Vol. 29 (2009), No. 11

MI ESOTA HERPETOLOGICAL SOCIETY NEWSLETTER

THE MHS NEWSLETTER IS NOW STAPLE FREE! My Trip to the Midwest Symposium and N.A.R.B.C. by Jennifer Hensley page 4 Legless Frog Mystery Solved pages 5 & 6 - Terry Odegaard Speaker Review page 8 T J Uriona Speaker Review page 9 - - - Plus Treasurer and Adoption Reports!

November 2009

Volume 29

Number 11

MHS Board of Directors

Minnesota Herpetological Society

President Jennifer Hensley Starbrst72@mns.com

763.862.8966

November 2009

Vice President David Dewitt Ddewitt777@comcast.net

651.983.8272

MHS Voice Mail: 612.624.7065

Group Email: HTTP://WWW.GROUPS.YAHOO.COM/GROUP/ MNHERPSOC

The purpose of the Minnesota Herpetological Society is to: 763.593.5414 CD

Treasurer Nancy Haig nanchaig@citilink.com

763.434.8684

Newsletter Editor Kathy Claugherty iwannaiguana@gmail.com

651.771.2267

It

It

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.

Members at Large Heather Clayton heethuh@netzero.com Jeff LeClere Reptilia74@aol.com

Number 11

MHS Web Page: HTTP://WWW.MNHERPSOC .ORG

Recording Secretary Jenna Rypka-Hauer Justna_na@yahoo.com Membership Secretary Ellen Heck Inheck@msn.com

Volume 29

651.488.6388

Chris Smith Chris.smith.mhs@gmail.com Jared Rypka-Hauer jared@web-relevant.com

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 website for changes in schedules or cancellations.

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.

Committees Adoption Chair Sarah Richard realsarah@aol.com

612.781.9544

Education Chair Jan Larson Jan.skunkhollow@juno.com

507.263.4391

Web Master Anke Reinders theMHSwebmaster@yahoo.com Library Carmelita Pfar

Submissions may be sent to: The Minnesota Herpetological Society Attn: Newsletter Editor Bell Museum of Natural History 10 Church St. SE. Minneapolis, MN 55455.0104 Please send email toiwannaiguana@gmail.com

Š Copyright Minnesota Herpetological Society 2009. Contents may be reproduced for non-profit use provided that all material is reproduced without change and proper credit is given authors and the MHS Newsletter citing; volume, number, and date.

Cover Photo:

N.A.R.B.C. Show at Tinley Park by Jennifer Hensley

Snake Bite Emergency Hennepin Regional Poison Center 800.222.1222

Newsletter of the Minnesota Herpetological Society November 2009 Volume 29 Number 11

alen ar f

vents

November Speaker Benjamin J. Chan will be speaking on the parental care of Dendrobates auratus

December Meeting and Holiday Banquet Speaker Kate Jackson Assistant Professor, Department of Biology, Whitman College Author, Teacher, Consultant, Researcher Friday night she will be reading from her book, "Mean and Lowly Things: Snakes, Science, and Survival in the Congo" We are also working on a book signing.

Saturday Kate will speak on "How Snakes Eat and Why"

MHS Annual Meeting and Elections We'll be having the election for the 2010 board members at December's meeting.

This means that anyone interested in a position should inform the Recording Secretary.

The positions are: President (Jennifer Hensley) Vice-President (Dave Dewitt) - Recording Secretary (Jenna Rypka-Hauer) Treasurer (Nancy Haig) Newsletter Editor (Kathy Claugherty) Membership Secretary (Ellen Heck) Member at Large (4 positions) (Chris Smith, Jeff LeClere, Heather Clayton and Jared Rypka-Hauer) To be eligible, you must be a current member. If you have any questions regarding the duties of the positions, contact Jenna Rypka-Hauer the Recording Secretary, Jenn Hensley the president, or the current person holding each position.

Jenna will not be running for recording secretary again, so we really need someone to step up if they are at all interested. She will be confirming the availability of the other positions and updating the members. However, anyone meeting the eligibility requirements can run against current members desiring to . serve another term.

Please let Jenna know if you would like to be added to the ballot. Here's your chance to become involved with the MHS!

NOTICE OF CHANGE IN ANNUAL MEETING AND ELECTIONS Due to an oversight by the Board, proper notice of the upcoming election was not given to the membership in writing in time for the November meeting. We sincerely apologize and are doing all we can to correct this oversight. As a result, we have opted to move the Annual Meeting and Elections to December 4th , 2009 in order to comply with the MHS bylaws.

