Vol. 24 (2004), No. 3

THE NEWSLETTER OF THE

March Meeting:

THE

A NNUAL MHS

W HITE S NAKE S ALE IN THIS ISSUE :

T WO

ARTICLES ON

SNAKE EVOLUTION AND ...

T ORT OISES : D O

THEY

NEED T O DRINK

BY AC H IGHFIELD PLUS

F ORECAST: C LIMATE CHANGES MAY EXTINGUISH ONE MILLION SPECIES

M A R C H 2004

V O L U M E 24

N UMBER 3

Bell Museum of Natural History, 10 Church Street Southeast, Minneapolis Minnesota 55455

Board of Directors President Randy Blasus

952.925.4237 rblas@mn.rr.com

Vice President Tony Gamble

763.424.2803 tgamble@attbi.com

Recording Secretary Barb Buzicky zzzbuzzi@aol.com

612-916-7575

Membership Secretary Nancy Haig 612.434.8684 nanchaig@citilink.com Treasurer Liz Bosman 763.476.0306 liz.bosman@genmills.com Newsletter Editor Bill Moss mngatorguy@msn.com

651.488.1383

Members at Large Heather Clayton heethuh@aol.com

612.788.4664

Nancy Hakomaki gatorgal@boxfrog.com

651.341.5707

Mike Bush

612.624.7225 bush0155@umn.edu

Jodi L. Aherns 612.588.9329 groundgeckofreak@yahoo.com

Committees Adoption Sarah Richard

612.781.9544 RealSarah@aol.com

Education Jan Larson

The Minnesota S o c i

Herpetological e t y

MHS Webpage: http://www.mnher psoc.org MHS Group Email: http://www.groups.yahoo.com/group/mnherpsoc MHS Voice Mail: 612.624.7065 The Purpose of the Minnesota Herpetological Society is to: • Further the education of the membership and the general public in care and captive propagation of reptiles and amphibians; • Educate the members and the general public in the ecological role of reptiles and amphibians; • Promote the study and conservation of reptiles and amphibians.

The Minnesota Herpetological Society is a non-profit, tax-exempt organization.

Membership is open to all individuals with an interest in amphibians and reptiles. The Minnesota Herpetological Society Newsletter is published monthly to provide its members with information concerning the society’s activities and a media for exchanging information, opinions and resources.

General Meetings are held at Borlaug Hall, Room 335 on the St. Paul Campus of the University of Minnesota, on the first Friday of each month (unless there is a holiday conflict). The meeting starts at 7:00pm and lasts about three hours. Please check the MHS Voice mail for changes in schedules or cancellations.

507.263.4391 jan.skunkhollow@juno.com

Library Beth Girard

763.691.1650 bgirard@worldnet.att.net

Webmaster Anke Reinders theMHSwebmaster@yahoo.com

Herp Assistance Amphibians Greg Kvanbek John Meltzer John Moriarty

651.388.0305 763.263.7880 651.482.8109

Chameleons Vern & Laurie Grassel

763-428-4625

Crocodilians Jeff Lang Bill Moss

651 646 0203 651.488.1383

Lizards Nancy Haig

763.434.8684

Large Boas, Pythons Tina Cisewski

612.856.2865

Other Snakes Jeff Leclere John Meltzer

651.488.6388 763.263.7880

Aquatic Turtles John Levell

507.467.3076

Terrestrial Turtles Fred Bosman John Levell

763.476.0306 507.467.3076

Submissions to the Newsletter Ads or Notices must be submitted no later than the night of the General Meeting to be included in the next issue. Longer articles will be printed as time and space allows and should be in electronic file format if possible. See inside back cover for ad rates.

Submissions may be sent to: -orThe Minnesota Herpetological Society Bill Moss Attn: Newsletter Editor 75 Geranium Ave East Bell museum of Natural History Saint Paul, MN 55117 10 Church St. SE. -orMinneapolis, MN 55455.0104 mngatorguy@msn.com

Copyright 2004, Minnesota Herpetological Society. Except where noted, contents may be reproduced for nonprofit, non-commercial use only. All material must be reproduced without change. Proper credit will be given including the author/photographer and the MHS Newsletter citing: volume, number and date.

The Newsletter of the Minnesota Herpetological Society

March 2004

The Vice-presidents report

BY

By Tony Gamble

March General Meeting Friday, March 5, 2004

White Snake Sale and Photo Contest The Great White Snake Sale has, for the last eighteen years, been a great fund-raiser for MHS. The proceeds keep the organization running smoothly and help fund items in the budget like guest speaker expenses and research grants. It’s also a great place to pick up cages, books, and herp related knickknacks (among other things…).

Please bid high!

The March meeting also has the MHS photo contest. The quality of photos entered by MHS members is outstanding. Come, view all of the entries, and vote for your favorite.

