Crocodile Suspected

A huge crocodile, at least 5.2 meters long, is suspected of grabbing an elderly camper along a river in Australia. (News source.)

Tadpoles vs Insecticide

A common insecticide, malathion, can decimate populations of slow-maturing tadpoles by wiping out links in their food chain. (News source.)

Horned Lizard Tactics

Horned lizards that specialize on harvester ants (with strong mandibles and stings) have specialized mucus-producing tissue in their throat, which allows them to quickly coat and swallow the noxious insects. (News source.)

Crocodile Attack

A young girl in Uttar Pradesh (India) was pulled into the river and killed by crocodiles. (News source.)

Snakes in the News

Indiana conservation officers confiscated a cobra from a woman who rescued it when she applied for a permit for it. (News source.) [So, I suppose the take-home message is, if you rescue a venomous snake in Indiana, don't bother trying to get a permit. Seriously, wildlife officers should have better sense. Given that it's a non-issue, sounds like they were just shooting for cheap publicity.]

And, two Pakistani women were bitten by a venomous snake while working in the fields. (News source.)

Croc Quarantine

Quarantine measures appear to be working against chlamydia infections in farmed saltwater crocodiles. (News source.)

Snake Vision

A study on the vision of watersnakes found that the snakes can see just as well as dogs and cats. (News source.)

Frog Rediscovered

A Honduran frog, the Mile's robber frog, was thought extinct for more than twenty years, but rediscovered last year in Cusuco National Park. (News source.)

Smugglers Caught

Malaysian officials confiscated 3000 turtle eggs being smuggled into the country. (News source.)

Siamese Crocs Hatch

Detroit Zoo has bred Siamese crocodiles for the first time. Three hatchlings were found during exhibit maintenance. (News source.)

Ribbon Snake Hunt

A search for eastern ribbon snakes in Shelburne, Vermont, didn't turn up any. They're still hoping they're around. (News source.)

Rest Stop Trouble

A police officer in India stopped to relieve himself alongside a road, and ended up bitten on the leg by a venomous snake. (News source.)

Crocodile News

Crocodile farming is booming in Zambia. (News source.)

A 13-year old surfer was attacked by a crocodile in Costa Rica. (News source.)

Rattlesnake Rumors

Another round of tall tales is sweeping through a Virginia community. Southampton County residents are afraid that wildlife officials have released a bunch of rattlesnakes via helicopter... (News source.)

The same rumors of secretive predator introductions have been spread (whether of rattlesnakes, mountain lions, or coyotes) throughout North America, and even in other parts of the world ("viper introductions" in France, etc.).

Cuban Croc Retires

A Cuban croc at the Bronx zoo is being retired to Miami's Metrozoo. (News source.)

Snakeman Bit

An Australian snake rescuer was bitten by a red-belly black snake. (News source.)

Zoo Needs Snake ID Help

A zoo in Cameroon has a snake (apparently in the genus Grayia) that they can't identify, and are asking for help. Details here.

Tennessee Caiman Caught

A 4 1/2 foot caiman was finally captured in the Little Pigeon River. (News source.)

Sailor Snakebit in UAE

A sailor was bitten by a sawscale viper when he didn't recognize it as venomous. (News source.)

Turtles & Salmonella

Another article here on the salmonella outbreak in Southern California and the implication of turtles as a vector.

Frog News

California is expanding designated habitat for the rare red-legged frog, creating issues with landowners and ranchers who point out that it could create conservation problems. (News source.)

Rough grass in golf courses might actually help northern cricket frogs: an Ohio study is setting out to investigate that claim. (News source.)

Smuggling into Australia

Five baby pythons (at least one was a green tree python, based on photograph) and a couple of South American tarantulas were confiscated and killed by Australian customs when an American tried to ship them in as "toys and shirts." (News source.)

Gator Hunting in SC

Via Roark Ferguson: South Carolina is following other southern states and opening up alligator hunting again, with conditions hunters must follow. (News source.)

CB Program Infected Toads

Here's a study on a captive breeding program for the Mallorcan midwife toad that introduced chytrid-infected toads into the wild. The toads themselves were infected through proximity to a cb program for a rare Xenopus species.