The entire board expresses our sincere apology and hopes this communication finds you all well.

Due to a proofing oversight part of Heather Clayton's article was missing in last month's issue. For a complete copy of her work you may email herat:heethuh@netzero.com. The Editor regrets the error.

3

Newsletter of the Minnesota Herpetological Society

November 2009 Volume 29 Number 11

My Trip to the Midwest Symposium and N.A.R.B.C. Show and Sale

by Jennifer Hensley Here it was the second week in October already and I was heading to Chicago! I have never been to a big reptile show and I had never experienced the Midwest. I have always wanted to but something always came up before. This time was no exception! My dog sitter came down with H1 N1 and we almost had to cancel our trip before a last minute stand in was found and able to stay the weekend at the house with the animals (he knows who he is and this is another big THANK YOU!!).

So we pile into the van and take off at 11 am (we had planned to leave at 9 HA!). We arrived at the hotel around 8:30 pm tired and hungry. Chicago Pizza!!! So I missed the first two speakers about field herping that were scheduled for Friday night but from what I hear they were phenomenal talks! !

I left the hotel at 7:00 AM in the morning to go register that I was there and received my welcome packet which was a really NICE snake bag with the symposium and Chicago Herpetological Society logos, lanyard and name tag and sat and talked with the Chicago Herpetological Society for about an hour. I felt very welcome to an event that I had NO clue how it was going to be. They began sharing some of their more recent trips to snake road and what they had found as well as sharing stories about our random mishaps in the world of keeping captive bred herps!

I had decided on the talks I was planning to attend and left to pick up the rest of my party and get over to the N.A.R.B.C show. We arrived to a LONG LONG line of people. It was nice to see the turnout that came.

As we walked in we saw several people we knew and it was nice to start conversing right away. If you had never been to a show you would have been awestruck just as I was, seeing all rows and rows of booths and sooo many people in one place all there for the same reason: The love of Reptiles and Amphibians! There were conservation booths and lots and lots of major retail breeders. Once in it was like being a kid in a candy store! Soooo much to see. Well so much see that I mis'sed the first speaker I wanted to hear at the symposium. Maybe I should elaborat~ here that the symposium was 6 miles down the road so it was not as easy as going to another room! There was so much to look at that we forgot to eat all day!

I look at the time and suddenly the last speaker I wanted to see was starting in an hour. I ran over to the symposium and got there in time to again sit down with the Chicago society and shoot the breeze before the talk started. We talked about how many times we have been bitten and what was the worst bite we have had, the troubles of finding people to talk at our meetings and the common troubles of times and places and getting people to the meetings! It was nice to know that its hard everywhere to get all these people in one place at one time to really get to know each other. I sat down to hear about Cobra Toxins and how they are immune to their own toxins. The speaker was funny, educational, and downright entertaining!

Back to the show and sale as they kicked us out at the Symposium to prepare for the banquet. I arrive at the Show and sale just in time to pick up everyone from my party, to drop stuff off at the room before the Show and Sale auction is set to start. The auction was long and it's harder if you are not part of the VIP tables in front. But lots of good deals were made and all in all, we left the auction happy. I did not make it back to the Symposium auction, as my party could not be left at the other with the chill that was in the air. I heard from many that were in attendance that that auction also went very well. We finally went out to eat at 10 pm and back to the hotel by midnight to get some sleep before Sunday's early morning. I dragged another member along to go to the Lessons learned and planning session for the next few years of symposiums. The next being in St Louis and I think EVERYONE should go!! What will be the nicest is you will not have to zoom between a show and sale as well as the Symposium. Which don't get me wrong I enjoyed both greatly! It just divides your attention and presence and it's hard to feel like you gave either the attention they deserved.

I strongly feel that everyone should attend at least one of these to network with other Societies and to meet people from many other states who love the same things you do. Everyone was nice and accommodating as well as willing to talk and share stories. I felt welcome at both events

to

4

Newsletter of the Minnesota Herpetological Society November 2009 Volume 29 Number 11

Le less fr gs

ystery solved

Matt Walker: Editor, Earth News

Scientists think they have resolved one of the most controversial environmental issues of the past decade: the curious case of the m issing frogs , legs.

Around the world, frogs are found with missing or misshaped limbs, a striking deformity that many researchers believe is cause by chemical pollution. However, tests on frogs and toads have revealed a more natural, benign cause.

The deformed frogs are actually victims of the predatory habits of dragonfly nymphs, which eat the legs of tadpoles.

In the late 1980's researchers started getting reports of numerous wild frogs or toads being found with extra legs or arms, or with limbs that were partly formed or missing completely.