EDITORIAL

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Number 3

BILL MOSS

While not intending to go on a rant here, as a long time member of the MHS, I feel I must make some observations about a trend that I have noticed over the last couple of years.

In this editors opinion, the level of membership contribution to the MHS has steadily declined, and I’m very concerned about it. While it’s true that we are usually able to get the jobs at hand done, it’s generally the same people taking on the bulk of the work. When people put too many hours and effort into something, there comes a time when they will burn out and stop contributing. I don’t see people stepping up from the ranks to fill those shoes and I’m afraid that when these substantial contributors stop, there will be a huge void.

How can you help?

One of the missions of the MHS is the education of the public as to the value of reptiles and amphibians. The primary way in which we do that is via the education events that we are invited to. Let’s face it, the zoological organizations in this state are pretty pathetic where it comes to educating the public about reptiles and amphibians. That means that the MHS public events are extremely important to providing a forum for the public to gain an appreciation of these animals.

Jan Larson, the Education Coordinator, has done a terrific job of running this most valuable service that we provide. But she can’t do it all by herself. Please make it a goal to volunteer for at least one event this year.

In addition to providing a great service, you may also find that it’s a lot of fun!

Oh, and by the way, we also have a newsletter editor who can use the help of the membership too.

Because the White Snake Sale is a rather unstructured event it’s easy to lose track of kids (and adults) who may want to wander the halls.

Please remember that it’s important that we stay in our designated rooms and connecting hallways.

Cover: Tata Lizard (Lophognathus gilberti) Photo by Alexander Dudley

photo by Tony Gamble

Upcoming Meetings: April 2nd, 2004 – Walter Sadinski, Amphibian Research Monitoring Initiative, USGS

"Face to face with an Amazon River turtle” (Podocnemis expansa)" Page 3

The Newsletter of the Minnesota Herpetological Society

March 2004

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Number 3

News, Notes & Announcements February Raffle Donors Thanks to the following people for generously donating to the monthly raffle: Dave Asleson Reptiles Mag Asra Halvorson Turtle magnifying glass, frog keychain Heather Matison Reptiles Mag Marilyn Blasus Socks and pen MHS Books, stuffed lizard Adoption Program Cages, lights, etc

February Critter of the Month The following people brought animals to the February meeting: Phillip Brazell gopher snake Nicholas Brazel red rat snake Jaime Pajak one of the adoption iguanas

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MHS BOARD MEETING REVIEW February 7, 2004

by Barb Buzicky, Recording Secretary

The Board Meeting was called to order at 6:04 PM CST. All Board Members were present except Bill Moss and Nancy Hakomaki. Non-Board Members present were George and Sarah Richard, Jeff LeClere, and Marilyn Blasus.

Minutes from the February, 2003, meeting from last meeting received changes. Minutes from the January 10, 2003, meeting were approved with changes.

Treasurer’s Report January, 2004, was approved.

Membership Report for January, 2004, was tabled until the next meeting.

General Meeting attendance for February 6, 2004, was 140.

President’s Report: Randy asked if the Board had any questions regarding the handout from last the meeting in the Board Development Series on responsibilities. There were no questions.

The next in the series was Safeguarding Against Conflict of Interest. Randy passed out a handout from which he read the highlights. He requested that each Board Member read the new handout to discuss next week.

Vice-President’s Report: March, White Snake Sale April, Walt Sadinski from USGS, ARMI Project May Adam Summers-Caecilians June, Noah Anderson, Louisiana Herps

Committee Reports: There were three grant proposals tabled from last meeting that needed a decision. Two were regarding wood turtle surveys, one in Minnesota and one in Iowa. The third grant involved a bio-embedding project in Lanesboro, Minnesota. Motion was moved and approved for $750 for each wood turtle survey. The bio-embedding project was not time sensitive, and it was tabled for the next round of grant approvals.

John Moriarty will be updating the MN Bibliography which is an occasional paper that he wants to put on the MHS Website. The Board suggested limited printing due to the paper being put on the website.

Nancy Haig suggested advance orders so MHS doesn’t end up with overrun. Dan Kyler is working on a new paper which is still in the works.

Old Business: Preliminary volunteer hours were handed out by Randy in two formats hour sort and alpha sort. Randy asked that everyone verify the information and submit corrections. The board voted on the award item, which will be clear beer glasses with our logo on them. The Board moved and approved $400 for this purpose.

