Cfreptiles & Amphibians

WWW.IRCF.ORG/REPTILESANDAMPHIBIANSJOURNALTABLE OF CONTENTS IRCF REPTILES & AMPHIBIANS IRCF REPTILES • VOL15, &NO AMPHIBIANS 4 • DEC 2008 189 • 23(1):51–61 • APR 2016 IRCF REPTILES & AMPHIBIANS CONSERVATION AND NATURAL HISTORY TABLE OF CONTENTS TRAVELOGUE FEATURE ARTICLES . Chasing Bullsnakes (Pituophis catenifer sayi) in Wisconsin: TexasOn the Road to Understanding Tech the Ecology and University Conservation of the Midwest’s Giant Serpent Students ...................... Joshua M. Kapfer 190 . The Shared History of Treeboas (Corallus grenadensis) and Humans on Grenada: A Hypothetical Excursion ............................................................................................................................Robert W. Henderson 198 RESEARCH ARTICLESTake On Zimbabwe . The Texas Horned Lizard in Central and Western Texas ....................... Emily Henry, Jason Brewer, Krista Mougey, and Gad Perry 204 . The Knight Anole (Anolis equestrisKaitlin) in Florida Danis, Ashley Hogan, and Kirsten Smith .............................................Texas BrianTech J. University, Camposano, KennethLubbock, L. Krysko, Texas Kevin 79409 M. Enge,([email protected]) Ellen M. Donlan, and Michael Granatosky 212 CONSERVATION ALERT n the night of. Wednesday,World’s Mammals in 14Crisis May ............................................................................................................................................................. 2014, 27 Texas three-week journey across South Africa 220 and Zimbabwe began Tech students tossed. More Than and Mammals turned ...................................................................................................................................................................... in their beds, desper- (Fig. 1). As we waited in the South African 223 customs line, most O . ate for sleep, imaginingThe “Dowwhat Jones the Index” next of Biodiversity three ........................................................................................................................................... weeks would of us tried to get on our phones to connect225 with friends and bring. Most of us HUSBANDRYhad spent months preparing for the trip family, but to no avail. We certainly weren’t in Texas anymore. by learning about the. Captivecountry, Care of raising the Central money, Netted Dragon and ....................................................................................................... filling out Shannon Plummer 226 travel paperwork. PROFILEForget studying for finals, we were more South Africa: Kenjara Lodge concerned with packing!. Kraig Leaving Adler: A Lifetime something Promoting Herpetology behind ................................................................................................was sim- (http://www.kenjara.co.za/) Michael L. Treglia 234 ply not an option,COMMENTARY but getting everything to fit into a single A brief car trip from the Johannesburg airport delivered us suitcase was certainly. Thea challenge. Turtles Have Been Herpetology Watching Me ........................................................................................................................ was not the to the Kenjara Lodge in Ericthe Gangloff Gauteng 238 Province of South focus for this trip, but we were excited about all the wildlife Africa. Along the way, we couldn’t help but notice similari- BOOK REVIEW we were going to see. We prepared ourselves with a series of ties between the climate of South Africa and Lubbock, Texas. Threatened Amphibians of the World edited by S.N. Stuart, M. Hoffmann, J.S. Chanson, N.A. Cox, field guides. Although oneR. Berridge, frog P. guide Ramani, andspecific B.E. Young to .............................................................................................................. Zimbabwe The highly anticipated acacia Robert Powelltrees 243 and wild animals were (Lambiris 1989) was too technical for our purposes, we gen- nowhere to be found. Instead, the land was scattered with erally found the South CONSERVATION African snake RESEARCH (Marais REPORTS: 2004) and Summaries frog of Publishedimpoverished Conservation Research neighborhoods, Reports ................................. eucalyptus 245 trees, and tall-grass NATURAL HISTORY RESEARCH REPORTS: Summaries of Published Reports on Natural History ................................. 247 guides (du Preez andNEWBRIEFS Carruthers ...................................................................................................................................................................................... 2009), which have indi- prairie. 