The cause of these deformities soon became a hotly contested issue. Some researchers believed they might be caused naturally, by predators or parasites. Others thought that was highly unlikely, fearing that chemical pollution, or UV-B radiation caused by the thinning of the ozone layer, was triggering the deformations.

"Deformed frogs became one of the most contentious environmental issues of all time, with the parasite researcher on one side, and the 'chemical company' as I call them, on the other," says Stanley Sessions, an amphibian specialist and professor of biology at Hartwick College, in Oneonta, New York. "There was a veritable media firestorm, with millions of dollars of grant money at stake." After a long period of research, Sessions and other researchers established that many amphibians with extra limbs were actually infected by small parasitic flatworms called Riberroria trematodes. These creatures burrow into the hindquarters of tadpoles where they physically rearrange the limb bud cells and thereby interfere with limb development. "But that was not the end of the story," says Sessions. "Frogs with extra limbs may have been the most dramatic-looking deformities, but they are by far the least common deformities found," he explains. "The most commonly found deformities are frogs or toads with missing or truncated limbs, ,and although parasites occasionally cause limbless ness in a frog, these deformities are, almost never associated with the trematode species know to cause extra limbs." ' The mystery of what causes frogsto have missing or deformed limbs remained unsolved until Sessions teamed up with colleague Brandon Ballengee of the University of Plymouth, UK. They report theil- findings in the Journal of Experimental Zoology Pert B: Molecular and Developmental Evolution.

For a decade, Ballengee and Sessions have collaborated on a series of art and science projects that image amphibians' bodies to show the detail within, the most recent of which is funded by the Arts Catalyst organization, based in London.

As part of this work, Ballengee and Richard Sunter, the official Recorder of Reptiles and Amphibians in Yorkshire, spent time during the summers of 2006 - 2008 surveying the occurrence of deformities in wild amphibians at three ponds in the county. In all, they found that between 1.2% and 9.8% of tadpoles or metamorphosed toads at each location had hind limb deformities. Three had missing eyes.

"We were very surprised when we found so many metamorphic toads with abnormal limbs, as it was thought to be a North American phenomenon," says Ballengee. While surveying, Ballengee also discovered a range of natural predators he suspected could be to blame, including stickleback fish, newts, diving beetles, water scorpions and predatory dragonfly nymphs.

So Ballengee and Sessions decided to test how each predator preyed upon the tadpoles, by placing them together in fish tanks in the lab. None did, except three species of dragonfly nymph.

Crucially though, the nymphs rarely ate the tadpoles whole. More often than not, they would grab the tadpole and chew at a hind limb, often removing it altogether. "Once they grab the tadpole, they use their front legs to turn it around, searching for the tender bits, in this case the hind limb buds, which they then snip off with their mandibles," says Sessions.

continued on next page

5

MHS Board of Directors

Minnesota Herpetological Society

President Jennifer Hensley Starbrst72@mns.com

763.862.8966

November 2009

Vice President David Dewitt Ddewitt777@comcast.net

651.983.8272

MHS Voice Mail: 612.624.7065

Group Email: HTTP://WWW.GROUPS.YAHOO.COM/GROUP/ MNHERPSOC

The purpose of the Minnesota Herpetological Society is to: 763.593.5414

..

Treasurer Nancy Haig nanchaig@citilink.com

763.434.8684

Newsletter Editor Kathy Claugherty iwannaiguana@gmail.com

651.771.2267

• •

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.

Members at Large Heather Clayton heethuh@netzero.com Jeff LeClere Reptilia 74@aol.com

Number 11

MHS Web Page: HTTP://WWW.MNHERPSOC .ORG

Recording Secretary Jenna Rypka-Hauer Justna_na@yahoo.com Membership Secretary Ellen Heck Inheck@msn.com

Volume 29

651.488.6388

Chris Smith Chris.smith.mhs@gmail.com Jared Rypka-Hauer jared@web-relevant.com

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 website for changes in schedules or cancellations.

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.

Committees Adoption Chair Sarah Richard realsarah@aol.com

612.781.9544

Education Chair Jan Larson Jan.skunkhollow@juno.com

507.263.4391

Web Master Anke Reinders theMHSwebmaster@yahoo.com Library Carmel ita Pfar

Submissions may be sent to: The Minnesota Herpetological Society Attn: Newsletter Editor Bell Museum of Natural History 10 Church St. SE. Minneapolis, MN 55455.0104 Please send email toiwannaiguana@gmail.com

© Copyright Minnesota Herpetological Society 2009. Contents may be reproduced for non-profit use provided that all material is reproduced without change and proper credit is given authors and the MHS Newsletter citing; volume, number, and date.