The Holiday Banquet cost sheetwas handed out. There was an added fee for the room that was not expected. Marilyn will check into this cost from the U. of M. The Board moved and approved $300 to pay the extra cost. The issue of declining membership was discussed and tabled for the next meeting. George needs a board.....continued on page 11

The Newsletter of the Minnesota Herpetological Society

FEBRUARY REVIEW

SPEAKER

by Barbara Buzicky

February General Meeting Speaker: Robert (“Bobby”) Espinoza Program: The Evolution of Herbivory in Reptiles and the Herpetofauna of South America’s Southern Cone: New Discoveries from the Andean Peaks to the Patagonian Steppe Robert Espinoza comes to us from Southern California where he grew up. He completed his B.S. degree in Biology at San Diego State University (SDSU), and he continued his education by starting his PH.D. dissertation work at Colorado State University. Two years later, he moved to the University of Nevada, Reno, (UNR) where he studied under his advisor C. Richard “Dick” Tracy. His dissertation was on the evolution of herbivory in reptiles which he completed at the University of Nevada, Reno, (UNR).

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Robert became involved with reptiles and amphibians when he was young as he collected them in the fields where he lived. His interest increased when he was in junior high school when he became a member of the San Diego Herpetological Society. While he was in this group, he met many herpetologists and hobbyists in the field that shared his interests. He learned a great wealth of information from these people that encouraged him to further study in this area. When he was working on his B.S. in Biology at San Diego State University (SDSU), he was studying under the mentorship of Dr. Richard Etheridge. Further, he had many graduate students as friends among them were Lee Grismer, Brad Hollingsworth, and Jim McGuire. These “herp friends” went on to become very influential in the field of herpetology.

Robert has many, many credits to be recognized. He worked on Nevada’s largest museum collection of reptiles and amphibians numbering 8,000 specimens which needed some tender loving care to get them in order. In addition to that project, he worked at the Carnegie Museum of Natural History with John Wiens doing post-doctorial research for one year. They studied a group of southern South American Lizards (Liolaemidae) with the subject being the evolution of herbivory.

Currently, he is an Assistant Professor at California State University, Northridge, where he teaches vertebrate biology and herpetology.

He returned to Southern California in 2001, where he thoroughly enjoys continuing his research in evolutionary herbivory.

Number 3

Evolutionary herbivory scratches the surface of several major fields of study being physiology, animal behavior, ecology, and evolution.

His research and interests lie in thermal biology, the evolution of diet, life history strategies, and reproductive modes. He has incorporated both field and laboratory studies into his research. He has focused most of his research on desert lizards. In particular, he has studied a herbivorous lizard, the chuckwalla (Sauromalus obesus) who live in desert environments where the rainfall doesn’t follow any particular pattern, thus, the chuckwalla’s diet consists of plants that can vary in fiber content both seasonally and annually. For the many years, digestion, metabolism, and thermoregulation have been researched in ectotherms, there has not been much work done studying the interactions that occur between these variables. He also believes that the effects of diet quality on the energetics of an herbivorous ectotherm specifically have not been done. So, why are lizards herbivores, carnivores, or omnivores? First of all, we need to know the definition of these words.

A herbivore is an animal that only eats plant matter and never any meat or small animals. A carnivore only eats animals, and an omnivore eats both. Herbivores live in an environment consisting mostly of plant matter that can vacillate between high and low fiber in the material due to the seasonality resulting from rain and emperature fluctuations. Herbivores have specific bateria in their guts to digest speaker .... continued on page 11 Page 5

The Newsletter of the Minnesota Herpetological Society

Scientists Discover Where Snakes Lived When They Evolved into Limbless Creatures The Royal Society 1/30/04.

A preprint of the research paper this article is based on may still be posted on the web at: http://www.journals.royalsoc.ac.uk/link. asp?id=pa6a316clj7h

The mystery of where Earth's first snakes lived as they were evolving into limbless creatures from their lizard ancestors has intrigued scientists for centuries. Now, the first study ever to analyze genes from all the living families of lizards has revealed that snakes made their debut on the land, not in the ocean.

The discovery resolves a longsmoldering debate among biologists about whether snakes had a terrestrial or a marine origin roughly 150 million years ago--a debate rekindled recently by controversial research in favor of the marine hypothesis. In a paper to be published in the 7 May 2004 issue of the Royal Society journal Biology Letters, Nicolas Vidal, a postdoctoral fellow, and S. Blair Hedges, a professor of biology at Penn State, describe how they put the two theories to the test. They collected the largest genetic data set for snakes and lizards ever used to address this question. Their collection includes two genes from 64 species representing all 19 families of living lizards and 17 of the 25 families of living snakes. Genetic material from some of the lizards was difficult to obtain because some species live only on certain Page 6

March 2004

small islands or in remote parts of the world. "We felt it was important to analyze genes from all the lizard groups because almost every lizard family has been suggested as being the one most closely related to snakes. If we had failed to include genes from even one of the lizard families, we could have missed getting the right answer," Hedges explains. "For the marine hypothesis to be correct, snakes must be the closest relative of the only lizards known to have lived in the ocean when snakes evolved-the giant, extinct mosasaur lizards," Vidal says. "While we can't analyze the genes of the extinct mosasaurs, we can use the genes of their closest living cousins, monitor lizards like the giant Komodo Dragon," he explains. The team analyzed gene sequences from each of the species, using several statistical methods to determine how the species are related.