Frog Farming in Vietnam

A profile here on a frog farmer in Vietnam.

Florida Snakebite

A 3-year old girl is being treated for a probable snakebite. The snake wasn't seen. (News source.)

Smuggler Arrest

Three Japanese men were arrested in Australia for trying to smuggle out a couple of lizards. (News source.)

Two-Legged Snake Wasn't

An alleged "two-legged snake" turned out to be a snake that had recently eaten a frog; the legs protruded through the snake's skin after the snake was beaten to death, creating an odd chimaeric reptile. (News source.)

Lizard Pathogens

A newly discovered bacteria that causes dermatitis in desert lizards could be a serious threat to wild populations if captive breeding programs are not careful. (News source.)

No Guns, More Crocs

Crocodiles (and crocodile attacks) have increased in the Solomons since the gun ban in 2003. (News source.)

Vietnam: Croc Farms Flood

Crocodiles that got loose from croc farms during heavy flooding, were apparently captured and killed or sold off by neighboring farmers. Authorities weren't able to retrieve any of the reptiles. (News source.)

Snakes Welcome in Burdwan

Venomous snakes don't bother residents in several villages in West Bengal. (News source.)

Special Forces Trainee Died From Snakebite

A cottonmouth was the killer of a Special Forces trainee at Ft. Bragg this summer. (News source.)

Odd Fossil

A fossil reptile, Typthorax, was discovered with unusual spikes covering its vent. (News source.)

OOP Gator Probably a Croc

A small crocodilian found in Reynosa, TX, is probably a crocodile, not an alligator. Officials are uncertain of its origins. (News source.)

New Iguana from Fiji

The Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B has published the description of a new species of iguana (Brachylophus bulabula) from Ovalau Island, Fiji. (News source.)

Snake Stories

An old-time Alabama snake story here.

Some baby corn snakes cause a ruckus in Florida here.

Sri Lanka Snakebite

A politician in Sri Lanka was hospitalized for snakebite. (News source.)

Snapper Relocation

The story here of an alligator snapper retiring to a turtle farm.

Croc News

An article here on alligator hunting in South Carolina.

South African crocodile farms are becoming big business. (News source.) But, along with that are dubious products marketed from crocodile fat making extravagant claims on their natural healing properties. (News source.)

Snake News

Copperhead bites are on the increase in St. Mary's County, Maryland. (News source.)

A big copperhead was killed in Alabama. (News source.) [The herpetologist quoted, however, is incorrect when he states that that largest documented rattlesnake was only 7 1/2 feet long. The largest confirmed Eastern diamondback was a few inches over 8 foot. See Boundy's 1995 review of maximum snake lengths in the Bulletin of the Chicago Herp. Society for details on large snakes. See Boss Snakes for stories and folklore of bigger snakes.]

Timor Toads are Natives

Photos of alleged cane toads supposedly introduced into East Timor (an environmental group accused Australian military forces) were examined by experts and determined to be the Asian black-spined toad, not the invasive cane toad. (News source.) The Asian black-spined toad is native to Indonesia, and is expanding its range naturally.

Fossils

A 15-foot salamander-like amphibian fossil has been discovered in the Antarctic. (News source.)

Research into fossil crocodilian-like crurotarsans shows they were diverse and abundant. (Eurekalert)

Reptiland and Rachael Ray

Reptiland makes an appearance on Rachael Ray's new show, "Rach to the Rescue." (News source.)

Growafrog Fined by Nevada

Nevada fined the company GrowaFrog for shipping African clawed frogs into the state. (News source.) [Frankly, it should be the purchaser's responsibility to determine the legality of this sort of transaction.]

Sea Turtle Research

Five sea turtles have been tagged with satellite transmitting devices by Kenyan researchers. (News source.)

Snakes in the News

An Indian boy was bitten by a venomous snake, but immediately killed it with a rock and took it to a teacher. The boy is in good condition; he said he watches the Discovery Channel every night and isn't afraid of snakes. (News source.)