Cover Photo:

N.A.R.B.C. Show at Tinley Park by Jennifer Hensley

Snake Bite Emergency Hennepin Regional Poison Center 800.222.1222

Newsletter of the Minnesota Herpetological Society November 2009 Volume 29 Number 11

alenda of vents November Speaker Benjamin J. Chan will be speaking on the parental care of Dendrobates auratus

December Meeting and Holiday Banquet Speaker Kate Jackson Assistant Professor, Department of Biology, Whitman College Author, Teacher, Consultant, Researcher Friday night she will be reading from her book, "Mean and Lowly Things: Snakes, Science, and Survival in the Congo" We are also working on a book signing.

Saturday Kate will speak on "How Snakes Eat and Why"

MHS Annual Meeting and Elections We'll be having the election for the 2010 board members at December's meeting.

This means that anyone interested in a position should inform the Recording Secretary.

The positions are: President (Jennifer Hensley) Vice-President (Dave Dewitt) - Recording Secretary (Jenna Rypka-Hauer) Treasurer (Nancy Haig) Newsletter Editor (Kathy Claugherty) Membership Secretary (Ellen Heck) Member at Large (4 positions) (Chris Smith, Jeff LeClere, Heather Clayton and Jared Rypka-Hauer) To be eligible, you must be a current member. If you have any questions regarding the duties of the positions, contact Jenna Rypka-Hauer the Recording Secretary, Jenn Hensley the president, or the current person holding each position.

Jenna will not be running for recording secretary again, so we really need someone to step up if they are at all interested. She will be confirming the availability of the other positions and updating the members. However, anyone meeting the eligibility requirements can run against current members desiring to . serve another term.

Please let Jenna know if you would like to be added to the ballot. Here's your chance to become involved with the MHS!

NOTICE OF CHANGE IN ANNUAL MEETING AND ELECTIONS Due to an oversight by the Board, proper notice of the upcoming election was not given to the membership in writing in time for the November meeting. We sincerely apologize and are doing all we can to correct this oversight. As a result, we have opted to move the Annual Meeting and Elections to December 4th, 2009 in order to comply with the MHS bylaws.

The entire board expresses our sincere apology and hopes this communication finds you all well.

Due to a proofing oversight part of Heather Clayton's article was missing in last month's issue. For a complete copy of her work you may email herat:heethuh@netzero.com. The Editor regrets the error.

3

Newsletter of the Minnesota Herpetological Society

November 2009 Volume 29 Number 11

My Trip to the Midwest Symposium and N.A.R.B.C. Show and Sale

by Jennifer Hensley Here it was the second week in October already and I was heading to Chicago! I have never been to a big reptile show and I had never experienced the Midwest. I have always wanted to but something always came up before. This time was no exception! My dog sitter came down with H1 N1 and we almost had to cancel our trip before a last minute stand in was found and able to stay the weekend at the house with the animals (he knows who he is and this is another big THANK YOU!!).

So we pile into the van and take off at 11 am (we had planned to leave at 9 HA!). We arrived at the hotel around 8:30 pm tired and hungry. Chicago Pizza!!! So I missed the first two speakers about field herping that were scheduled for Friday night but from what I hear they were phenomenal talks! !

I left the hotel at 7:00 AM in the morning to go register that I was there and received my welcome packet which was a really NICE snake bag with the symposium and Chicago Herpetological Society logos, lanyard and name tag and sat and talked with the Chicago Herpetological Society for about an hour. I felt very welcome to an event that I had NO clue how it was going to be. They began sharing some of their more recent trips to snake road and what they had found as well as sharing stories about our random mishaps in the world of keeping captive bred herps!

I had decided on the talks I was planning to attend and left to pick up the rest of my party and get over to the N.A.R.B.C show. We arrived to a LONG LONG line of people. It was nice to see the turnout that came.

As we walked in we saw several people we knew and it was nice to start conversing right away. If you had never been to a show you would have been awestruck just as I was, seeing all rows and rows of booths and sooo many people in one place all there for the same reason: The love of Reptiles and Amphibians! There were conservation booths and lots and lots of major retail breeders. Once in it was like being a kid in a candy store! Soooo much to see. Well so much t() see that I missed the first 'speaker I wanted to hear at the symposium. Maybe I should elaborate here that the symposium was 6 miles down the road so it was not as easy as going to another room! There was so much to look at that we forgot to eat all day!