"Although these genes have the same function in each species--and so, by definition, are the same gene--their structure in each species is slightly different because of mutations that have developed over time," Vidal explains. When the genetic comparisons were complete, Vidal and Hedges had a family tree showing the relationships of the species. "Our results show clearly that snakes are not closely related to monitor lizards like the giant Komodo Dragon, which are the closest living relatives of the mosasaurs--the only known marine lizard living at the time that snakes evolved," Vidal says. "Because all the other lizards at that time lived

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on the land, our study provides strong evidence that snakes evolved on the land, not in the ocean." The research suggests an answer to another long-debated question: why snakes lost their limbs. Their land-based lifestyle, including burrowing underground at least some of the time, may be the reason. "Having limbs is a real problem if you need to fit through small openings underground, as anybody who has tried exploring in caves knows," Hedges says. "Your body could fit through much smaller openings if you did not have the wide shoulders and pelvis that support your limbs." The researchers note that the burrowing lifestyle of many other species, including legless lizards, is correlated with the complete loss of limbs or the evolution of very small limbs. ยง

The Newsletter of the Minnesota Herpetological Society

March 2004

Volume 24

Number 3

A TWIST IN THE TAIL OF SNAKE EVOLUTION Reconstructed skulls from an extinct group of Australian snakes may provide the much-needed missing link in the slippery story of snake evolution, Eleanor Lawrence explains.

Eleanor Lawrence, 27 January, almost nothing was known about 2000 the skulls of madtsoiids — until now.

New finds of fossil snake skull fragments indicate that the sinu- Enough bits of skull and jaw have ous, legless snake body from a now been found to reconstruct a large predatory lizard-like ances- skull of W. naracoortensis and to tor, perhaps for swimming, or as identify a new species, W. barrei. an adaptation for sliding through And these skulls have many primdense vegetation. The finds are itive features. In particular, they reported this week by John D. lack the fully developed flexible Scanlon from the University of joint in the upper jaw and have no Queensland, Brisbane, and flexibility in the front of the lower Michael S.Y. Lee from the jaw. These are features that all University of New South Wales, ‘advanced’ snakes possess, and Sydney, Australia. that give them the ability to extend Skulls and jaws hold the main their mouths around prey many clues to the course of snake evolution, but for one important group of extinct snakes they have been missing until now. The skull and jaw fragments, which Scanlon and Lee describe in Nature1, come from two related species of extinct snake, Wonambi naracoortensis and Wonambi barrei, which lived in the Pleistocene, just a blink away in evolutionary time. These species belong to a group of medium-sized to giant snakes known as madtsoiids, which are now all extinct.

The madtsoiids have a 90-millionyear history in the fossil record, from the mid-Cretaceous, around 100 million years ago, to the Pleistocene, which ended around 100,000 years ago. Their relationships to other snakes, both extinct and living, are crucial to understanding snake evolution. But

the most primitive extinct snakes, a loose joint has developed in the bottom jaw. In more advanced snakes, a flexible joint has also appeared in the upper jaw, while the most advanced snakes, such as boas and pythons, have, in addition, a joint in the front of the lower jaw which enables the two halves of the jaw to move apart.

With their new information on skull and jaw features, Scanlon and Lee were able to make an extensive skeletal comparison between the madtsoiids and other fossil and living snakes. Their analysis clearly shows that the madtsoiids most closely resemble the more primitive snakes from the early Cretaceous than they do any living snakes. Because all these primitive snakes are fairly sizable and none shows any adaptation to burrowing, Scanlon and Lee conclude that the ‘small and subterranean’ theories of snake origins must be incorrect.

These theories arose because the most primitive of living snakes are indeed small burrowers.

Reconstruction of the skull of Wonambi naracoortensis

References Scanlon, J. D. & Lee, M. S. Y. The times larger than themselves.

Pleistocene serpent Wonambi and the early evolution of snakes.

As snakes evolved from lizards, Nature 403,416 (2000). they gradually acquired more and more flexible and extensible jaws. § In true lizards, both upper and lower jaws are inflexible. In the extinct lizard-like mosasurs and in Page 7

The Newsletter of the Minnesota Herpetological Society

March 2004

Volume 24

Number 3

TorTOISES:

DO THEY NEED TO

DRINK?

by A.C. Highfield There is a considerable amount of misunderstanding on the subject of the water requirement of tortoises. This is unfortunate, as a number of pathological conditions are directly related to the availability or otherwise of environmental water, and to the general hydration status of reptiles such as tortoises.

The most common health problems associated with a sub-optimum level of hydration or prolonged period of environmental water deprivation include an accumulation of solidified uric acid in the renal system and bladder; articular gout; and kidney failure. All of these are extremely serious conditions and it should be noted that dehydration, even for short periods, can have grave long-term consequences.