Massasauga habitat is being investigated in Pennsylvania. (News source.)

A Chinese woman fell into a well, and was rescued, but encountered a 2 meter long snake. (News source.)

Details here on a California rattlesnake bite.

A six-foot 2-inch eastern diamondback was killed in Florida. (News source.)

Armoured Mistfrog Rediscovered

The small armoured mistfrog, though extinct since 1991 after the chytrid fungus swept through northern Queensland, has been rediscovered. (News source.)

Chasing Wall Lizards

An article here on an annual wall lizard hunt in Topeka, Kansas. (The lizards are an introduced species.)

Crocodile Attacks in Kenya

Two Kenyan women were killed by crocodiles while fetching water from rivers. (News source.)

Watchcroc

An Australian crocodile farm is going to up the ante on repeated thefts of croc skins and skulls, by using a crocodile as a watchdog. (News source.)

Bullfrog Invaders

Vancouver Island continues to have bullfrog problems... (News source.)

Cane Toads in East Timor

The Australian Defense Force is fighting rumors that it accidentally introduced cane toads into East Timor in 1999. (News source.) [The U.S. military accidentally introduced brown tree snakes into Guam, so it's not inconceivable.)

Snake deaths in India

A man in India was bitten by a snake while sleeping, and cried out, waking his three sons, who all responded and were bitten also. The man and eldest son died, the others are in the hospital. Snake species not given. (News source.)

Rare Frog Video

Video here of the red-eyed stream frog in Costa Rica. (News source.)

Zoo News

Zulu Croc World opens soon in South Africa. (News source.)

A South African snake park was robbed by three armed men. (News source.)

Turtle News (Not So Good)

A Florida turtle preserve (successful in breeding several rare species) is shutting down, due to bills, hurricane damage, and zoo politics. (News source.)

Sea turtles that reproduce on beaches near humans are less fertile. (News source.)

Australia: Brown Snake Bite

A teenage boy in Victoria was bitten by a probable brown snake while walking through a botanical garden. (News source.)

Tegus in Florida

A tegu has been captured in Manatee County, FL, and others have been sighted. A new invasion? (News source.)

Toad Conservation

The Bronx Zoo is breeding Kihansi spray toads. (News source.)

Snake Rescues

An eastern diamondback had a close call in Clearwater, FL. (News source.)

Five snakes and two chameleons were rescued and released in India. (News source.)

Turtles

Hurricane Gustav didn't do sea turtle nests in the Gulf of Mexico any favors. (News source.)

Poachers are targeting Sumatran turtles. (News source.)

A sea turtle conservation center off the Bali coast is trying to educate fishermen who otherwise catch and sell sea turtles. (News source.)

Frog Hunt in Costa Rica

BBC has a "frog blog" as researchers look for frogs in the rainforest of Costa Rica.

Croc Farming in Vietnam

Crocodile farming in Vietnam is paying off, with exports and revenue increasing. (News source.)

Snake News

A ball python in NC was rescued after spending some time hanging on a minivan. (News source.)

An alleged rattlesnake in New York turned out to be a common milksnake. (News source.)

Missouri: Scarlet Snake

A scarlet snake was found in Missouri, rare in that state. (News source.)

Lizard Meat Sold As Croc

Six Hong Kong businessmen were fined for selling lizard and snake meat as crocodile meat. (News source.)

Herp Regs

Florida thinks about cracking down on turtle harvesting. (News source.)

California has to consider whether the California tiger salamander should be considered endangered. (News source.)

Snake Attacks

A teenage girl in Las Vegas survived an attack by her pet Burmese (15-foot) only because family was there to kill the snake. (News source.)

A 3-year old Maryland girl was bitten by a copperhead. (News source.)

Sea Turtle Poachers

A group of Vietnamese sea turtle poachers was caught in Philippine waters. (News source.)

Frog News

There's hope for frogs in Costa Rica, with rediscovered species and apparent resistance in some species to the chytrid fungus. (News source.)

A 6-year old Oregon boy had to stop selling his spotted frogs... (News source.)

Rattler Bite

Details on a rattlesnake bite in New Mexico here.