I look at the time and suddenly the last speaker I wanted to see was starting in an hour. I ran over to the symposium and got there in time to again sit down with the Chicago society and shoot the breeze before the talk started. We talked about how many times we have been bitten and what was the worst bite we have had, the troubles of finding people to talk at our meetings and the common troubles of times and places and getting people to the meetings! It was nice to know that its hard everywhere to get all these people in one place at one time to really get to know each other. I sat down to hear about Cobra Toxins and how they are immune to their own toxins. The speaker was funny, educational, and downright entertaining!

Back to the show and sale as they kicked us out at the Symposium to prepare for the banquet. I arrive at the Show and sale just in time to pick up everyone from my party, to drop stuff off at the room before the Show and Sale auction is set to start. The auction was long and it's harder if you are not part of the VIP tables in front. But lots of good deals were made and all in all, we left the auction happy. I did not make it back to the Symposium auction, as my party could not be left at the other with the chill that was in the air. I heard from many that were in attendance that that auction also went very well. We finally went out to eat at 10 pm and back to the hotel by midnight to get some sleep before Sunday's early morning. I dragged another member along to go to the Lessons learned and planning session for the next few years of symposiums. The next being in St Louis and I think EVERYONE should go!! What will be the nicest is you will not have to zoom between a show and sale as well as the Symposium. Which don't get me wrong I enjoyed both greatly! It just divides your attention and presence and it's hard to feel like you gave either the attention they deserved.

I strongly feel that everyone should attend at least one of these to network with other Societies and to meet people from many other states who love the same things you do. Everyone was nice and accommodating as well as willing to talk and share stories. I felt welcome at both events

4

Newsletter of the Minnesota Herpetological Society November 2009 Volume 29 Number 11

Le less fro s

yste

s Ive

Matt Walker: Editor, Earth News

Scientists think they have resolved one of the most controversial environmental issues of the past decade: the curious case of the missing frogs , legs.

Around the world, frogs are found with missing or misshaped limbs, a striking deformity that many researchers believe is cause by chemical pollution. However, tests on frogs and toads have revealed a more natural, benign cause.

The deformed frogs are actually victims of the predatory habits of dragonfly nymphs, which eat the legs of tadpoles.

In the late 1980's researchers started getting reports of numerous wild frogs or toads being found with extra legs or arms, or with limbs that were partly formed or missing completely.

The cause of these deformities soon became a hotly contested issue. Some researchers believed they might be caused naturally, by predators or parasites. Others thought that was highly unlikely, fearing that chemical pollution, or UV-B radiation caused by the thinning of the ozone layer, was triggering the deformations.

"Deformed frogs became one of the most contentious environmental issues of all time, with the parasite researcher on one side, and the 'chemical company' as I call them, on the other," says Stanley Sessions, an amphibian specialist and professor of biology at Hartwick College, in Oneonta, New York. "There was a veritable media firestorm, with millions of dollars of grant money at stake." After a long period of research, Sessions and other researchers established that many amphibians with extra limbs were actually infected by small parasitic flatworms called Riberroria trematodes. These creatures burrow into the hindquarters of tadpoles where they physically rearrange the limb bud cells and thereby interfere with limb development. "But that was not the end of the story," says Sessions. "Frogs with extra limbs may have been the most dramatic-looking deformities, but they are by far the least common deformities found," he explains. "The most commonly found deformities are frogs or toads with missing or truncated limbs"and although parasites occasionally cause limbless ness in a frog, these deformities are almost never associated with the trematode species know to cause extra limbs." , , The mystery of what causes frogs to have missing or deformed limbs remained l:msolved until Sessions teamed up with colleague Brandon Ballengee of the University of Plymouth, UK. They report theij- findings in the Journal of Experimental Zoology Pert B: Molecular and Developmental Evolution.

For a decade, Ballengee and Sessions have collaborated on a series of art and science projects that image amphibians' bodies to show the detail within, the most recent of which is funded by the Arts Catalyst organization, based in London.

As part of this work, Ballengee and Richard Sunter, the official Recorder of Reptiles and Amphibians in Yorkshire, spent time during the summers of 2006 - 2008 surveying the occurrence of deformities in wild amphibians at three ponds in the county. In all, they found that between 1.2% and 9.8% of tadpoles or metamorphosed toads at each location had hind limb deformities. Three had missing eyes.

"We were very surprised when we found so many metamorphic toads with abnormal limbs, as it was thought to be a North American phenomenon," says Ballengee. While surveying, Ballengee also discovered a range of natural predators he suspected could be to blame, including stickleback fish, newts, diving beetles, water scorpions and predatory dragonfly nymphs.