Page 8

Many people seem to believe that Mediterranean tortoises naturally acquire almost all of their fluid requirement from their food and that therefore they do not require additional drinking water. One recent book on Mediterranean tortoises even suggests that only sick tortoises voluntarily drink fresh water*. It is highly regrettable that such dangerous misinformation is in circulation.

This latter contention is simply not true, as direct observations of Testudo graeca and Testudo hermanni in the wild all too easily confirm. Both species are at their most active during or just after episodes of rain, and can be observed to 'nose' along the ground, drinking from any available puddle. Tortoise Trust field trips have resulted in a number of observations of this kind.

In Spain, France, Italy and Greece wild Testudo hermanni have been

observed in some numbers to drink rainwater and to increase their activity level during wet weather, especially during summer thunderstorms, when the rain brings welcome relief from the searing heat and aridity of summer. In North Africa and Spain (T.graeca), Greece and Turkey (T. ibera), tortoises have been observed drinking from the edges of streams, from reed-beds and from puddles during episodic rain. Recently in Morocco, following the heaviest rain for many years, tortoise activity was as high as I have ever seen it and numerous individuals were observed drinking from surface water. In many arid regions, tortoise activity ceases entirely during summer or in extended periods of drought, and only resumes when rain returns. In southern Turkey, Spain and Morocco, tortoises aestivate during

The Newsletter of the Minnesota Herpetological Society

summer because food and water availability is so poor. In southern Africa it is commonplace to see Geochelone pardalis (Leopard tortoises) drinking from streams and pools, and recently Moll and Klemens reported on the utilisation of standing water pools by Malacochersus tornieri (pancake tortoises) in Tanzania.

Mediterranean tortoises are indeed adapted to withstand a semi-arid environment. Their system of eliminating waste via uric acid rather than via urea is clear evidence of this. Uric acid can be eliminated using far lower levels of water 'wastage' than can systems based on urea, such as those of mammals and amphibians. It is also significant that species from damp environments such as rainforests, e.g.

Geochelone denticulata, feature a very different urinary biochemistry than do species from more arid environments such as Testudo graeca. In the former the ratio of excreted uric acid to ammonia is 6.7:6.00 and in the latter it is 51.9:4.1!

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replenishment is available.

Depriving the tortoise of water will result in urates being accumulated often to dangerous levels.

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30ºC. Peak tortoise activity in the south of Morocco typically occurs in the temperature range 20º-26ºC, decreasing as temperatures rise beyond 28ºC.

During a summer rain tortoises will often drink and urinate simultaneously. The behaviour can be stimulated in hot weather by lightly spraying the animals with a garden hose.

Your tortoise is not sick if it behaves in this way. It is behaving exactly as its wild counterparts would and for a very sensible and biologically sound reason.

During aestivation tortoises maintain themselves below ground, in burrows which exhibit a reasonably stable microclimate. In these burrows temperatures are much lower than those above ground and the relative humidity is very much higher. Combined with reduced (practically zero) activity, these factors result in a vastly reduced rate of Just because they are able to toler- fluid loss via exhalation and little or ate water deprivation for a substan- no need to urinate. tial period is not reason to deprive them of it deliberately or perma- The advice of the Tortoise Trust on nently. Water deprivation is a sub- this topic is very clear. Fresh water optimal state which, if extended should be provided to all tortoises beyond certain limits, results in seri- on a regular basis. Even true desert ous health problems. Food alone is species such as Testudo kleinmannot normally an adequate source of ni, Geochelone sulcata and the total water requirement of semi- Gopherus agassizii will drink given the opportunity. Our own exceedarid habitat reptiles. ingly healthy breeding group of T. We have seen several cases kleinmanni are provided with fresh recently in which tortoises reared on water daily, and often take advanthe basis proposed, i.e. , no access tage of it. The suggestion that only to fresh water and an expectation sick animals drink is absolute nonthat all fluid requirements can be sense and is unsupported by any met entirely from food, have accu- ecological, biochemical or veterimulated serious concentrations of nary study we have been able to uric acid in the bladder. This is hard- trace. There are, however, literally ly surprising and is precisely what dozens of readily available reliable one would expect from such a and authoritative references which regime, given a fundamental under- support the opposite view. standing of tortoise biology and ecology. In the long term such animals can also be expected to develop kidney disease and articular * Mediterranean Tortoises by Brian gout.

Pursall, TFH Inc.

Mediterranean tortoises can therefore eliminate nitrogenous waste products with very great water economy. Their behaviour is also programmed to reflect this need not to waste precious water. It was noticeable that during the rainy period experienced in Morocco just a few months ago many traces of uric acid deposits were in evidence as tortoises urinated while they drank.