248 vidual records and mapsEDITORIAL for all INFORMATION species, more ..................................................................................................................................................... useful than the Our first stop was the Cradle 251of Humankind World FOCUS ON CONSERVATION: A Project You Can Support ............................................................................................... 252 “reptile” guide for lizards, turtles, and crocodilians (Alexander Heritage Site in Maropeng, where we learned about our and Marais 2007). Consequently, we were unable in many human ancestors and the evolution of other species (Fig. 2). instances to identify the reptiles we encountered to species. We also explored the Sterkfontein caves, where we viewed After considerable preparation,Front we Cover.finally Shannon were Plummer. ready to currentBack archaeologicalCover. Michael Kern dig sites and the site where “Mrs. Ples” embark on one of the greatest adventuresTotat et velleseque of our audant lives. mo After (AustralopithecusTotat et velleseque audant africanus mo ) was found. The view surrounding three airports, one lengthy layover,estibus and inveliquoroughly velique two rerchil days of theestibus caves inveliquo still velique might rerchil be very close to what some of our earliest erspienimus, quos accullabo. Ilibus erspienimus, quos accullabo. Ilibus travel, we were excited to be on solidaut ground dolor apicto again invere — pe dolumand our ancestorsaut dolor apicto experienced invere pe dolum when they roamed the area (Fig. 3). fugiatis maionsequat eumque fugiatis maionsequat eumque moditia erere nonsedis ma sectiatur moditia erere nonsedis ma sectia- ma derrovitae voluptam, as quos tur ma derrovitae voluptam, as accullabo. Fig. 1. The entire group at Hwange National Park, Zimbabwe. Four-wheel drive vehicles are essential for visiting many places in Africa. Photograph by Gad Perry. Copyright © 2016. Kaitlin Danis. All rights reserved. 51 DANIS ET AL. IRCF REPTILES & AMPHIBIANS • 23(1):51–61 • APR 2016 Limpopo, Zimbabwe: The Nottingham Fishing Retreat (http://nottinghamadventures.co.za/) The Nottingham Fishing Retreat sits on the Limpopo River, the border between South Africa and Zimbabwe. Our first morning at the lodge afforded us the opportunity to view the large dam in front of the comfortable cottages. The dam is a valuable asset to the lodge for fishing and recreation. It supports agriculture and holds a diverse man-made aquatic ecosystem. We spent one afternoon with our guides taking a Fig. 2. The entrance to the Cradle of Humankind Museum at Maropeng. tour of the river, where we had the opportunity to view Nile The many interactive displays include a boat ride that takes visitors back in time. Photograph by Gad Perry. Crocodiles (Crocodylus niloticus) up close. Many crocodiles spend the days basking in the sun, often with gaping mouths (Fig. 5). Crocodiles do most of their hunting at night, rely- ing on the warm water to keep their body temperatures from dropping too low. This is one of the largest and most danger- ous species of crocodile, and a warning by the lake reminds guests to be careful (Fig. 6). National Geographic Magazine (2015) reported that Nile Crocodiles kill up to 200 people annually, so we made sure to heed the warnings. We were told that fish poachers have disappeared in these waters, pre- sumably prey to some of the larger crocs. We also observed Fig. 3. Coming out of the Sterkfontein caves at Maropeng. Photograph by Kaitlin Danis. Our trip was during the North American summer, which meant it was winter in South Africa. We had hoped to see some chameleons (eight genera and over 160 species are known from Africa; Alexander and Marais 2007); they are common in the region and very different from the lizards with which we are familiar. Although we were told about them wherever we went and saw images of chameleons in local art (Fig. 4), we saw not one individual during this trip. We departed Kenjara Lodge early the next day and spent a memorable eight hours first passing through South African customs in order to leave the country and then waiting in another long line until we were finally granted permission to Fig. 5. One of the Nile Crocodiles (Crocodylus niloticus) seen sunning itself by the lake at the Nottingham Fishing Retreat by the Limpopo River. enter Zimbabwe (we suggest taking a plane into Bulawayo for Photograph by Kaitlin Danis. a much faster and smoother entry). After our exhausting day at the border, an additional drive took us to Limpopo. The delicious dinner served by the Nottingham Fishing Retreat staff and a night spent admiring the stars were the perfect ending to our fifteen-hours of traveling. Fig. 6. This wooden crocodile, placed near the boathouse at the Fig. 4. The only chameleons we saw during the trip… Artwork by Mr. Nottingham Fishing Retreat, reminds guests that the innocent-seeming

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