So Ballengee and Sessions decided to test how each predator preyed upon the tadpoles, by placing them together in fish tanks in the lab. None did, except three species of dragonfly nymph.

Crucially though, the nymphs rarely ate the tadpoles whole. More often than not, they would grab the tadpole and chew at a hind limb, often removing it altogether. "Once they grab the tadpole, they use their front legs to turn it around, searching for the tender bits, in this case the hind limb buds, which they then snip off with their mandibles," says Sessions.

continued on next page

5

Newsletter of the Minnesota Herpetological Society

November 2009 Volume 29

Number 11

Legless frog mystery solved, cont.

Stunted growth Remarkably, many tadpoles survive this ordeal. "Often the tadpole 'is released and is able to swim away to live for another day," says Sessions. "If it survives, it metamorphoses into a toad with missing or deformed hind limbs, depending on the developmental stage of the tadpole." If tadpoles are attacked when they are very young, they can often regenerate their leg completely, but this ability diminishes as they grow older. The researchers confirmed this by surgically removing the hind limbs of some tadpoles and watching them grow. These tadpoles developed in an identical way to those whose limbs had been removed by dragonflies, confirming that losing a limb at a certain stage of a tadpole's development can lead to missing or deformed limbs in adulthood. Adult amphibians with one hind limb appear able to live for quite a long time, Sessions says, explaining why so many deformed frogs and toads are discovered. Why do the dragonflies like to eat the hind legs only? As toad tadpoles mature, they develop poison glands in their skin much earlier than those in their hind legs, which could make the hind legs a far more palatable meal. The front legs of tadpoles also develop within the gill chamber, where they are protected. Sessions is careful to say that he doesn't completely rule out chemicals as the cause of some missing limbs. But 'selective predation' by dragonfly nymphs in now by far the leading explanation, he says. "Are parasites sufficient to cause extra limbs?" he asks. "Yes. Is selective predation by dragonfly nymphs sufficient to cause loss or reduction of limbs. Yes. Are chemical pollutants necessary to understand either of these phenomena? No." Story from BBG NEWS: http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/earth/hi/earth_news/newsid _8116000/8116692.stm Published: 2009/061251 09:48:43 GMT

July 11,2009 Meeting MHS Board of Directors Board Present: Jennifer Hensley, Ellen Heck, Chris Smith, Jeff LeClere, Dave Dewitt, Nancy Haig, Kathy Claugherty, Jared RypkaHauer, Jenna Rypka-Hauer Absent: Heather Clayton The meeting was called to order at 6:25 pm.

Opening remarks - July membership meeting had 102 counted in attendance.

Secretary's Report The minutes were read. Several corrections were made.

It was moved, seconded and passed to accept minutes as corrected.

Treasurer's Report The total monthly income was $1510.25 and the total monthly expense was $1416.45 for a net gain of $93.80 for the month of June.

Membership Report Report was reviewed.

Vice President's Report The speaker schedule was reviewed and additional speaker leads were discussed.

Old Business Phone and Voicemail - It was moved that we accept the plan to transition our telecommunication services from the U of M to Skype and that Nancy Haig, Jared Rypka-Hauer and Ellen Heck work together to set up 2 lines for 1 year. Motion seconded and passed.

September's board meeting - It was decided that the September board meeting will be held at Como Cottage at 4pm.

New Business Alana Curtis will be helping Jan with the education committee.

Meeting adjourned at 9:24pm.

6

Newsletter of the Minnesota Herpetological Society

November 2009

Volume 29

Treasurer's Report for July 2009

Treasurer's Report for Aug 2009

Prepared by Nancy Haig

Prepared by Nancy Haig

$22,912.09

Beginning Checkbook Balance: Income:

Number 11

$20,145.38

Beginning Checkbook Balance: Income:

Membership Raffle

$125.00

Rodent sales

$40.00 $417.00

Hands Ons

$250.00

Adoption

Donation

Membership

$94.25

$119.00

Adoption

$190.00

Rodent sales

$800.00

Donation

$75.00

$180.00

Raffle

$50.00 $1,001.25

Total income:

$1,001.25

Total income:

Expense: Newsletter

Expense: Newsletter

$388.30

Field Survey

Field Survey

$227.37

Program

Program Voicemail Vet Costs

$388.30 $(400.00) $524.37

$50.00

Voicemail

$92.32

$92.32 $60.00

Vet Costs

$120.00

Insurance

$924.38 $969.57

Library

$27.97

Rodents

Grants

$2,922.00

Renfest Volunteer awards

$3 Z6Z 96

Total Expense Cash increase/(decrease)

($2.y66.71)

Ending Checkbook Balance:

$20,145.38

Supplies

$60.17 $516.37 $22.44

Cash increase/(decrease)

$3 2H 92 ($1,878.92

Ending Checkbook Balance:

$18,266.46

Total Expense

Placement of cash holdings Checking account

$20,145.38

Paypal acct

$382.37

Cash on hand

$155 00

Total Notes: Income $75.00 donation for use of Como Cottage.