In an arid environment it pays not to dispose of vital body fluids unless you can be sure of replacing them! I In the wild, during hot and rain-free am sure this behaviour is also famil- summers, aestivation or semi-aestivation occurs. There are several Article from www.tortoisetrust.org iar to many pet tortoise keepers. triggers to aestivation. Lack of food The semi-solid, white deposits of and environmental water are major § expelled urates. Tortoises are 'pro- factors, as is temperature. In grammed' not to use water in the Morocco aestivation typically begins bladder to eliminate these unless when temperatures exceed 29ºPage 9

The Newsletter of the Minnesota Herpetological Society

Climate Change Forecast to Extinguish One Million Species WASHINGTON, DC, January 8, 2004 (ENS)

Climate change could drive more than a quarter of all land animals and plants into extinction, a new study published today has determined. The Earth's warming climate could extinguish the existence of more than one million species, the researchers estimate. The largest collaboration of scientists to ever investigate this issue used computer models to simulate the ways species' ranges are expected to move in response to changing temperatures and climate. Their findings are published in today's edition of the journal "Nature." "This study makes it clear that climate change is the most significant new threat for extinctions this century," said coauthor Lee Hannah, climate change biology senior fellow at the Center for Applied Biodiversity Science at Conservation International. "The combination of increasing habitat loss, already recognized as the largest single threat to species, and climate change, is likely to devastate the ability of species to move and survive." The study ! estimates that climate change projected to take place between now and the year 2050 will place 15 to 37 percent of all species in several biodiversity-rich regions at risk of extinction. The scientists believe there is a high likelihood of extinctions due to climate change in other regions, as well. It is inevitable that at least 18 percent of all land plants and animals now on Earth will be on their way to extinction by 2050, the study finds, based Page 10

March 2004

on the climate changes that have already taken place. But 15 to 20 percent of all land species could be saved from extinction if the minimum scenario of climate warming occurs.

For this study, scientists from the Center for Applied Biodiversity Science worked with their counterparts at the National Botanical Institute of South Africa to model more than 300 plant species in South Africa's Cape Floristic Region, located on the country's southern tip.

In that region, 30 to 40 percent of South African Proteaceae is forecast to go ex! tinct as a result of climate change between now and 2050.

Prot! eaceae i s a family of flowering plants that includes South Africa's national flower, the King Protea. The Cape Floristic Region is considered one of the world's 25 biodiversity hotspots, areas with a large number of unique species under tremendous threat. In all, scientists studied six regions around the world representing 20 percent of the planet's land area and projected the future distributions of 1,103 animal and plant species. Three different climate change scenarios were considered minimal, mid-range and maximum, as was the ability of some species to successfully "disperse," or move to a different area, preventing extinction caused by climate change. The midrange projection is that 24 percent of species will become extinct, and under maximum expected climate change, 35 percent of all land species will cease to exist. "If these projections are extrapolated globally and to other groups of land animals and plants, our analyses suggest that well over a million species could be ! threatened with extinction as a result of climate change," said study

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lead author Chris Thomas of the University of Leeds. These forecasts are for species predicted to go extinct eventually based on climate change between now and 2050, but do not suggest that these species will go extinct by 2050. Small fluctuations in climate can affect a species' ability to remain in its original habitat. Slight increases in temperature can force a species to move toward its preferred, usually cooler, climate range, the scientists explain. If development and habitat destruction have already altered those habitats, the species often have no safe haven. Hannah says the findings underscore the need for a two part conservation strategy.

"First, greenhouse gases must be reduced dramatically, and a rapid switch to new, cleaner technologies could help save innumerable species," he said. "Second, we must design conservation strategies that recognize that climate change is going to affect entire e! cosystems, and therefore have to prepare effective conservatio! n measur es immediately." Global mean temperatures have increased about one degree Fahrenheit over the past century with accelerated warming over the past two decades. Scientists attribute the recent rise of global temperature to human induced activities that have altered the chemical composition of the atmosphere. The buildup of greenhouse gases - primarily carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide - traps heat, acting like a greenhouse in the atmosphere.

HerpDigest V4#20

The Newsletter of the Minnesota Herpetological Society

March 2004

...board continued from page 4

... speaker continued from page 5

new wireless mic for recording the monthly speaker as he is getting board continued from bad audio feedback. He will research prices and purchase. Iguana’s were discussed again regarding Jaime taking them. The issue was tabled for the next meeting.

New Business: Marilyn Blasus will be the Photo Contest Chair, George Richard and Barb Buzicky will be assisting. The White Snake Sale doesn’t have a chair, Randy or Marilyn will fill in temporarily.

Any helpers need to arrive early.

