an uphill battle.  Please see Part 1 of this article for details.  Following is a bit more on this sad situation. Read More »