Expense: Grants paid to Amy Luxbacker $1500.00 Matt Grifford $1422.00

September adoption Turtles: 10 Minnesota Painted's, some with shell rot 1 Florida Painted 2 juv Sliders (Cumberland?)

3 Red Eared Sliders Mediterranean Russian 3 Toed box Snakes: 3 Balls 2 Common Boas 2 Hog Island Boas juv both female 2 King's one Albino 1 Cal. 1 Sinaloan Milk Lizards: Small Nile 3 Leo Gecko's 1 Collarded Lizard

Placement of cash holdings Checking account

$20,682.75

Paypal acct Cash on hand Total

$18,266.46 $382.37 $15500

$18,803.83

Notes: Income $50.00 donation from Herpers DVD.

October adoptions

Two Red Eared Sliders Two smaller Painted Turtles.

An overweight Tegu tame but with no claws A Macklot's Python, juvenile.

A nice Corn Snake

7

Newsletter of the Minnesota Herpetological Society

November 2009

Volume 29

Number 11

Herping in Kansas, or How I found Herp Heaven Terry Odegaard, one of the founding members of MHS, shared his wisdom and stories with us at the September general meeting. He has herped in many exciting places, such as Florida, South Carolina, Texas and Baja Mexico, but Kansas is his favorite place. All that is needed is knowledge of where and how to look, and there are herps galore.

He presented a completely candid video of one of his herping adventures. It was filmed during one afternoon from 10am to 3pm during the last week of April. He took a road trip with Brandon Peridot and they looked under roadside rocks and searched one abandoned farmhouse. Permission should be granted before going on any land. Terry talks to people while looking along the side of the road and has created good friendships that way.

Under a single rock an orange skink, a blue racer and a female collard lizard were found. Male collared lizards get bright green when they are warm. Blue racers get their name because they become bluer as they grow and shed. Terry shares that you are more likely to find herps under thinner rocks because they are warmer. He also cautions not to step on the rocks there could be something under it getting squished.

As they moved along the roadside, they found numerous snakes, including ring necked snakes, which curl their tails and move fast, a garter snake, a diamondback water snake that was mean and nasty, a black rat snake, great plains rat snake, and a speckled king snake.

Farmyards take longer to warm up than the rocky hillsides. Since it was late April, they only found 1 ring necked snake in the abandoned farmyard. A general rule of thumb is there is always at least 1 pair of black rat snakes in every barnyard.

Back along the road, they found a big male bull snake. They raise their head like a cobra, hiss loudly and buzz their tail when mad. The video showed Terry's technique of turning around while picking up large snakes like bulls and black rats.

He explained how big snakes will go for the face instead of the hand as garters do. They target the face because they see eyes, and are attracted to your breath. If you turn around while picking it up, it will miss your face because you are no longer where it originally aimed. Bull snake, black rat snake and fox snake bites are very innocuous. Garter and water snakes have a more irritating saliva and they yank back and tear skin as they let go.

Terry professes that if you treat a snake gently, it will be gentle with you. If you thre~ten it, from above like a predator, it will get defensive. When you have it sit on your hand, you're undE路r i(and particularly ifthe .animal is cold, you pose no threat. Let them hold you instead of you holding them. Snakes will often do the opposite of what you want them to. If you want them to go into a box, they will pull it away from it. If you want to hold on to it, it will try to get away, and if you try to shake it off, it will hang on tighter.

He suggests using gloves for picking up rocks, and bare hands for animals. Rocks are rough and after moving dozens in a short while, your skin will get raw if its not protected. Also, there are scorpions under lots of rocks in Kansas and gloves protect you from scorpion stings.

He tells us to be careful in a strange place. Copperheads blend into surroundings so well. Rivers and streams can change with weather. He saw a small stream turn into a 6' wide and 1.5' deep raging river, which took away a rock a foot in diameter like a pop bottle.