The Board moved and approved $60 for food. Heather Ingrebretson received a large donation from Zoo Med for the WSS, and they have requested a one year MHS Newsletter Gratis from us. The Board moved and approved the one year subscription. The Fun Facts sheets need to be replenished. Liz Bosman said she will get them printed at work. They are needed by February 28th, the Pet

plant matter, and by introducing total protein from mammals into their diet would greatly throw off that animals metabolism and energy. In other words, the meat the animal would eat would greatly disturb the microflora of the digestive track. The animal still has to go through adjustments due fluctuations in the vegetation. Omnivores that eat both plant and animal matter have better resources for their food supplies. They can just eat all the time. Robert says that the energy resources of animals fluctuate according to the diet they ingest. Herbivores and omnivores have the greatest source of energy through the foods they eat.

Robert showed graphs referring to the research on energy budgets and available food along with the changes that take place in the environment. There is still no clear cut research that distinguishes why certain reptiles are herbivores, carnivores, or omnivores. There have been great discussions and many debates for over forty years on this topic.

Expo. The sheets will be folded by Barb Buzicky, Marilyn Blasus, and Randy Blasus. MHS will be selling books at the Pet Expo furnished by Zoo Book Sales.

The Board moved and approved $200 for this purpose. Jodi Aherns requested that his business link be on the MHS Website. The Board moved and approved his request.

Meeting adjourned at 7:47 CST.

PM

Volume 24

WOMAN

Number 3

FINDS SNAKE IN BAG

OF POTATOES AP, Mobile, Ala. 1/27/04 - Atlanta Journal Constitution HerpDigest V4#22 A woman got a little more than she bargained for after a trip to a WalMart in Mobile.Toni Barnard of Semmes, Ala., says she had returned home and had opened a bag of potatoes from the store. As her back was turned to the bag, a foot-long snake appeared -apparently from the potato bag.

Before she knew what was happening, her 11-month-old son Trevor had grabbed the snake and shoved part of it into his mouth.Trevor is lucky he wasn't bitten -- Barnard says she was told the snake was a baby copperhead.Neither Barnard nor WalMart positively identified the snake. It might also have been a corn snake.Wal-Mart says it has pulled those potatoes from the shelves at the store where Barnard bought them. The company is investigating the incident.

What is your theory?

For more information, you can visit his website at: http://www.csun.edu/~ree77914/.

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The Newsletter of the Minnesota Herpetological Society

March 2004

Volume 24

Number 3

COMING TO THE MARCH MEETING•••••

THE ANNUAL MHS

WHITE SNAKE SALE SEE. ..... .

PEOPLE SCRAMBLE TO GET THE LAST BIP IN BEFORE TIME IS CALLEP!

MARVEL ••••••• • •

1

~J1(RJrLL •••••• AT HOW YOU'VE JUST PUT ALL THOSE UNWANTED HERP ITEMS TO COOP USE ANP MAPE ROOM FOR MORE!

Page 12

AT THE GREAT DEALS PEOPLE ARE GETTING ON GREAT STUFF!

The Newsletter of the Minnesota Herpetological Society

March 2004

Volume 24

Number 3

Minnesota Herpetological Society Treasurer's Report Prepared by Liz Bosman, Treasurer For the Month Ending December 31, 2003

Only $5 Per Month......$55 Per Year

INCOME MEMBERSHIP RODENT SALES DONATIONS RAFFLE ADOPTION COVERAGE SALES MSL LIBRARY TOTAL DISBURSEMENTS SPEAKERS FEES NEWS LETTER PRINTING MSL POSTAGE NEWS LETTER MAIL ACCT. PHONE, VOICE MAIL ACCT. TOTAL CASH FLOW CHECKING BEGINNING BALANCE INCOME DEPOSITS DISBURSEMENTS ENDING BALANCE SAVINGS

$ 465.00 $280.00 -$53.00 $133.00 $ 27.75 $2.00 $960.75 $50.00 $386.30 $15.10 $250.00 $ 87.11 $788.51

$153.23 $960.75 $788.51 $325.47 $10,921.73

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The Newsletter of the Minnesota Herpetological Society

March 2004

Volume 24

Number 3

Classified Advertisements Classified ads are free to the membership.

Deadline is the night of the general meeting for inclusion in the next newsletter.

1.0.0 = male, 0.1.0 = female, 0.0.1 = unsexed, cb = captive bred, obo = or best offer, + = times run ( ads are run 3 times unless specifically requested to continue).

For Sale

Wanted

For Sale: 8ft x 5ft x 4ft finished wood and wire cage for sale. Great for iguanas or whatever else might need to be caged.

Basking logs and 2 - 4ft uvb light fixtures included. Asking around $250.00. Email julie@rimblas.com or call 612.597.1612. +

Wanted: All the shed snake skins in the world. Needed for giveaways to kids at educational programs. Call Bob Duerr 651-489-5087 Wanted: Creative people to come up with fun MHS rodent sales ads.

