RAT HERPETOLOGY LAB – 1-3-20 LOYOLA UNIVERSITY NEW ORLEANS HERPETOLOGY LAB - BIOL A346 - SPRING 2020 LABORATORY GUIDE Professor: Dr. Robert A. Thomas ([email protected]) Office Hours: TR 2:00-3:15pm; MW 1:00 - 2:15 pm; other times by appointment. If I’m in the office, drop in and inquire if I’m available. THE GOAL: To give you a serious and long-lasting case of herpetitis. LAB PLACE & TIME: The wet lab will be held each Friday in MO 558 from 3:30-6:20 pm. DOOR CODE: 540121 CLASS COMMUNICATION (REQUIRED): I will often communicate with the class via email. Check often (daily) or you will definitely miss important information. Not getting the messages is not a valid excuse – you snooze, you lose. Both of the following must be done by the end of the first week of classes. • CLASS LISTSERV: I have set up a class googlegroup – [email protected]. All announcements and changes as the course progresses may be shared via this googlegroup. Note: You will receive emails from me on this googlegroup only at the address you subscribe from. You may subscribe from more than one email if you wish. Don’t risk losing points by failing to pay attention to this communication system immediately. HOW DO YOU USE THE GOOGLEGROUP? To send an email to the entire class, send it to [email protected]. If you receive an email from this address, clicking <reply all> sends your reply back to the entire class (use caution!). If you hit <reply>, it goes back only to the sender (again, use caution with what you say). • BLACKBOARD: Many elements of this course will be available to you on the class Blackboard site (http://loyno.blackboard.com). You may find announcements, corrections/adjustments to the syllabus (including due dates), clarifications, references, etc. You are well advised to check it often – and always make note of announcements. I assume you have all used Blackboard and you access it the same way as usual. If you have problems, go to the Monroe Library Reference Desk. o The syllabus on blackboard is always the official syllabus! o As we move through the course, it is your responsibility to check out and read the materials in the appropriate blackboard folder. HERP LAB SCHEDULE I. Jan 10 Introduction, local venomous snakes, listen to and discuss frog calls II. Jan 17 Caecilians, salamanders (part) III. Jan 24 Salamanders (part) IV. Jan 31 Frogs (part) V. Feb 7 Frogs (part), tadpoles and salamander larvae VI. Feb 14 Exam I (amphibians) 1 RAT HERPETOLOGY LAB – 1-3-20 VII. Feb 21 Snakes (part) VIII. Mar 6 Frog call exam, Snakes (part) IX. Mar 13 Snakes (part) X. Mar 20 Exam II (Snakes), Amphisbaenids, Lizards (part) XI. Mar 27 Lizards (part) XII. Apr 3 Turtles (part), turn in anole observations XIII. Apr 17 Turtles (part), Crocodilians XIV. Apr 24 Exam III (lizards, turtles, crocodilians), lab cleanup, Field Notes due in lab What you must know about the specimens on the lab lists: For Louisiana specimens (unmarked): scientific name, habitat, distribution within and outside the state. You should also learn common names, but you will not be tested on that material. For U.S. species (marked "+"): genus, habitat, general distribution. For foreign species (marked "++"): family, habitat, general distribution. Those marked "+++" must be recognized to order and/or suborder only. Those marked "D" are demonstration only. They will be used for extra points on the lab exams. Do not remove them from the bottle. Know all structures and terms given in lab. HERP LAB I Laboratory rules: 1. Make good use of your lab time. 2. Don't distract others. 3. When picking specimens out of the jar with the long-handled-picker-upers (that's Aggie for forceps), grasp the body, not the head, tail, or a limb (they have been known to be ripped off). 4. Don't let the specimens dry out. Always place them in a tray. When not actively looking at them, keep them covered with a damp towel. If they have been out for an extended time, drop them back in the alcohol for a spell. 5. Keep the lid on the jar (alcohol evaporates quickly, thus making the solution weaker). 6. Keep the specimen jars on the table next to the tray used for specimens. This allows one to pull out new specimens and the return used specimens easily. 7. Use a dissecting needle for pointing. DO NOT use a pen or pencil (makes marks on the specimen). 8. Never hold a specimen by its tail, head, or limb. Always hold it by the body. 9. Be careful to put specimens back in the correct jar. 10. When placing specimens in the jar, put them in head down. 11. Be sure no part of the specimen is sticking out of the fluid. 