On his many herping trips, Terry has found many other animals in addition to reptiles including foxes, coyotes, whitetail and mule deer, badgers, raccoons, opossums, and pack rats. He suggests looking for pack rats on the last day of a trip and bringing them home to feed to your snakes. They don't try to bite when they get picked up. Jumping mice in Texas don't bite either.

He has seen many birds on his adventures as well. The scissortail flycatcher bird has an indescribable acrobatic display.

He came face to face with a turkey vulture sitting on an egg once as well. Their eggs are 3-4 times the size of a chicken egg, and are cone-shaped so they won't roll off ledges where they typically nest. Birds of prey he has seen include kestrels, screech, horned and barred owls, and hawks.

While he didn't see any on the trip he shared with us, he has also found the following herps in Kansas: small mouth salamanders, bull frogs, cricket frogs, narrow mouth frogs, American toads, western hognose snake, Mississauga, western and eastern coach whips, snapping turtles, skinks, broad-headed, 5-lined and northern prairie skinks, and box turtles. The ornate box turtle is state reptile of Kansas and they also have 3 toed box turtles.

He brought Kansas herps to show us, along with some Minnesota native snakes to compare them to. On display were Kansas milk snakes, a pair of Minnesota's eastern milk snake, and Kansas box turtles. The 3-toed box turtle is one of the most variable reptiles he can think of. Milk snakes are the most widely spread snake in the world, from Maine to Central America. An out of state hunting license is $75 and allows capture of any 5 animals that are not of a restricted species per year.

8

Newsletter of the Minnesota Herpetological Society

November 2009

October Speaker, TaJ. Uriona T J Uriona shared with us the research that he performed at the University of Utah on American alligators. His project about how crocodilians use their lungs to help with underwater movement landed him an article in National Geographic. He used American alligators in his research, but extends his findings to all crocodilians.

The background of his project is based on how easily an animal can move in the water. He included a large equation that explains how speed affects an animal's maneuverability. Basically, if an animal is moving fast, it can move up and down in the water pretty easily. Alligators don't have speed on their side, so he wondered if they have a trick that helps them.

When an object is in the water, whether it floats or sinks depends on its center of buoyancy and center of gravity. They oppose each other, and where each is located determines how an object will lie in the water.

If both centers are near each other, an object is very stable but not very maneuverable. If they are moved, the object can tip and roll.

Alligators and all crocodilians are unique because they have a lot of musculature involved with their lungs. The diaphramaticus in particular, can pull the lungs farther back in their bodies. T J hypothesized that if they move their lungs, their center of buoyancy is moved away from their center of gravity, helping them tip forward and backward, and roll from side to side.

In his research, he attached electrodes to the muscles surrounding the lungs so that he could tell when the alligators were using them. He used an inclinometer to measure how the animals were tipping when they were in the water. He was then able to correlate specific muscle usage to specific motions underwater.

He found that underwater, the'alligators don't breathe, however, their diaphramaticus muscle was active while underwater. He performed the test on multiple animals over multiple half hour to hour-long dives so he could average the data. It was found that the muscle activity for all of the dives was very similar. There was a very obvious activation while the animals would dive, and would then become inactive as the animals came back up to the surface.

To further test his hypothesis, T J placed weights that were 3% of their body weight on the alligators' heads and tails. When the weight was placed on its head, it should make it easier to dive, and when on the tail it should be more difficult. As predicted, the muscle activity was less when their heads were weighted and the muscles showed more activity when the weights were on their tails.

It was also found that in side to side rolling, the opposite sides were active when rolling in different directions. It was noted that there was no outside movement of the alligators when they were rolling. This movement is all made possible by changing the placement of their lungs within their bodies.

In summary, TJ showed that activation of the respiratory muscles are directly correlated to diving and rolling. The activity changes in response to a different center of gravity. These muscles also work in concert with other respiratory muscles.

He has broadened his research to look at the respiratory muscles of other animals. Crocodilians are the only group of animals who have the diaphramaticus, but the pipid frog has a diaphragm that is similar. He conducted the same experiment on them and had similar results for sideto-side action. He also worked with snapping turtles, which have a unique diaphragm in front of their lungs and many respiratory muscles. There was also a lot of activity in the muscles of turtles when they dove. The turtles used their muscles to help stabilize against rolling and to facilitate diving and surfacing. It is amazing that 3 different types of animals have developed similar methods to increase their mobility.

Volume 29

Number 11

by Jenna Rypka .. Hauer

9

Newsletter of the Minnesota Herpetological Society

Classified

November 2009

Volume 29

Number 11

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10

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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

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Friday October 2, 2009 Room 335 Borlaug Hall, U ofM St. Paul Campus

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