Flightless Fruitflies – Excellent food for dart frogs, mantellas, hatchling geckos, baby chameleons, spiderlings, and other small herps. Two species available: Drosophila melanogaster (small) and Drosophila hydei (large). $5/culture or $25/6 cultures. Each culture contains 30 to 50 adult flies and has potential to produce several hundred young. Also, Mealworms, two sizes available – regular and mini. $5/1000. Can be delivered to MHS meetings. Call Tony Gamble 612-747-6682 or For Sale: 2003 hatchling snakes, all produced by me.

Corn Snakes: $15.00 $25.00 depending on color phase.

Normals, Anerythristics and Hypomelanistics, ($15.00 ea), Amelanistics and Snows ($20.00 ea) and Ghosts ($25.00 ea). Discounts for quantity purchases.

Sinaloan Milk Snakes: $40.00 ea. Ball Pythons: $40.00 ea (only males available) Adult snakes. 1.1 pair of hybrid Northern pine X Bull snake. 3 yr old proven breeders $120.00/ pr. 0.1 Bullsnake. 5 yo produced

by Randy Blasus.

Snappish attitude. $50.00, 0.1 Mex Milk snake, 6 yo. Also with a snappish attitude. $60.00; 3.8 adult normal Leopard Geckos. Proven breeders. $10.00 to $25.00 each. Make me an offer on the whole group. I can deliver to MHS meetings, Call me at 651 481-0127 ask for Mark Schmidtke +++ Frozen Rabbits - all sizes.

Prices very reasonable - pinkies to adults. Jim Daluge 763.295.2818 For Sale: 0.0.5 Black ratsnakes (E.o.obsoleta), $10 ea.

D.K. Compton 612.872.7266 compt001@umn.edu +++

Mice Pinkies Fuzzies Hoppers Adults

$7/dz $7/dz $8/dz $10/dz

Rats Pinkies Fuzzies Sm Adult Med Adult Lg Adult Jumbo

$9/dz $15/dz $18/dz $24/dz $30/dz $36/dz

For pick-up at monthly meetings only. Orders Must be placed at least one week in advance of date of meeting at which the frozen rodents are to be delivered.

Place orders with Jody Holmstrom at 651.224.7212 or jodyalso@yahoo.com Page 14

G E T Y O U R M E S S A G E TO Y O U R TA R G E T A U D I E N C E W I T H A 1 / 4 PA G E A D . $10 PER MONTH $ 11 0 P E R Y E A R *

*12th month is free on a one year commitment Advertising Policies MHS Ad Policy: The MHS assumes NO RESPONSIBILITY regarding the health or legality of any animal, or the quality or legality of any product or service advertised in the MHS Newsletter. Any ad may be rejected at the discretion of the Newsletter Editor. Due to space limitations, unpaid and complimentary advertisements are subject to occasional omission.

MHS AD RATES Business card 1/4 Page 1/2 Page Full Page

$5/Month $10/Month $20/Month $40/Month

$55/Year* $110/Year* $220/Year* $440/Year*

* Note: 12th month is free on a one year commitment

Classified Ads: All active members are allowed a classified ad, run free of charge as space permits. Ads may be ran three consecutive months, after which time they may be resubmitted. Corresponding members are allowed a complimentary business card advertisement monthly as space permits. Due to federal restrictions on Non-profit mailing permits, we are not allowed to run ads for travel, credit or insurance agencies.

Submissions: All advertisements should be submitted to the MHS Editor, Bell Museum of Natural History, 10 Church St. SE, Minneapolis, MN 55455. Deadline is the night of the General Meeting for inclusion in the next newsletter. Make checks payable to: Minnesota Herpetological Society.

Minnesota Herpetological Society Membership Application New

Name

Renewal

Address

Membership#

City, State, Zip,

Type

Phone

Check #

Herp related interests

Active Memberships: Sustaining ($60/year)

Email

List in MHS Directory?

Yes

No

Contributing ($30/year) Basic ($15/year)

Corresponding Memberships: Commercial ($25/year 2 Business Card Ads/year) Required check info. Drivers Lic # State DOB Please enclose the proper payment with your application. Make Checks Payable To: Minnesota Herpetological Society.

Membership is for 12 months from the date of approval, a receipt will be sent only upon request. Mail to: Minnesota Herpetological Society, Bell Museum of Natural History, 10 Church St. SE, Minneapolis, MN 55455. Please allow 6-8 weeks for processing.

MINNESOTA HERPETOLOGICAL SOCIETY BELL MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY 10 CHURCH STREET SE MINNEAPOLIS, MN 55455-0104

Non-Profit Rate U.S. Postage PAID Mpls, MN Permit No. 2275

ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED

POSTMASTER: PLEASE DELIVER BY MARCH 2

Next Meeting: Friday, March 5, 2004 7:00PM Room 335 Borlaug Hall, U of M St. Paul Campus

MHS Voice Mail: 612.624.7065

MHS Web Page: www.mnherpsoc.org