12. ALWAYS top off the jar with isopropyl alcohol (50%) from the carboy in the collections room. 2 RAT HERPETOLOGY LAB – 1-3-20 To use the carboy, loosen the lid, use the spigot, then retighten the lid (otherwise, the alcohol evaporates). 13. ALWAYS screw the specimen jar lids on tightly. 14. ALWAYS clean up your area before leaving lab. This includes wiping down the lab table. 15. ALWAYS replace the long-handle-picker-upers (some snooty biologists call them forceps), dissecting needles, etc. in the proper place. 16. ALWAYS leave with a smile on your face and a song in your heart. 17. Penalty for breaking the rules: I have a very large jar for pickled students. Terms: You will be learning new terms all semester. To understand the following you have to know a few terms now. • Herps - this is a collective term referring to reptiles and amphibians. • Herpers - this is you, people who love herps and seek them out. • Herping – the term for when we go “collecting” to find herps. • Snake or herp stick - anything used to turn stuff over while looking for herps. • Snake bag – a cloth bag for carrying various herps. • Venom – toxins that are injected into the victim/prey (snakes, spiders, scorpions, wasps, bees, etc). Thus, snakes are never “poisonous,” they are “venomous.” They don’t have “poison,” they have “venom.” • Poison – toxins that must be ingested or absorbed. • Envenomation – the act of being injected with venom. “He was envenomated in the hand.” Class motto: “We go out, we gettum, and we bring ‘em back.” (or, just photos and memories). Definition of systematics: “Trying to find out what’s going on.” Defintion of ecology: “Trying to find out what they’re doing.” The collection: The specimens used in this course are part of a Teaching Collection. Few of the specimens have research value, but all are very valuable for their purpose: to serve as examples for students to learn about identifying taxa and morphology. Handle these specimens carefully and with respect. If specimens are damaged, new specimens must be collected to replace them. We try to do that as infrequently as possible. Where do the teaching specimens come from? These specimens are available to you through a number of sources: some were collected for this collection, others donated by interested people, but most were donated by herpetologists from other institutions (e.g., University of New Orleans, L.S.U. Museum of Natural Sciences, University of Louisiana Lafayette, University of Louisiana Monroe, Texas Cooperative Wildlife Collection (Texas A&M University), University of Texas El Paso, American Museum of Natural History, National Museum of Natural History (Smithsonian Institution), California Academy of Sciences, Sonora-Desert Museum, University of Florida, University of Missouri, Pine Jog Environmental Science Center, Louisiana Nature Center, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Australia Museum, and many more). Handling preserved specimens: Specimens should be kept moist, with alcohol or water (never soaked in water, just dampened) - never let them dry out. Hold them by the body, never by a limb or tail. Be sure they are returned to the proper bottle. When possible, specimens should be placed in the bottle head down. Preservatives: Specimens are set in 10% formalin. They are then soaked in water to remove the formalin and then stored in 50-60% isopropyl alcohol. Make sure the specimens are always covered by the proper concentration of alcohol when you close the jar. Data tags: The tags tied to some specimens’ legs are very important in that they contain information about 3 RAT HERPETOLOGY LAB - 1/3/20 where, when, and by whom the specimens were collected. Never hold a specimen by its tag, and if a tag comes off, take it and the specimen to the professor immediately so it can be reattached. Dichotomous keys: Your required lab manual contains “dichotomous keys” that help you identify most specimens in lab. Learn to use them. How to study in lab: You all have different learning styles (see the hand-out in your lecture notes on this topic), so these suggestions are generic, but tried and true. There are examples of some of these in the lab section on Blackboard. • Study the specimens with one or more partners. Say the names to one another constantly, thus reinforcing them in your mind. When you see one another on campus or the local pub, call out a few scientific names (this really impresses your non-herp friends - they’ll want to be like you!). • Group the specimens into assemblages that are in some way related (this will be done in lab). Once you have learned a group, move to the next group. Once you’ve studied all groups, compare groups that you think have similarities.